Photo: Sanfranman59 · CC BY-SA 3.0Brewster’s library is a branch of Massillon Public Library, which lends more per resident than 94% of systems its size
Brewster’s library is the Pam S. Belloni Memorial Branch, a branch of Massillon Public Library, which serves 32,560 people and lent 508K items last year.
What Brewster’s library is like
Five times the programs of a typical library its size
The Massillon Public Library system ran 2,160 programs last year, about 42 a week. That’s 66 per 1,000 residents, against a typical 14. People show up: 43,000 attended. Kids & programs ↓
Ohio pays a big share
50% of the budget comes from the state, and 37% from local taxes. Nationally, most library money is local. What your card is worth ↓
Programs are almost all for children
82% of the 2,160 programs last year were for ages 11 and under, including about 14 a week for ages 0–5. Kids & programs ↓
Kids’ borrowing is a standout
Children’s books and media are 51% of print loans, and kids’ borrowing per resident is higher than at 95% of similar-size libraries. Kids & programs ↓
A system of heavy borrowers
The Massillon Public Library system lends 12 print items per resident, against a typical 3.7 for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people, more than 94% of similar-size libraries. What people borrow ↓
This summary is written from the numbers on this page. Numbers are the library’s own report to the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024; Brewster’s library is a branch of Massillon Public Library, so they cover the whole system (32,560 people), not just the Brewster branch.
What’s behind Brewster’s civic life grade
On community nonprofits and volunteering, Brewster is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns. Brewster is graded on two of the three inputs. Both inputs are above most U.S. towns; Brewster’s count of community nonprofits ranks highest.
Civic life counts registered nonprofits, library visits and online volunteering groups, so it can miss civic life that runs through congregations, mutual aid or neighbors looking out for each other.
Library visits: IMLS Public Libraries Survey, FY2024. Nonprofits: IRS Exempt Organizations Business Master File, October 2026. Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. How TownRatings grades civic life →
10 community nonprofits are registered in Brewster
4.9 per 1,000 residents, against a U.S. town median of 3.7. The largest group: youth, sports & recreation.
Community nonprofits, by kind
Counted from the IRS list of tax-exempt organizations by mailing address (fractions where a ZIP code spans towns). Congregations are counted apart (1 here), since whether a church registers depends on its denomination, not the town.
8.6%
8.6% of Brewster’s Facebook users aged 25–44 belong to a volunteering or activism group, against 8.5% in the typical Ohio town and 7.5% nationally.
Volunteering: Social Capital Atlas (Opportunity Insights), from data by Meta Platforms, Inc.; Chetty et al., Nature 2022. ZIP-code figures, weighted by where Brewster’s residents live; 2022.
About 34 kids’ programs a week
Story times, clubs, classes and events, across the whole system, by who they’re for.
Programs last year by age group
story times and programs a week for ages 0–5, on average.
Ahead of most similar-size libraries on all 8 measures
Per resident, against libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people across the U.S.
Massillon Public Library serves 32,560 people, so it’s measured against U.S. libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000.
A year at Massillon Public Library
Fiscal year 2024, for the whole Massillon Public Library system. The library’s own count.
More than half the print loans are kids’ books
508K loans last year: print, kids’ and digital.
102,467 e-books, e-audiobooks and streams last year. Borrow from home with your card, plus research databases: courses, journals, genealogy and more.
Find it
Pam S. Belloni Memorial Branch, 12000 Navarre Road, SW, Navarre.
No late fees. E-books and audiobooks from home. Loans renew on their own if no one’s waiting. Research databases: courses, journals, genealogy. Good at every Massillon Public Library branch.
New in Brewster? The Handbook →Hours are the survey’s yearly average. Check the library’s own site for today’s hours.
For every $1 it spends, the library lends about $2.43 worth
Set what you’d borrow in a month. It starts at what the average Brewster cardholder borrows.
Typical for a library this size: $40. Operating budget $3.3M.
Last year the library lent and hosted about $8M worth of books, e-books, programs and Wi-Fi on a $3.3M budget.
Fine-free. No late fees on books returned late.
Retail prices are typical, rounded down: a new book $17, a kids’ book $12, an e-book or e-audiobook $15, a movie rental $4, a class or program $10, a computer or Wi-Fi session $3. The average cardholder’s month = the library’s yearly loans, attendance and Wi-Fi sessions ÷ its 17,180 cardholders ÷ 12.
What this data can and can’t tell you
From the Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024.
- System-wide. Pam S. Belloni Memorial Branch is one branch of Massillon Public Library, so the yearly numbers cover every branch and all 32,560 people it serves.
Hours are the survey’s yearly average; libraries are compared with others serving about as many people. How TownRatings uses library figures →
Questions about the library and civic life in Brewster
Does Brewster have a public library?
Yes: Pam S. Belloni Memorial Branch, 12000 Navarre Road, SW, is a branch of Massillon Public Library, which serves 32,560 people. The branch is open about 46 hours a week, averaged over the year.
Is Massillon Public Library fine-free? Does it lend e-books?
Yes to both: no late fees, and e-books, audiobooks and research databases with a card (the library’s 2024 survey report).
How busy is Brewster’s library?
It logged 3.8 visits and lent 15.6 items per resident in 2024, against a typical 2.6 visits for libraries serving 25,000 to 100,000 people.
What is Brewster’s civic life grade?
A− Brewster is ahead of 76% of U.S. towns on civic life. The grade combines library visits per resident, community nonprofits per 1,000 residents and the share of adults 25–44 in volunteering groups. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
Book talk
Reading, story times and the library in Brewster.
Libraries: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Public Libraries Survey, fiscal year 2024. Each library reports its own numbers. Distances are straight-line from the town center. “What your card is worth” uses typical retail prices and is an estimate, not an official figure.