Although with our recent remodeling project the size of our church library was reduced by half, our church library is still a vibrant enterprise at Orland Park CRC. Volunteers staff the library for both morning services. Since we just reopened in January after having been closed for 8 months due to remodeling, our circulation is still a little slow, but each month it has been increasing as people familiarize themselves with the location of their favorite items. We have a collection of at least 5,000 items including picture books, Easy Readers, Junior Fiction, Adult Fiction, Adult Non-fiction, and DVDs.
We are blessed with a space easily accessible to the main areas where people congregate on Sunday mornings so displays are easily visible and draw people in to find something to read. Children love to come in to find a picture book after Sunday School. Though we no longer have space for reading inside the library, there are chairs and reading areas just outside the library doors! Children always love to have someone read to them.
For all the predictions of the paperless society and the demise of libraries, many young people are returning to print media because it is a novelty for them in the same way we have seen a resurgence of vinyl records. Obviously, novelties may be short-lived, but there is increasing evidence that young people often prefer print media.
As someone else mentioned, I try to coordinate displays with various ministries in church as well as with the pastors' sermons. We also tailor our collection to the reading habits of our congregation. Our library policy allows us to use donations (or not) as we determine the appropriateness for our collection. The library is not the repository of anything nobody knows what to do with! Donations are always appreciated, as it allows us to expand our collection without using money from the budget, but sometimes the items donated are just not useful or we might already have the item.
So many of the adults who use our church library have mentioned they so appreciate knowing the items they pick out will be something they will be comfortable reading. While many public libraries do have Christian Fiction or Inspirational Fiction collections, those collections may be limited. The items found in the church library will not have offensive language, racy sex scenes, or gratuitous violence. Church libraries make the book selection easier.
These are some of my thoughts! Strong congregational support as well as council support make keeping the library viable much easier. A good group of volunteers to staff the library is also very useful. It makes the job of keeping things organized all the more fun!
Posted in: Is There Still a Place for Church Libraries?
Although with our recent remodeling project the size of our church library was reduced by half, our church library is still a vibrant enterprise at Orland Park CRC. Volunteers staff the library for both morning services. Since we just reopened in January after having been closed for 8 months due to remodeling, our circulation is still a little slow, but each month it has been increasing as people familiarize themselves with the location of their favorite items. We have a collection of at least 5,000 items including picture books, Easy Readers, Junior Fiction, Adult Fiction, Adult Non-fiction, and DVDs.
We are blessed with a space easily accessible to the main areas where people congregate on Sunday mornings so displays are easily visible and draw people in to find something to read. Children love to come in to find a picture book after Sunday School. Though we no longer have space for reading inside the library, there are chairs and reading areas just outside the library doors! Children always love to have someone read to them.
For all the predictions of the paperless society and the demise of libraries, many young people are returning to print media because it is a novelty for them in the same way we have seen a resurgence of vinyl records. Obviously, novelties may be short-lived, but there is increasing evidence that young people often prefer print media.
As someone else mentioned, I try to coordinate displays with various ministries in church as well as with the pastors' sermons. We also tailor our collection to the reading habits of our congregation. Our library policy allows us to use donations (or not) as we determine the appropriateness for our collection. The library is not the repository of anything nobody knows what to do with! Donations are always appreciated, as it allows us to expand our collection without using money from the budget, but sometimes the items donated are just not useful or we might already have the item.
So many of the adults who use our church library have mentioned they so appreciate knowing the items they pick out will be something they will be comfortable reading. While many public libraries do have Christian Fiction or Inspirational Fiction collections, those collections may be limited. The items found in the church library will not have offensive language, racy sex scenes, or gratuitous violence. Church libraries make the book selection easier.
These are some of my thoughts! Strong congregational support as well as council support make keeping the library viable much easier. A good group of volunteers to staff the library is also very useful. It makes the job of keeping things organized all the more fun!
Peggy