As I write this, I am sheltering in place nearly two months to the day. Our world has been turned upside down. And while it hurt our hearts to temporary close our 28 libraries, our staff has been working to innovate and find creative ways to connect with our community.
Almost immediately following the closure, our youth services librarians began offering
virtual storytimes on Facebook including a weekly bi-lingual session. Need a
reading recommendation? We offer that. Want to unwind with your favorite beverage and just talk for an hour? Join our
Thursday Happy Hour. Are you one of the many people in our region who have been furloughed? Our
virtual job coaches are there for you. A partnership with Regional Transit brings
Wi-Fi-enabled buses to neighborhoods, often parking at Libraries, to provide access the internet which has become a utility as important as running water and electricity for all of us.
Zoom has become a friend to all of us in these times and every day we discover another way to connect. We’re proud to host author visits on a regular basis. Our most recent live streamed Authors Uncovered brought us none other than former
Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Madame Secretary was a delight to host. And our crowd of nearly 600 people, more than would ever fit in our largest venue, were engaged and appreciative. We’re reaching out to publishers and hoping to bring more authors in the coming months to inspire us to read and feed our minds and souls.
While the pandemic has posed many challenges, it’s also provided an opportunity for our team to be creative and innovative, develop partnerships and fulfill our mission of helping our community discover, learn and grow. Until we can be together in person, we will do our best to be there for you in any way that we can. On that note, we recently launched a pilot for curbside pickup by appointment at Sylvan Oaks and Belle Cooledge Libraries. In the coming month, we will roll out the service at more locations. Stay tuned for details. We ARE all in this together and Sacramento Public Library is right there at your side