Support for the Asheville-Buncombe County Public Library is a long tradition in Mary Parkers family. Her grandfather Thomas Walton Patton and great aunt Fanny Patton helped form the Asheville Library Association in 1879, the date of incorporation that the library uses for its birthday. Taking time from her career with Bon Marche Department Store, Mary Parker was always a mainstay of the Friends of the Library organization, serving as President, and supervising numerous library book sales. In this 1990 photo by Deborah Compton, Phil Ritter, President of the NC Public Library Directors Association, presents Mary Parker with the 1990 Library Friend of the Year Award. Anthony Lord, Trustee Emeritus of ABLS
