The Clearwater Library is still closed to the public due to COVID-19 precautions, but readers can access books, and certain programs are being offered virtually to interested patrons.
“Right now we’re doing something called take-out service. It’s kind of modeled after take-out for food, and it’s basically operating the same way with placing holds that people could do before,” said branch head, Kaylea Prime.
“People can request or we can do personal picks where they tell us their favourite genre or favourite authors and we can do staff picks for them.
“Then we check everything out for them, put it in a bag and arrange times for them to pick it up at the library and hand them out the door.
“Nobody is coming into the library right now but it’s a takeout service for everything.”
Prime said the library staff is excited it’s still able to offer the Summer Reading Club this year, which starts at the beginning of July, though it’ll look a bit different than it has in previous years, either in the above mentioned virtual format or as a take-home program.
The reading club is for all ages and this year’s theme is “space” with Prime noting there’ll be scavenger hunts and other weekly adventures lined up for participants.
Instead of having meetings at the library with big groups, supplies for some programs will be given out for crafts or Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM) experiments, which will be bagged up and ready to go for people to take home.
The library is also working on getting some outdoor programs going, Prime added, where people can meet outside and have a story time, though the number of people will be limited, socially distanced, and registering beforehand will be required.
With COVID-19 restrictions relaxing little by little, Prime noted libraries are in talks of reopening, though there’s no definite idea of when that might be.
“There definitely could be changes. Libraries are looking at reopening to the public, we just don’t know exactly what that will look like yet and what the timeline for that will be, but there are plans in the works for sure,” she said.
In the meantime, library cards are still available and those interested can sign up for them online at tnrl.ca if they wish to check out e-books and e-audio books. Updates for the Clearwater Library can also be found on its Facebook page.
The Thompson-Nicola Regional Library’s Mobile Library is also on the move again and is running the same routes and schedules as per usual, though patrons aren’t allowed to go on board and browse for the time being.
Branch head Mike Brown said people should place holds on the books they want and the Mobile Library is also doing the staff picks, where people can go online and give a general idea of the literature they like and staff will pick items for them.
For Mobile Library schedules go to tnrl.ca and select the Mobile Library from the branches tab to get PDFs of times and locations.
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