Salmo Public Library. Contact Person: Marianne Hansen. Community Engagement Response:

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1 Salmo Public Library Contact Person: Marianne Hansen Community Engagement Response: In conjunction with developing our current strategic plan, we conducted an extensive written community survey in 2009/2010 of both users and nonusers, along with shorter targeted surveys of businesses and staff. The results of the community survey were summarized and informed the development of our 3-year strategic plan, "Building a Better Library, " The key goal of our strategic plan is to expand and renovate our facility in order to offer all services on the main floor, make the facility more attractive, increase space for children and young adults, increase the number of public access computers, and provide more office and work space, all of which were identified in the survey as things respondents would "fix about the Salmo Public Library" if they could. While we are planning and fundraising for the library expansion, we have improved the seating in our reading room and upgraded the lighting in the library, improving both brightness and energy efficiency. We also completed a project that saw old carpet removed from the library and bright new commercial-quality laminate installed by volunteer labour. Another key community request was for more open hours. Starting in January 2011, we revised our hours, increasing open hours by six (this is a lot for our small library); one result has been a significant increase in the number of people using computers in the library. Our typical library week showed a notable increase in number of visits. We were pleased with community feedback that indicated a high level of satisfaction with and appreciation for our staff, many of whom are volunteers. We have made considerable effort in 2011 to show our appreciation for staff through a "volunteer dinner" in the summer hosted by the Board and a pre-christmas get together. Question 13 will show our commitment to staff and volunteer training. We did not have a good response to our business survey, which was mailed out. In future, we may try face-to-face interviews to see if this is more successful. We are well supported by local businesses and would like to be able to provide relevant service to them. We decided to put a customer service suggestion box on the circulation desk in the library so that users could give feedback whenever they wished, but it has not been used. Because we are a small library in a small community, most people feel comfortable giving staff direct verbal feedback. (We like to try things out to see whether or not they are worthwhile.) The Board is planning another community survey this year to guide the updating of the strategic plan. We will be exploring the use of our webpage and Facebook as tools for collecting community feedback. We provide information to and collect information from the community at the annual Fall Fair. Our Acting Library Director is in regular contact with staff at both the elementary and secondary schools and arranges author visits to both when requested. Our Friends of the Library hold a monthly tea at the Library which is open to everyone and often attracts people who are not regular library users. We take advantage of all these opportunities to listen to what people want from their library.

2 Grants Operating Grant: Amount: $ Plan: Yes, all the funds were expended. Use: The provincial operating grant accounted for approximately 9% of our total operating grants in 2011, and approximately 8.5% of our total revenue. We have traditionally used the provincial operating grant to cover collection expenses. This year our expenditures just for adult and junior books and audiovisual materials totaled $9,593.74, which exceeded the amount of our grant, and of course we have other collection expenses. Outcomes: As a small, rural library, we operate on a very slim budget. We have used the provincial operating grant to cover a significant portion of our collection development expenses, and we make a concerted effort to match our acquisitions with the interests and needs of our library's users. We are often complimented on the quality of our collection, relative to the size of our library, both by residents and by visitors from other communities. Resource Sharing Grant: Amount: $2576 Use: In 2011, the number of items borrowed and lent through Interlibrary Loan both increased. We routinely offer this service in the library to any customer requesting a book that we do not have in our collection, and the response is always very appreciative. As well, library members can submit interlibrary loan requests at any time through our website. All requests are processed within a week at the most, and we generally receive items within a maximum of two weeks. We have recently added a Library Clerk to our paid staff, and we are able to process ILL's more efficiently. The Interlibrary Loan service is crucial to our mission of "providing a broad range of reading and related materials for pleasure, information and lifelong learning" to the citizens in our community. It is a key strategy in addressing gaps in our collection. Because we are a net lender, we are also able to collaborate with other libraries in the provision of quality service. BC One Card Grant: Amount: $6350 Use: Because we are a small, rural library, we do not receive a large number of requests from BC OneCard customers. We do, however, process and return a lot of materials that our members have accessed from other communities, including audio books, which do not qualify for Canada Post's book rate. We make sure that materials are properly packaged to ensure that items are returned without damage, and we keep track of dates of return so that customers are not charged unfairly for overdues should postal service be slow. The BC OneCard grant funds also contribute to staffing costs

