Hello Stanley community members! This little column consists of my “Library Director’s Report,” the news items that I typically present to the board and the public at the monthly library board meeting. With the decreased access to our library and the library board meeting, I am happy to have this opportunity to provide you with the director’s report each month.

You may have seen in the paper that the library has received several grants. We’ve been putting those grants to good use and now have three Wi-Fi hotspots available for our community members to checkout. We also have iPads that you can borrow from us. We’ve been hearing from community members that reliable internet access is a significant concern. If you or your family could use one of our hotspots or iPads, let us know quickly—there will likely be a waiting list!

Our other grants include funding to expand our home delivery and rural outreach program. If you, or someone you know, are unable to come to the library to get materials for any reason, we are able to deliver books, magazines, DVDs, and audiobooks directly to your door. If you are unsure of what you might want, give us a call and we can help you pick out whatever you’d like.

Since Associated Bank is closing its doors here in Stanley, we have moved our banking to Forward Bank. Forward Bank is a valuable asset to our community and a good community partner. If you are interested in supporting the library through Forward, they have a program where you can open an account there with the library as your designated charity. Based on your average balance, Forward will make a donation to us out of their pocket, not yours!

In programming news, we are launching a winter reading challenge for all ages! You may be familiar with our summer reading program; the winter challenge is similar but will run for a shorter period of time this January. The program is in collaboration with Beanstack and sponsored by Simon and Schuster. The challenge includes prizes, activities, and reading goals. Although the challenge runs from January 1-31, you can pre-register now at stanleylibrary.beanstack.org.

We are still open by appointment for patrons to use the computers every Monday and Friday from 10AM-6PM, and we offer curbside pickup every Monday, Tuesday, and Friday from 10AM-6PM. You can schedule an appointment before coming to the library or just knock on the front door. We will be closed December 25th and January 1st. Thank you for your continued support and you will see me here next month. Happy Holidays!