I can remember being a kid growing up in Birmingham, and how important the library was to me.
We’d catch the bus near where I lived and spend the day downtown. We’d go to the library and I’d check out 10 or 12 books during the summer and read them for a couple of weeks. Then in two weeks, we’d be back on the bus and drop those books off and get 12 more.
Reading was an escape for me. I was able to go somewhere else and hear somebody else’s story and learn about life. I don’t get to read for fun as much as I used to, but I still love it.
We’re recognizing National Library Week, and it’s truly something to celebrate in Huntsville.
Our Huntsville-Madison County Public Library leads the state in the number of books checked out. That proves we’re a literary community and we do a lot of reading, and it says that indeed we live in a smart place.
Can you believe this? There are almost a half-million items available for checkout throughout the library system.
Our library system has 13 branches, spread all over the city and county. Last October, we opened the new Cavalry Hill branch in the Northwoods neighborhood. The major transformation of the old Grissom High School campus will include a library. The City of Huntsville is proud to join a large number of generous corporate and individual supporters in assisting the system’s growth.
I love what Cindy Hewitt, the manager of the Monrovia branch, had to say about the importance of libraries to communities.
“We serve our neighborhoods by being a place to create, explore and connect together. Friends meet and strangers becomes friends over a common interest – a best loved book, a favorite author, a job hunt, computer learning,” she said. “Because we are a small, intimate branch, people get to know one another – not just staff but fellow patrons – connections become relationships which lead to exciting bridges of understanding and connections in an era where everyone is separated by a handheld device. We lead by setting a standard for building community in a safe, friendly gathering place.”
Anything that can bring a deeper sense of community with all the distractions and differences in today’s world is a wonderful thing.
The Huntsville-Madison County Public Library system offers the same opportunities for our youth as it did for me a half-century ago in Birmingham. It has books that can take them on amazing journeys and to help them learn about amazing people.
But this isn’t the library of my youth.
You might find elementary schools kids in the science club at the Eleanor Murphy branch or senior citizens enjoying a lecture in the LearningQUEST program at the downtown branch.
There is Internet access for those unable to afford it at their homes, to be able to connect with others or to search for jobs. There is research material to help you dig up information on your ancestors or write a term paper.
So, let’s celebrate what the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library does. Take advantage of it. Sign up for a library card if you don’t have one. Embrace the sense of community. Read a book. Take a child to the library for his or her own library card and encourage them to read. It can be an escape, an education or an inspiration, a different sort of “handheld device” that can take them on even greater journeys.
As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments at contact@huntsvilleal.gov or by calling 256-427-5000.
Be the first to comment