The Highland Library Association quickly realized that their ability to raise contributions for the building fund was severely hampered by the fact that they were not a non-profit and donations to the fund would not be tax deductible. They planned to reorganize and submit an application for non-profit status. They met in November of 1983 and elected a new board, which included a volunteer lawyer, George Dudley. They applied for their non-profit status shortly after.
In August 1984, they received news from the IRS that the proper sequence had not been followed in their application. “As a result, the association must reorganize and elect new officers, by-laws, and a board of directors. Dudley anticipated that they could still accomplish all that and receive their non-profit within the next four to five weeks.” (Recorder, 8/23/84)
In September, the Highland County Library Association elected their new officers and directors. Gwen Bowen, wife of James Bowen, was chosen as president. Shirley Eagle was Vice President, George Dudley was secretary and Dorothy Leustig was treasurer. Elected to the board were Stewart Bolling, Peggy Bird, Mrs. Bowen, Joseph Klotz, Hattie Siron, Gloria Hower and Alma Fugelstad. The library leadership re-applied to the IRS and they immediately began a membership drive for the new library organization. They planned their first annual meeting for January and appointed Rev. William Cox as the head of the book selection committee. (Recorder 11/13/84)
At the January 1985 Annual Public Meeting the directors discussed plans for the new building. They were aiming for a total cost of $100,000 and hoped to solicit some volunteer labor. They were now thinking about a two-story building with an English basement.
The basement would house storage and a community meeting room, the first floor would be the library, and the second floor would remain unfinished until additional space was required. They were expecting to receive their non-profit status any day so that raising funds for the building could begin in earnest.
By the end of February, they still had not received their non-profit status from the IRS. Gwen Bowen reported, “she had contacted U. S. Senator John Warner and asked him to look into the matter. She also planned to contact U. S. Representative Jim Olin to ask for his assistance in expediting the tax status request.” (Recorder 2/28/85) The library board continued their fundraising efforts with a book sale during the Highland Maple Festival.
In the late spring, the library leadership was dealt a one-two blow. Their volunteer lawyer, and library association secretary, George Dudley, passed away unexpectedly at age 38.
He had been the one who had submitted their non-profit application, twice. A month later, on May 26, 1985, James H. Bowen passed away. James Bowen had been in poor health since the early 1980s and his wife Gwen, had stepped into a leadership role for the library. She was by this point the association president. The morale of the association members must have suffered greatly.
The Recorder shows no record of when exactly non-profit status was granted. Unfortunately, those records are not available in library records because the tax status was later amended, but it appears that the Highland Library Association must have received their IRS letter sometime in the summer. They were formulating plans to launch a full fundraising campaign in August. They were going to send solicitation letters in the mail to non-resident Highland County landowners and attempt to phone all county residents. Before they launched their first official fundraising campaign, they had already collected approximately $15,000, and the donated land in the Town of Monterey. (Recorder 7/25/85)
