Despite the coronavirus pandemic, the Union County Library is still finding ways to connect with the community.
The library currently does not allow visitors inside the building due to the high number of Covid-19 cases that have hit the state in recent months.
However, that does not mean the library is closed for business.
Library staff have come up with creative ways to continue to serve the people. For instance, people can still check out books and DVDs through a curbside service. The library also continues to check out bikes that can be used on the Tanglefoot Trail. And people can continue to get photocopies made as well as send faxes.
But one of the more dynamic ways that the library is serving the community during this time is through a craft program that started in July. The “take and make” crafts are for children who enjoy being creative.
Each morning around 9 a.m., library staff sets craft packages on the front porch of the library for people to pick up for free. There are 50 individually wrapped bags of supplies that can be used to make a craft. Each day there is a different craft, and they are available on a first-come, first serve basis Monday through Friday.
“It’s pretty much a ready-to-go craft with all they need to put it together,” said Union County Library Director Sissy Bullock, who came up with the idea for the crafts. “We have parents that come by every single day and get the crafts.”
For instance, the craft packets come with supplies such as paper, glue and glitter, and all the children have to do is put it together.
The program has been going on for about seven months, and during that time there have been approximately 7,650 crafts made available to the public.
“At this point we don’t want to stop it because it’s been so successful,” said Bullock. “I don’t know how long we’ll do it. We’ll just wait and see. It’s really been popular.”
Bullock said the craft program is a way to share the library with people in a safe manner during the coronavirus pandemic. There are already craft packets assembled for February. The craft packets are assembled by library staff members.
“The library staff has just done a tremendous job putting this together,” Bullock said. “It’s a lot of work. We’ve really worked hard on it.”
She noted that it is a very involved process to come up with the craft ideas and then to get all of the materials bagged up and ready to go. The craft program was part of a strategic plan to make the library available to the public during the pandemic, she added.
“It’s not a haphazard thing. It’s planned out. It’s like our story times. Our story times are always planned out way ahead. We know what we’re going to do. We’re prepared, and I think that’s what makes it successful.”
The Internal Medicine & Pediatric Clinic of New Albany donated bags for the craft supplies.
“They were very helpful,” Bullock said.
The library also received a grant from UNITE for the summer library program, which had to be canceled due to the pandemic. Since the summer library program could not be held, the grant money has gone toward purchasing the craft supplies.
“We had to adapt, and that’s what we did,” Bullock said, adding that there have also been some private donations for the crafts.
There are a wide range of different crafts that have been offered through the program. For instance, recently one of the crafts was a Fruit Loop bird feeder. There is going to be a koala bear craft for Australia Day and an Abraham Lincoln craft for his birthday in February. There have been science, technology, engineering and math crafts, and some of the crafts correlate with books.
One upcoming craft deals with pancakes while another one involves a hibernating bear in a cave. No matter what the craft is on a particular day, all 50 bags are usually taken.
“It’s been a success,” said Bullock, adding that parents appreciate the craft program as well. “I’m proud of it.”
The craft program has allowed the library to reach children who could not come inside the building because of the pandemic, Bullock said.
“We’re just doing what we can do,” Bullock said.
"craft" - Google News
January 15, 2021 at 07:09AM
https://ift.tt/39vg0E8
Library's craft program serves community during pandemic | New-albany-news - Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
"craft" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2YrY2MS
Shoes Man Tutorial
Pos News Update
Meme Update
Korean Entertainment News
Japan News Update
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Library's craft program serves community during pandemic | New-albany-news - Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal"
Post a Comment