Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

BUCHANAN — The Buchanan District Library received a $10,000 matching campaign in memory of Arthur C. Mayhew, Jr. and Helen L. Mayhew, fulfilled by their daughter, Susan Weber, from their estate. 

This campaign will match dollar for dollar all donations made to the library’s Building Campaign before July 1, 2023, up to $10,000.  

Arthur C. Mayhew, Jr. and Helen L. Mayhew were born and raised in the Buchanan area. Arthur (Art) was the son of Arthur C. and Helen Mayhew, Sr. His parents lived on East 4th Street and operated Mayhew Photo Service and a candy store from the front of their house. Helen was the daughter of Wilbur and Caroline Schantz and grew up on a farm outside of Buchanan. 

Arthur, Jr. served in the U.S. Army from 1946–48 and was among the first of the occupation troops stationed in Japan. He later owned and operated Mayhew Machine Products, a custom tooling company in Buchanan. He was a self-trained wood carver and also worked with clay. 

Arthur, Jr. and Helen attended Buchanan High School and reconnected while both worked at Electro-Voice—Art as an engineer and Helen as the switchboard operator. They married in 1972. Job changes moved them from Buchanan to Sevierville, TN and Greenville, SC, where Art retired from Kemet Electronics (formerly a Union Carbide company). 

Art was a voracious reader and after his passing Helen often talked about making a donation to the Buchanan District Library in his memory. Helen passed away in 2022, and her daughter, Susan Weber, reached out to the library to fulfill her parent’s wish.  

The Buchanan District Library also holds special meaning to Art and Helen’s daughter, Susan. Growing up, she spent countless hours (and many summer days) immersed in the books and programs offered at the library, then located at 117 E Front Street, developing a love of reading that continues to this day. While Susan no longer lives in the Buchanan area, she supports the library’s mission “to enrich the lives of our patrons and empower our community with knowledge and resources.” 

This campaign will support the library’s fundraising efforts towards a community room on the second floor of the library, located at 128 E Front Street, the former Electro-Voice building where both Art and Helen worked. This new space will allow the library to offer a wider variety of programs to more patrons, and give the entire Buchanan community a beautiful new space in the heart of downtown for meetings, events, and gatherings. It is the sincere hope of the family that this campaign will be a success, doubling their gift and honoring the wish of Art and Helen to support their hometown library. 

More information about the library’s building campaign is available at www.buchananlibrary.org. Questions can be sent to the Director of the Buchanan District Library, Meg Paulette Perez, at m.paulette@buchananlibrary.com.