It’s that time of year when everyone is, reflecting on the previous twelve months and considering how to move forward in 2019.  Grand County Library District is no different.  As we plan out our programming for the coming year, we reflect on what has been achieved in 2018.  Long gone are the days when our libraries were solely identified with providing books; now GCLD is a jumping off point to a variety of growth and development opportunities!

Grand County Library District supports creative expression in music, art, writing, and the exchange of ideas.  For some, this means coming in to the library to view arts displays in the community rooms or be an active participant in a water color classes or join with others for Grand County Community of Writers events.  Glass bead jewelry, lotion making, and crafting art from books tap into our creative community.  For many these explorations are in the physical world, but Grand County library cardholders might also visit the virtual world with our Virtual Reality sessions and get a taste of opportunities described in Ready Player One.

Promoting personal growth has been well received with 10 individuals returning to the (virtual) classroom to obtain their high school diploma through Career Online High School.  Career Coaching was available and many access Lynda.com to explore new skills.  Be Well author talk and book signing, Learning to Breath by Sharon Harvey Alexander, with an hour of yoga by Caterina Francese was a great start to kick off a Spring Detox.  Fraser Library tapped into civics lessons with a virtual education series, The American Government and travel programs throughout all the libraries have been very popular!

This summer, Libraries Rock(ed) with our Summer Reading Program.  Extremely popular with 816 babies, kids, teens, and adults participating, Grand County Libraries worked to offer a variety of opportunities.  Some enjoyed Karaoke, dance parties, puppet shows, Rock n Roll shows featuring local musicians, hide and seek rock hunts, and gardening.  Youth Radio! was a great collaborative project with KFFR in which tweens and teens learned how to set up, select music, write copy, and present their own radio show.  These summer programs kept more kids than ever engaged in reading. Both early literacy story hours and after school programs at all our branches continue to attract our young library users.

Grand County Library District provides trustworthy resources with opportunities not just for education and personal growth but also recreation.  A new venture in 2018 was the Access Grand Program which provided library card holders the ability to check out passes to a variety of Grand County venues, including Devil’s Thumb and Grand Lake for Nordic skiing.  In the coming year, it is possible to obtain membership passes for our local Grand County Historical Museums, Colorado State Parks, and other Front Range museums and galleries.

Maintaining our reputation for providing a rich variety of resources remains a central tenant for our libraries.  We intend to make sure our libraries have an exciting and relevant collection of materials for check-out.  Completing a thorough weeding of our nonfiction materials and reallocating resources including desktop computers and furniture depending on library needs and seasons  helps us maintain a facility that meets our changing community needs.

It is our goal to provide a space that is welcoming, meets the need of our library customers, and provides access to services and opportunities to change.  Whether this is our customer service focused staff, a wag of the tail by Sophie the Reading Dog, or one on one tech training classes on how to use your own device the library is a place both physical and virtual.