|
When the Pleasant Grove Library moved its 12,000 books in 1988 from the old library building just down the street from its current location, there was only a handful of staff to help. Now, the library has more than 100,000 books and media in circulation and a staff of 28 employees to move those books around.
The Pleasant Grove Library is celebrating its 20th anniversary at its current location on Center Street this month with a party planned for the July 28.
Back in 1988, books would fall over because there were so few on the shelves that they would not hold each other up, according to Library Director April Harrison. Now the books are packed in so tight on the shelves and so high on the walls that it's a struggle at times to pull out just one book at a time.
"To see where it is now, I just get so excited to see where libraries are going to go," Harrison said.
Harrison has worked at the library for 20 years and has been its director for the last 17 years. She has seen the development and integration of new technologies at the library over the past 20 years, with the more recent addition of computers and wireless internet access.
The days of the card catalog system are long gone, too. The cataloging system is all digital, but it's still easier for visitors to ask an employee.
"It's fun to help [library patrons] find what we have available," said Ronnie Bingham, who has worked part-time at the library for 16 years.
Harrison herself started working at the library for the love of books.
"This is a great way to put the two things that I love together -- books and children," Harrison said.
Harrison says she no longer spends as much time with the children as she used to but leaves reading time to part-time employees and volunteers.
"Now I only read to my grandchildren," she said.
With more than 1,200 children and their parents attending the Summer Reading Program during the summer, the library is filled with hundreds of children each day all attending various activities or reading times.
But even with all the celebration this month, Harrison still feels like the library has outgrown its capacity and that the city may need something more adequate for its citizens.
"The library is a living entity and always should be improved through more literature and to what the citizens need," says Harrison.
For more information about library programs and activities, including the party on the July 28, visit www.plgrove.org/library. |
