Library news

Originally published in the Ketchikan Daily News, April 2007; written by Lisa Pearson.

The past few weeks have been busy at the public library. We have just installed our new security gates, and we appreciate everyone’s patience while we were closed Tuesday for the installation. The new slimmer profile of the gates makes the lobby seem much more spacious. After income tax season is over, we will be removing the table with all the tax forms, which will open up even more room (ballroom dancing, anyone?). However, as much as we enjoy brightening up the library with new furniture, the security gates actually serve a practical purpose. Our old gates, which finally met their end last month, prevented the theft of thousands of dollars of materials. We love our gates.

If you hear strange beeping noises coming from the book stacks in the Adult library, it is merely the sound of inventory. Every year we scan the barcode on the back of every book, video, CD, audiobook, reference book, and CD-ROM in the library. Not only does this process alert us to missing items, it also helps us find things that aren’t where they are supposed to be. If it seems like a tedious chore, it is, but how fitting that we tackle it about the same time we are all working on our taxes.

The Friends of the Library will be having their annual Evening of Chocolate meeting at 6:30 pm on Tuesday the 10th. This is an open meeting for anyone who would like to find out more about the Friends and all the wonderful things that they do for Ketchikan and the library. Please stop by to sample the delicious desserts, and consider becoming a Friend to your community’s library.

The Children’s library is preparing for a very eventful month. This Saturday, at 3 pm will be a new Kids Craft: an Easter Party Plate. If you would like to bring your children down for some fun, please call 225-0370 to register (we like to make sure we have enough supplies on hand for everyone). The week of the 15th is National Library Week, and every year the Children’s library celebrates by inviting special guests from the community to read stories to the children. Storytime is at 10:30 am, on Tuesday through Friday. This year stories will be read by fireman Jim Hill, musician Kim Kleinschmidt, nurse Bridgit Stearns, and a member of the Ketchikan Police Department.

Please come to Houghtaling Elementary on Saturday, April 21st for the Ketchikan First Book Read-O-Rama. This event runs from 1-4 pm, and will include popcorn, stories, and lots of fun children’s activities. There will also be a photo opportunity to raise funds for First Book. This wonderful group provides funding to local teachers to select and distribute books to their students. It’s a great way to create home libraries. If you remember the carnival-like atmosphere from when this event was held at the Plaza mall last year, you will certainly want to bring your kids this year.

And of course, the big event for the month is another Family Fun Night! The theme for this month is Bob the Builder, and we have already handed out all the admissions tickets to eager young Builders. The previous two events – Curious George and Alaskan Birds – were both a huge success, and we are very happy to continue our partnership with AEYC in hosting this activity. The next Fun Night will be on May 10th, and admissions tickets will be available for free in the Children’s Library starting on May 1st. They go very fast, so don’t wait!

So if you think of the public library as some dusty book repository, think again. We strive to be a community center and to serve as many people in the community as possible.