We were proud to honor Jack and Barbara Irvin with the Durnin Family Award at our 2018 Grape Expectations gala for their dedication to libraries and literacy.
Libraries have played a significant role in the Irvins’ lives as they raised their family in Long Beach. Barbara would often take their sons, Michael and Brian, to the Bay Shore Neighborhood Library and instilled in them a love of literacy.
Jack and Barbara were first invited to support the Long Beach Public Library Foundation by their dear friend and founder of the Library Foundation, Margaret Durnin, nearly two decades ago. Jack has served on the Library Foundation Board of Directors for 18 years. The Irvins have given generously to many library programs, but have a fondness in their hearts for the great impact that the early literacy programs have had on Long Beach.
As Long Beach residents for the past 57 years, real estate agents, and parents who have seen their children and grandchildren, Ethan and Emerson, educated in the city’s public schools, Jack and Barbara want to help build up Long Beach into a safe and nurturing city for all families. The Library Foundation supports programs like the Family Learning Center Program, Dictionary Days, the Summer Reading Program, and Dive into Reading which have encouraged hundreds of thousands of Long Beach youth to become lifelong readers.
Jack and Barbara recently celebrated 47 years of marriage. Their nest has emptied with Michael going to USC and Brian going to UCLA. Michael lives in Los Angeles and works for RealD, a 3D technology company. Jack, Barbara, and Brian are now Team Irvin, a real estate business that is a part of Coldwell Banker Coastal Alliance. They are committed to continuing their support of libraries and literacy programs that create a more successful future for local children and Long Beach.