3 related both to this program and to resource sharing through interlibrary loans. As you can see, the total amount of funding we receive for both programs is small relative to the services we provide. This funding is a critical piece of our operating budget. We would like to explore the possibility of developing a common promotional brochure through the Kootenay Library Federation so that we have an easy and consistent way of explaining the BC OneCard option to our library users. We are also working to make sure that all staff, paid and volunteer, are able to speak knowledgeably and positively about this valuable service. We support the goal of the Libraries and Literacy Branch to provide seamless library service to all residents of BC. Library Literacy Grant: Amount: $ Use: To promote literacy and literacy related programs, this grant made it possible for us to host six author visits at the library, and with a combined total attendance of 91. We also hosted two book launches for local authors. At one of these events we had 30 people in attendance; this was a wonderful success for the author, the library, and the community. As well, a portion of this grant allows us to collaborate with our local schools, with whom we organize literacy building events. In 2011, the library held a creative writing workshop for grades 7-9 at Salmo Secondary School; 35 students participated. Our Children's Librarian visited Salmo Elementary School three times last year and hosted one visit at the library. One of the school visits involved visiting all K-6 classes to promote Family Literacy Day, a major event in our library; this visit raised the profile of literacy activities and resulted in increased participation. We collaborated with our local Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy (CBAL) worker to host a TeenBook exchange, Kids Bingo, preschool storytime, and a bookmark making craft. Ninety people attended this event. Youth in our community had the opportunity to join our Summer Reading Program, and we were able to purchase prizes for reading incentives. In 2011, 30 youth registered in the Summer Reading Program. Given the fact that many of our families live in outlying areas with no public transportation and in an attempt to address equity challenges in our region, the Children's Librarian travels twice a month to a playgroup that meets in a small rural hall in our service area. She brings books of all types for the attendees, handles their circulation and return, and reads stories to the children. Last year, the library also supported a drop-in homework club in Ymir. Participant feedback from both of these programs is always positive and highly appreciative. During the winter season we run a program called "A Novel Christmas." We work with the schools, the Community Centre, and Salmo Community Services to collect new or slightly used books from community members to be put into Christmas hampers. In 2011, we collected 150 books for children and youth who would not have otherwise received them. We have been running this program for a few years, and recipients report pleasure at finding books among their Christmas treats. Although not funded by this grant, our library is committed to helping community members access computers, databases and the internet and to increasing digital literacy on all levels. As part of this effort, we accessed grant money to upgrade our public access computer stations and to purchase an Early Literacy Station for children. All of these resources are heavily used. Outcomes: We have combined our answers to c in with b.

4 Working with Community Partners Because we serve a small community, and with many of our patrons living outside the village limits, our library provides a central meeting place for many different community groups. One of these is the Salmo and District Arts Council, whose mandate is to support and promote arts and culture in our community. We collaborate with the Arts Council on a variety of community events, one of which last year was a community-wide Art Walk. The Library Director helped to organize this event, and the library was one of the Art Walk sites. Throughout the year, the library's Reading Room is used as an exhibition space for local artists and a venue for art openings. The Arts Council holds its monthly meetings in the library. In return, the Arts Council supports the library by promoting and attending library events. Last year, a group of local history enthusiasts started the Salmo History Group. This group meets regularly in the library. The library has recently focused on developing a local history collection, which it shares with this group. We hope to build and maintain this collection with our fledging local history group and are considering including a local history room in our planned library expansion. The local history group hosts a variety of talks and presentations in the library related to the history of our area. In turn, they are supporting the library's expansion efforts. This collaboration is helping to make old history live again! One of our library's most important partners is the Kootenay Library Federation. We hosted the annual fall meeting of the KLF's Library Directors Advisory Group; 22 members spent the day in our library sharing information and discussing matters of common concern. Salmo's central location in the Kootenays makes it a natural choice for regional meetings. Our library also hosted an event with a book selling agent that was open to any KLF librarian. We are continuously working with the KLF as we all collaborate to provide outstanding library service to our communities. We have a strong partnership with the Friends of the Salmo Public Library. Together we hold a number of community events, both to raise money and to raise awareness of the library and all it offers to local residents. These include book sales, a monthly Friday social in the library, raffles, and annual spring celebrations; last year the spring event was a "Sweet Taste of Spring," which featured the sale of all sorts of wonderful desserts on a beautiful spring evening and brought out nearly 100 people. These social events provide a wonderful opportunity for the library to connect with the community and to attract new users. The importance of the library as a social hub in our community cannot be overstated. Community Benefits The many events held at the library on Family Literacy Day (Literacy Equity Grant) are always received with smiles and the lasting impression that the library is, not only a fun and exciting place to be, but also a place with all sorts of literacy resources (books, tapes, videos, magazines, craft and game ideas) that can be taken home and used as part of day to day life. Because we stress the "family" in Family Literacy

