ATTLEBORO - While the city's library still needs about $100,000 to bring back everything that was cut from its budget this year, thousands of dollars in restored city money and private donations have already made life a little less stressed at the North Main Street facility.

"It's given us breathing room to keep organized," said library director Walter Stitt. "It's been very positive."

An estimated $18,000 of the $118,000 cut has been put back to date.

Mayor Kevin Dumas returned $10,000 on the recommendation of the city council; councilor Shannon Heagney pledged to donate whatever part of her $7,727 annual salary isn't needed to maintain her health insurance and retirement benefits and local businessman Peter Ottmar pledged a donation of $5,000.

Meanwhile, South Attleboro business owner John Brederson contributed 200 t-shirts emblazoned with the words "I helped support the Attleboro Public Library" which are for sale at $25 each. All the money raised from shirt sales goes to the library. The shirts have fetched about $200 so far, Stitt said.

The $10,000 restored by the city will keep three of eight part-time pages on the job. Stitt said pages are crucial to the overall operation because they reshelve 3,000 books a week and keep the stacks in order.

Without the pages, other workers would be forced away from their regular jobs to help get books back on the shelves.

Stitt said the cash that's come in so far has led him to consider bringing back another part-time worker.

He's not sure which job will be restored.

The additional money is making operations easier, but it'll take much more to restore seven hours a week that was cut from the winter schedule and cost the city about $8,200 in state aid.

"It's still a long way from that," Stitt said.

Last week the council established a special account in which library donations from citizens or businesses will be deposited.

Checks can be made out to the City of Attleboro with a notation that the money is for the library or a letter explaining how the donor wants the money used.