04/28/2026
Daniel and I have had the pleasure of working with Daphanie many times over the years and we are both heartbroken and outraged over this whole situation. Daphanie made the library such a fun place for kids, a place they wanted to come back to. In a world that's going digital, that is so very important in the quest to keep physical libraries relevant. I believe wholeheartedly that libraries are crucial to communities. I also believe that as a government funded entity that is meant to benefit the community, they should do what is best for that community. In getting rid of such a valued employee on top of shirking their responsibility of making sure the library was a a safe place for the community by not checking the walls for mold after years of numerous leaks, I don't believe they are acting in the best interest of the community at all.
Given the shadiness of things, I'm not sure we want to continue to have a professional relationship with the library. We have done the Fright Night programs around Halloween for over a decade. We love doing them and we love meeting and interacting with the community but I think it may be time to cut ties. We can still do the program, just at a different venue. I hate to do it after just talking about the need to do things that keep the library relevant and a place people want to go, but on a professional level I don't think we want to be a part of a system that doesn't value their employee's and patron's health, as the library board and director clearly do not.
Plus, on a personal level, they just did Daphanie really, really dirty. God doesn't like ugly, and neither do we.
Coffee County Manchester Public Library’s Youth Librarian Daphanie Gragg alleged in a public statement on April 27 that her termination earlier in the day was due to retaliation from her