Public Libraries

Your tax dollars pay for it, so are you using it?

In the modern age, a public library offers:

• Free reading material: books, magazines, newspapers
• Internet access (often requires a library card)
• A quiet place to study and relax
• Reference materials -- from maps to professional directories, and older historical materials. A place to get answers of all stripes
• A local resource to have questions answered

Public funds spent on libraries have a geometric effect. The same book (novel, how-to manual, reference work, etc) in a library collection benefits many people through the book's lifetime. Everywhere I've ever lived for a time, I've very quickly gotten a library card. And it's always proven to be a wise decision.

How can you benefit your local library? The easiest way, at no cost to you, is to use it. If circulation of materials increases, libraries will get more funding for more materials.

Other ways:

• Volunteer work. Volunteers anywhere are in short supply.
• Cash and Materials Donations. If they're not put into circulation, they're sold off to raise funds at book sales. See below.
• Buying stuff at the book sale -- Amazing stuff can be found here on the cheap, and all the funds go back to the library
• Participate in programs that the library offers. Similar to circulating materials, the attendance figures on these events *are* tracked

Being old-fashioned in this regard, I usually refer to library materials as books. However, most of the statements I've made work equally well for each item in a library collection. In the modern age, libraries contain more than just books and free Internet access. You can find DVD disks, newspapers, magazines, VHS tapes, and music of all stripes (including some music which is more rare, and far more worldly). You can often find older, hard-to-find movies there.

So what are you waiting for? Seek out your local library's page on the web, or drop in to a local branch.