In the current “Hard Times,” libraries have become resource centers for finding employment, finding ways to save money and finding affordable entertainment. Avon Lake Public Library is no exception. Our Reference department has been busy teaching computer skills, helping with resumes and developing programs to prepare job seekers for success. We answer lots of questions about social services and help patrons find do-it-yourself directions for those tasks they used to hire out. The Library is busy with new patrons who tell us they used to buy books and music and go out to movies, but now they are discovering the riches of the Library for affordable entertainment as well as a source of reliable information.
Finding that our patrons are asking different kinds of questions and facing different kinds of challenges, our staff has been working to find and share new information sources to meet the new needs and interests of our patrons. To that end, we’ve created theSurviving Hard Times Guideto help our patrons find information on all kinds of things to help get us through the recession and on to brighter days.
Check the guide out to find job help, unemployment and health care information, local social service agencies, help with mortgages and utilities and programs to assist veterans and seniors. The Guide emphasizes resources to be found in Lorain County and Northeast Ohio though some are statewide or national in scope and some are available in libraries all over the country. We’ll keep adding resources as we become aware of them, whether those are online programs, books, agencies, whatever will help. As you ask us for information – at the desk, by phone (440.933.7710) or email (refdeskATavonlakeDOTlibDOTohDOTus) – we’ll continue to learn what our patrons need, search for the information and share it through the Guide. If you know of resources that you think should be included (non-commercial only, please), email us and write “Surviving Hard Times Guide” in the subject line.
We hope this Guide is a boon to the community right now and we look forward to singing together “Hard Times Come Again No More”.
This Tuesday evening, June 17, this Library will be rockin’! Detroit Garage band The High Strung will be here to lead off our summer reading program with a few hot guitar licks! There will be no shhshing going on here that night (the concert will actually take place on our south lawn – bring your blanket or lawn chair).
With an opening act by Avon Lake’s own sensation, Alana Bilancini, this concert promises to be one of the big acts of the summer here in Avon Lake and is suitable for all ages. The audience will participate in improvising and performing a premier rock ‘n roll composition.
While you’re here, be sure to sign up for one of our three, count them, three, summer reading contests. We’ve got contests, and prizes, for children, teens and adults! And don’t forget our Picture You ReadingContest.
We’re showing some great films at the Avon Lake Public Library this month. We have state-of-the-art projectors and sound systems, so this is an opportunity to see these movies as they were intended – on a big screen, with refreshments, and with your neighbors.
Sunday, Dec. 9 at 1:30 p.m. Family Feature: Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas, the first full-length stop-motion animated movie.
Monday, Dec. 10 at 1:30 p.m. Matinee: 84 Charing Cross Road with Anthony Hopkins and Anne Bancroft
Wednesday, Dec. 12 at 6 p.m.: Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility with Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet and Hugh Grant.
Each of these movies is a treat, so treat yourself. See you in the front row!
New this week, we now have a video magnifier in the Adult Services area of the Library. This thing is really remarkable. Patrons with low-vision can use this machine to easily read almost any printed material. The object to be read is placed on a tray and then is projected onto a video screen. The video can be magnified to the appropriate level and adjusted for contrast and brightness. This can be used for reading anything from a book to a pill bottle, from a newspaper to a telephone book. It’s very simple to use. Please help us spread the word to Avon Lakers who can use this.
We’ve also got magnifiers and on-screen keyboards on all our public access computers and a video relay system machine to assist deaf and hard-of-hearing people to place and receive phone calls through a sign language interpreter. Our isles and doorways are wide, our tables and computer stations easily accommodate wheelchairs. We try to be as accessible as possible. If you or a friend needs any accessibility assistance, please ask any staff member. And if you see some service or resource that we could change to make it more accessible, please let us know.
Sunday, October 14 at 1:30 p.m. we’re holding our first Sunday Matinee. For October, we’re going with a Halloween theme: Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein. Come with a friend for a howling good time!
And don’t forget our coming Monday Matinee, this Monday, Sept. 24: The Best of the Tonight Show: King of Late Night.
Monday, Sept. 24, we’re hosting our second Monday Matinee at 1:30 p.m. We’re showing The Best of the Tonight Show: King of Late-Night.
If you have ideas for future Monday Matinees, please leave a comment. Our license won’t let us show everything, but it will let us show most American large-run movies out on DVD.
Hope you’ll come and join us. Should we serve popcorn?
Posted by cindythelibrarian 
Posted by cindythelibrarian 
Posted by cindythelibrarian 
