Library Director Carol Lloyd presented the annual report of the Library Board to the County Commissioners on Thursday, saying in spite of the impacts of COVID, library staff continues to provide services to the community in the most creative of ways.
In a phone interview, Lloyd shared an example of this creativity, “People will call the library and let us know what they are looking for, ‘I have a four-year-old and a seven-year-old,’ and we’ll put together a bag for them. What it does is gives us the opportunity to turn someone onto something they never would have tried for themselves, and it’s free so if they don’t like something it’s no big deal when they bring it back.”
When COVID hit in March, Commissioners supported Lloyd’s decision to close the physical library, shifting to 24/7 access via the website and then curbside pickup in May. Library by Appointment began in June and continues via curbside service. Storytime has been produced by video and is available on social media, and staff has also produced videos to help students learn to code.
Lloyd also explained the latest idea floated by her staff -- window shopping at the library. “Call us and tell us what you’re looking for and we’ll bring books to the window and show you the options.” She said people love browsing the library shelves as well as the DVD selections. This is one way they can still have that flavor. She said the library has several patrons who used to come in the library once or twice a week to browse. “We know what they like, so now we just hold up the selections for them to choose.”
Additionally, the library has rolled out a new service called “hoopla” which offers over 800,000 titles to choose from, covering audiobooks, video, music, and e-books. “We are very enthusiastic about hoopla,” said Lloyd, “there are so many things in here it’s just awesome. We’ve never been able to offer music before, and there is no waiting.”
Over the past few years, the library has offered several different streaming/access services through their database. “We are trying to offer the most content for the best value, this is taxpayer money so we are trying to get the biggest selection for the price,” said Lloyd.
In addition to their flexibility and agility at providing the biggest bang for the buck for the community, library staff has worked hard to maximize their resources, receiving over $16,000 in funding from the Library Services and Technology Act through the State of Nevada. The Library Association, a separate organization in the library wheelhouse, provided over $8,500 in funding for the Summer Reading Program, STEAM Programs, Books for Babies!, and hosting the Claire Watkins author event.
The library patrons borrowed 121,406 items during the past year through 80,217 visits. There are 7,872 library cardholders in the community. The Library Board of Trustees is appointed by the County Commission and is currently made up of Marilyn Hedges-Hiller, Kelli Kelly, Denice Pinder, Bill Williams, and Jo Petteruti.
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