Protecting your Investment

The library staff recently recommended changes in our circulation rules to the library board. The board approved them and the new policies went into effect on April 16.

Here’s a short summary of the changes:

**People getting new library cards are restricted to having five items out at a time. This is in effect for their first three months as library users. In the past, some new patrons checked out numerous books and dvds, and left town – no new address or phone number and no items returned. This cost the library a lot of money.

**Patrons with overdue fines can check out if they owe under $5.00. Previously the limit was $25 and that was just too much.

**All patrons are now restricted to having five at a time of each of these high-use collections: DVDs, VHS Videos, Graphic Novels, Music Cds and Audiobooks. Cd-Roms are limited to two per card at one time.

Click here to read the exact policy wording. http://skyways.lib.ks.us/library/emporia/circpolicy.htm

We feel that these changes are needed and are fair. We are already seeing an improvement as more movies, music and audiobooks are on the shelves for everyone to share.

Responsible library usage helps maximize the collection and the budget. Thanks for understanding and returning your items on time!

Another record Book Sale!

Thanks to the hard work of dedicated Friends of the Library volunteers and to the hundreds of book donors and book buyers, $10,094.30 was raised by the spring book sale which ended Wednesday. This is almost $700 more than last year’s sale, which was also a record.

Mary Unruh, book sale chair, and her wonderful assistants, including Cindy Pastor and Nancy McKinzie, spent long days at the library, preparing for the sale, straightening & cashiering at the sale, and finally, cleaning up after the sale. Many people helped with scheduling, putting up posters around town, moving the books, and much more. The thank you list is long.

Many people ask how the proceeds are used. The Friends of the Library board of directors works with library trustees and staff to determine projects and programs that need funding. In recent years the Friends’ funds have been used for:
Courtyard beautification
Brown Bag Concerts
Book Discussions-multiple copies of books
Endowment Fund to enrich the collection
Movie License
Book Mark Design Contest
Homebound Delivery program
Breakfast with Santa
Summer Reading programs for kids & for teens
Book Page Subscription – 50 copies monthly
Family Reading Month
Shopping Baskets
Strollers
Quarterly newsletters
Popcorn machine and supplies
Super Friend awards
Staff Appreciation
Sound system

If you are not a Friends member, please consider joining! Membership fees start at $15 and support the wonderful work of the group. You can never have too many Friends!!

Sue Blechl, Library Director

It's a Celebration!

April is a busy time for the Emporia Public Library, and for many libraries. Our EPL spring book sale is held in April. This year we close it with two days of special pricing: on Tuesday, April 17 all books are $4 per bag and on Wed, April 18 all books are $2 per bag. You can certainly get a lot of book and video bargains at these prices!

April 15 – 21 is National Library Week! Hooray! Many of us celebrate libraries each and every day, but during this one week a year, we hope you remember how fortunate we are to have libraries in schools, universities and in cities & towns all over America. Libraries are democratic institutions, enabling us to have a free exchange of information. Please support them financially.

In April each year Kansas librarians have their annual conference to share great ideas and to learn about new resources and new technologies. Meeting with about 900 passionate & knowledgeable colleagues is very exciting. We always come away proud of our profession and with even more dedication to our patrons and communities.

Thank you for using and valuing the library!

Sue Blechl, Library Director

It’s Book Sale Time & Young Writers Conference

We hope that you make time in the next week to visit the library book sale. With a Friends preview night on Thursday, we kick off the spring sale that draws hundreds of people and brings in thousands of dollars to support the library.

For specific hours and details, click on

http://skyways.lib.ks.us/library/emporia/services/specialserv/booksale.htm

We’ve added some new features – there will be a $4 per bag day on Tuesday, April 17 and a $2 per bag day on Wed. April 18. That should help move even more books out the door and onto your home library shelves.

While the book sale is a major focus at the library during the next days, we’re also busy out in the community. The library is a major sponsor of the annual Young Writers Conference on Sat. April 14. The public is invited to hear authors Andrea Warren and Lisa Campbell Ernst at Timmerman Elementary School. Students from Emporia and nearby districts will gather to celebrate writing. We’re proud to be a partner in this program.

Happy Reading & Writing!

Sue Blechl, Director