Library Holidays

Our libraries will be closed Friday, December 23, through Monday, December 26, 2011 for Christmas, then will close at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, December 30, to re-open at their normal times on Tuesday, January 2. Thank you for allowing our staff to spend time over the holidays with their families.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Downloadable Books

This week, OverDrive e-book downloads join One-Click Digital audiobook downloads on our website.

Yes! A new format of the book debuts at Franklin County Library System and Fulton County Library.

Check out the variety of titles immediately available. More will be added on a monthly basis. You will notice they are available in as many as 3 different forms, Epub, Pdf, and Kindle. There are directions through the OverDrive link to help you register and download the format of your choice. These books are on loan from Franklin County Library System for FREE. The advent of the free library e-book download has come to our area.

We welcome your requests of titles at your local library or through my email address bdcrouse@fclspa.org. If you make the request at a local library desk make sure you indicate your format preference: e-book, e-audiobook; Epub, Pdf, or Kindle. Not all titles are readily available through library vendors in any or all formats, so please be patient with us as we build our collection.

We have not and are not abandoning the paper book. Many of our readers love to hold a traditional book in their hands. However, we are forced to remember that at one time literature was on stone or papyrus, so why not electronic devices, too? As always, we will continue to respond to your needs.

Strategic Planning Progress

Our consultant from Tweed-Weber has led discussions of the wonderful survey input you provided with groups of staff and board leaders. The priorities for the next three years are developing out of the suggestions that you have made.

Thank you so much for your compliments to our staff and your overwhelming response that our libraries are important to you and your communities! We value your input and you as customers.

The winner of the Color Nook is being contacted, and we will make a public announcement very soon.

I will also update you when the plan is complete.

Gearing Up

Everyone is busy gearing up for the huge book sale this coming weekend. Don't miss the best selection, brownies and coffee on Friday, starting at 4:00 p.m.

Coming October 28-30...FCLS Book Sale

Wondering where to get reading materials with all the local bookstores closing? Check out our great fall book sale just two weekends from now! More than 20,000 books of all genres to choose from...great prices from $0.25 to $3.00 per book, collectible books available by silent auction. No junk! Just great reading materials, VHS, and more! Chidlren's books, inspirational books, and many of your favorite authors an subjects!

Plus brownies and gourmet coffee on Friday, family activities, lunch and bake sale on Saturday, then bargains on Sunday.

The sale is sponosered by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, Budget Self Storage, and Estate Pro.

Sale benefits library improvements at Coyle, Grove, Besore, St. Thomas, Ft. Loudon, and on the bookmobiles.

LEARN Children's Art Show

Our Besore children, the Book Buggy, and Executive Director Bernice Crouse participated in the LEARN Art Show at First Lutheran Church today. We had some beautiful artwork on exhibit from the preschoolers at Besore Memorial Library. Crouse demonstrated painting a seascape with acrylics for families present and helped children experiment with painting on large sheets of paper. Other LEARN partners led other arts and crafts activities and storytimes were held with Leo Lionni's A Color of His Own.

Thank you Land o' Lakes Foundation for sponsoring FCLS's "Arts in Literature" program and materials over the last year.

Planning Moves Ahead

Monday, library leaders meet to review your input and start the planning process. We will soon know who the Nook winner is. It is no surprise to learn that library users want their hours back, and we are working to make that happen by January 1.

We are working with Tweed-Weber on the planning process. More to come...

Help Us Plan for the Future

Over the next few months Franklin County Library System will be updating its strategic plan for the next three years (2012-2014). Our mission reflects our desire to bring the best in information and literacy resources, services and programs to you. We want to know what your dreams are and how we can help you reach them. We want to know what you value most in the community. We want to meet your needs as we change and grow through the years.

If you would like to be involved in the planning process, watch our updates here, on Facebook, and on our website to learn how you can shape the future of Franklin County public libraries.

Thank you.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED!

Love your library? Want to get into the Franklin County Fair for free?

Franklin County Library System needs volunteers to work three-hour shifts at "The Chicken House" foodstand during the week of August 22-27. Volunteers must have their own transpotation and be at least 12 years old. The volunteers will be doing customer service at the window (handling money, too), dishing up chicken dinners, soup and potpie, grilled chicken sandwiches, and homemade pie. Some food preparation and cooking under supervision is also needed. You can pick your favorite station for the shift. Available shifts include 10 a.m. -1 p.m., 1 -4 p.m., 4 - 7 p.m., and 7-10 p.m. On busier shifts, we welcome family groups (age 12 and up). There will be experienced volunteers on all shifts, so don't worry about being new. Volunteering a shift will get you free admission to the fair. You could work a shift, then enjoy the rest of the evening's events. If you are not aware, the fair is based at Chambersburg Rod and Gun Club on Warm Spring Road.

This is being done to raise funds for your libraries. Please help if you can.

Contact me directly to sign up ASAP at 709-0282 x212 or bdcrouse@fclspa.org.

