Man attempts to return library book after half a century
- Chuck Hildebrandt, a Chicago resident, borrowed a book from a Warren, Michigan library in 1974 and never returned it.
- After rediscovering the book five or six years ago, he decided to return it on its 50th anniversary.
- The library director informed him that no fine was due, leading Hildebrandt to spearhead a fundraising campaign for literacy.
In Chicago, a 63-year-old man named Chuck Hildebrandt recently sought to return a baseball book he had borrowed from a library in Warren, Michigan, back in 1974. As a young boy, Hildebrandt was an avid baseball fan when he checked out 'Baseball’s Zaniest Stars' from the library. He forgot about the book while moving between cities over the decades after borrowing it and did not become aware of its overdue status until he discovered it among his belongings five or six years ago. Upon finding the book's due date slip inside, which indicated it was to be returned by December 4, 1974, Hildebrandt made it his mission to bring the book back to the library on its 50th anniversary, which marked the overdue status. During a recent visit to the library in Warren for Thanksgiving, Hildebrandt approached the library director, Oksana Urban, with his plan. While he initially expected some kind of fanfare or perhaps even a fine, Urban informed him that the library had erased both his record and the book’s due status from their system long ago. Hildebrandt learned that he could keep the book without any consequences, indicating that there was no need for any harsh 'music' to face for his overdue return. Satisfied, Hildebrandt decided to keep the book on his bookshelf. In a charitable turn, he is now focusing on raising $4,564 for the nonprofit literacy organization Reading Is Fundamental. This fundraising target is intended to represent the overdue fines that would have been applicable if they had still been enforced. Hildebrandt has pledged to start this campaign with a donation of $457. The light-hearted trip down memory lane has transformed into an effort that not only reconnects him with his childhood but gives back to the community and promotes literacy; an unexpected conclusion to a long-overdue return story. Library patrons like Hildebrandt rarely return to resolve their overdue accounts, as noted by Urban, who remarked on how some individuals move on without addressing such matters.