Library Circulation Reaches New High

Date: 9/5/2010

Your public library has been busier than ever this summer. It just completed a very successful Children's Summer Reading Program, and experienced an ever-increasing demand for items by patrons who have discovered that our library is the place to go for books, DVDs and other popular materials for their leisure time and other pursuits.

I can attest to the statement made above by looking at the statistics from a report that I complete each summer.

The state's Annual Report Information Survey (ARIS) for 2010 compiles statistics from each public library in the Commonwealth on a variety of services so that standards can be evaluated and set for all libraries that wish to participate in the State Aid to Public Libraries program. Milestones reached as reported in this survey for East Longmeadow for the fiscal year ending June 30 include a circulation total of 232,688 items.

We have truly become a resource for more than just town residents. Over the last four years, the library's circulation has grown on average by 10 percent each year. Many factors contribute, in my opinion, to this continued increase in the demand for our services a) the downturn in our economy means libraries are providing more services to more people; such as free public Internet access, as well as access to many types of materials that people may have previously bought themselves; b) a central location, both for in-town residents and those living or working nearby, makes our library a convenient "on the way" destination; c) a comprehensive and current collection of materials that are constantly "in demand" by our patrons, and d) a courteous and knowledgeable staff who strives to put the public's needs first.

Our patrons also took advantage of our Massachusetts Library System's regional delivery service to request items from other libraries in the area.

Did you know that last year our library provided over 20,000 items to neighboring libraries for their patrons? In turn, patrons from our library requested and received more than 19,000 items from those same neighboring libraries.

Many "hands" make this system work smoothly and efficiently. Much of the handling and processing of these requests gets done by our library staff "behind the scenes" each weekday, so items find their way into your hands in just a few days. All this activity certainly keeps the library humming. If you haven't visited the East Longmeadow Public Library in a while, please drop by and find out what you've been missing!

For more information about the library, including hours of operation and the many services we offer, please call525-5400 x 4, or visit our Web site at:www.eastlongmeadow.org/library. The library is handicapped accessible.

Susan M. Peterson

Director

East Longmeadow

Public Library