Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library

My name is Julia Whitehead, and I am president of the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, a fledgling organization in Indianapolis that needs your support. Did you know that there are places for visitors to learn about the lives of William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, and John Steinbeck but there is no place to learn about or celebrate the life of Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.? Did you know that there are more than 500,000 websites devoted to this beloved Hoosier writer and artist? We have developed a group that is going to make a Vonnegut center a reality.

Imagine yourself stepping into the Kurt Vonnegut Memorial Library, a cultural escape in Kurt’s hometown of Indianapolis. Here, you can view many of Kurt Vonnegut’s personal items and artwork, pull a book off our library shelves and relax with it in a comfy chair, or purchase one of his books from the small gift shop. Imagine knowing that this library is helping the community by supporting Indianapolis public high school newspapers, awarding scholarships through public high school writing competitions, and bringing together members of the Indianapolis writing community through a visiting writer lecture series and developing a small press, among other activities.

I came up with the idea for this library in November of 2008 after discovering the Henry Miller Library online. I wondered to myself why there wasn’t a similar place to memorialize someone as extraordinary as Vonnegut. I immediately called Kurt Vonnegut’s son, Dr. Mark Vonnegut, to gauge his interest. Mark offered his enthusiastic support. He became the first member of our board of directors, and we are pleased to have involvement from Mark and his sisters, Edie and Nanny. With their support and encouragement, I have gathered together a group of professionals from Indianapolis and around the country who are volunteering their time and who are equally dedicated to a shared vision of what this library can be for Indianapolis and for all Vonnegut fans globally. We are putting together a wonderful plan to memorialize Kurt Vonnegut, contribute to the betterment of the community, bring together fans of Kurt Vonnegut, and teach others about his life and works. We are very excited about this, and we hope you will be, too.