Important Notice

Due to the excessive heat, the bookmobile will not be in service today (7/21/2011) or tomorrow (7/22/2011). The generator and airconditioners cannot keep up with the high temperatures and we do not want to endanger any patrons' or staff members' health by inviting the use of this mobile library. The Book Buggy continues to be in service at this time.

Since Excessive Heat Warnings expire over the weekend, we hope the bookmobile will be back on its normal summer schedule on Monday.

Some of our libraries are also struggling to keep down their temperatures. Please bear with the 80 degree days internally when they occur.

Thank you.

Great Actvity for Families

Want to start the summer off with a great day for your family? Join the libraries, Healthy Communities Partnership, and more organizations at Mike Waters Park tomorrow (Monday, June 13) from 4:00-7:00 p.m. for sports, games, an inflatable slide, balloon sculptures, food and treasure! It's HCP's second annual Drugfree Summer Kickoff, and you can be a part!

Thank You

I wuld like to thank everyone who voted for the Franklin County Library System in the Public Opinion advertising grant competition. If you are not aware, we lost to a few very worthy organizations and commend them for their victory.

State Funding Action Urgently Needed

Please show your support of the level of "Public Library Subsidy" in the governor's budget proposal by contacting your local legislators and members of the PA Appropriations' Committee today. We need to maintain the status quo in funding until increases can be made to restore your library's normal hours of operation and provide adequate staff to meet your library service needs.

Coyle Closes Early Due to Power Outage

Coyle Free Library is closing today, February 11, at 5:45 p.m. due to a power outage from a nearby automobile accident. We apologize for any inconvenience this might cause you. We hope to have the library open with electricity at 9:00 a.m. tomorrow, February 12.

Thank you.

Grove Library Birthday Bash

Please join me tomorrow for Grove Family Library's 5th birthday celebration. Festivities begin at 9:00 a.m. and continue through 1:00. Enjoy children's authors and outstanding music from celebrated PA songwriter and musician Steven Courtney. He is a longstanding favorite of Franklin County and Pennsylvania children, and had his own television show for awhile. This event is proceeding as scheduled despite the possibility of some wintry mix tomorrow, so come and join in the fun! Refreshments include birthday cake!

Weather Alert/Early Closing

All public libraries in Franklin County will be closing early today. After 3:00, please call your local library before venturing out to go there. It is possible that Coyle will remain open until 5:00, but call ahead to be sure. The next heavier surge of snow is due to hit Franklin County during the late afternoon. The libraries opened on time this morning, but plan to close at 3:00 to allow everyone safe travel home.

Hopefully, the libraries will be able to open at their normal times tomorrow, Thursday, January 27.

We are sorry for any inconvenience this might cause you. Thank you.

Grove Family Library 5th Anniversary Celebration

Join me in celebrating the 5th Anniversary of the opening of Grove Family Library. Enjoy art, authors, music, refreshments throughout the week of January 31. See the schedule at the link above.

Hard to believe, isn't it? 5 years ago (on January 27 and 28) more than 100 volunteers were moving the contents of little Ragged Edge Library across Route 30 to newly completed 17,000 square foot building. And oh the number of people who have visited the library since, more than 400,000 people, checking out almost 530,000 items from the collection. That's a five-year average of 80,000 visitors and 106,000 items per year, which continues to grow!

In 2005, the building project totaled about $3.50 million. $0.75 million was given as in-kind contributions from Guilford and Greene Townships, contractors, architect, and other businesses. Cora Grove gave $1.5 million. We thank many others for their generous contributions, which have reduced our debt to $560,000. Having paid off about $700,000 of the debt principal over the last 5 years, our goal now is to pay off the balance from donations over the next 5 years. The library system is paying the loan interest out of Grove Library's annual operating allocation, now. Please stop at the library to enjoy the festivities, then if you have not received a mailing, pick up an "Extinguish the Debt" campaign brochure, select a naming opportunity where appropriate, and help the library move ahead to new intitiatives for the future.

Thank you!!

Cutbacks in Library Hours

No doubt by now most of you have seen something in the media about the cuts Franklin County public libraries have made in their operating hours for this year. The cuts were a direct reflection of the huge cuts we have experienced in state funding over the last 2 years.

Our staff fought a huge battle last year to remain customer-friendly in very tough working conditions. Every staff member had lost either pay or hours, and that was very hard on morale and energy level. I congratulate and thank them for serving you well under such advers conditions. This year by cutting the operating hours during times when each library was quieter, we were able to avoid any further cuts in pay. These same staff members are already significantly underpaid before the state cuts hit libraries. In 2009 and 2010, we were able to limit hour restrictions by cutting many other areas of the budget, but the additional cuts were crippling. There were no more options, when other costs continue to rise, ie utilities, insurance, library materials.

We all greatly appreciate the financial commitment of our local officials and donors. The steady county library tax, commitments from local governments and school districts, and generous donors who met our annual appeal goal for 2010 are now the backbone of our operating budget. The state cuts reduced that annual budget by 1/8th.

THANK YOU FOR BOTH YOUR FINANCIAL AND MORAL SUPPORT DURING THESE TOUGH TIMES!!!