26,000 new members sign up for library cards
Money is tight, so people are eager to sign up for library cards. This year, the St. Louis County Library not only surpassed its goal for signing up new borrowers, it more than doubled it.
More than 26,000 new members signed up for library cards in a campaign held Aug. 22-Oct. 9, the library said Thursday. Just over half, 56 percent, are teens and young children. The card campaign’s goal was 10,000 more borrowers. The system’s total tally of active card holders: 328,661.
Of the 26,000, more than 3,000 live outside the county boundaries. Residents of St. Louis city, St. Charles, Jefferson County, etc. are allowed to use the county library branches. It’s free for city and St. Charles residents. Others pay $50 a year.
From the county’s press release:
During the same period last year, 7,935 cards were issued. The surge in new cards coincides with unprecedented usage throughout 2009 (circulation is 20% higher than in 2008) as more people are turning to the library as a free source of entertainment and information.
As people have to cut back on spending, the library provides not just free books, but a way to look for jobs, Wi-Fi service, online databases, free DVDS, etc. Plus, the county system has been working the past few years to really update its image, bring in authors, and build its foundation.
Great. Libraries are great resource for anyone trying to better their position in life or just to gain new knowledge.
I love my library. I go there so often that the staff know me by name. They have best seller books on CD and it’s so handy to get on the internet and reserve copies of the books that you want to check out. It is really nice to go there and see so many people using the library’s computers too. As a county tax payer, I sure get my money’s worth!