5 Day, we are reinforcing the notion that literacy develops through positive interactions between parents and children. Often a child's interest in what the library has to offer will inspire parents to become more active library users. So many library users express surprise and pleasure when they discover that they can access almost any book through interlibrary loan or by using a BC OneCard (Resource Sharing; BC OneCard grants). This is especially meaningful for people who live in relative isolation or who face economic challenges that prevent them from accessing information in other ways. As well, throughout the summer a lot of travelers drop by our library; without fail, they are really impressed by the quality of our collection (Operating Grant). Frequent comments are, "Wow, you've got books that we don't have in our library in," and "What a wonderful little library you have; don't keep it a secret." One such visitor last summer liked us well enough after a short stop to donate $50 to our expansion fund! In 2011, our library hosted a creative writing workshop at the high school (Literacy Equity). Thirty-five students and their teachers benefited greatly from this outreach program. This is an event which would not otherwise have happened. Not only did the students enjoy themselves and learn some valuable skills; teachers were also impacted and inspired. Over time, the positive effects of such events trickle back into the community at large. Library Benefits Our library could not function without provincial grants. The operating funds that we receive from our local government partners barely cover our staff and occupancy costs. We have described how we use our various provincial grants to the benefit of our members and our community. Without these grants, we would be forced to greatly reduce our hours in order to be able to afford to develop our collection and maintain our premises. Any reduction of service would be a blow to our community. The importance of provincial funding to small libraries is critical because it is all core funding. Following up on the feedback we received from the community during our strategic planning surveys, our Board has committed to an ambitious project to expand the library's facility so that all of our services can be accessed on the main floor. To that end, we launched a capital fundraising drive called "50 for 50," both to celebrate the fact that 2011 was our fiftieth anniversary as a public library association and to try to raise $50,000 from community members as the first prong of our capital campaign. To date, we have raised nearly $30,000 from community members and local associations. This remarkable level of community support demonstrates that, in part because of the continuous financial support of the provincial government over our 50 year history, we have been able to build a library that is truly valued by local residents, whether or not they are library users. The third benefit we would like to mention does not directly stem from a specific grant that our library receives from the provincial government. We do, however, benefit greatly from the support we receive from the staff at Libraries and Literacy. Staff training through free Webinars and the low cost Community Library Training Program, PLOT website support, and all of the benefits we receive as a

6 member of Evergreen/SITKA and the BC Libraries Co-operative contribute to the level and quality of the services we provide. Our library could not possibly afford these programs and services were it to have to pay for them directly. As well, some of the funding provided to the Kootenay Library Federation by the province of BC flows out to our library and to the other members of the KLF in the form of consortium purchasing, shared databases, shared programming, and professional development and support. Shared Space Yes, our library shares facility space with the Salmo Museum Society, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Salmo Valley Newsletter. Our common facility is called The Salmo Square and is overseen by the Salmo Square Society. Two Library Board members sit on the Board of the Salmo Square Society. Programs for Youth This year our library celebrated its fiftieth anniversary as a public library association. Of course, we wanted to use this occasion as an opportunity to recall the library's history and to express our appreciation to the many people who founded and helped it develop and grow. But we also wanted to include children and youth in the celebrations in order to emphasize the fact that our library is a living and lively organization that will continue to grow and evolve in an everchanging world. In partnership with the elementary and preschools, we asked children to create art related to the library. Some classes produced covers for their favourite books. Others drew birthday cards or banners for the library. Youth were asked to submit their choices for a Y/A "50 Favourite Books" list. All of these materials were displayed in what will be the new section of the Salmo Public Library on the occasion of our 50th anniversary gala in October. This outpouring of art work by young people in honour of their library, along with a large exhibit of photographs and historical clippings documenting the library's fifty year history, made our gala truly a night to remember, as well as an inspiration for the years ahead. We participated in the following programs: Books for BC Babies Success by Six Summer Reading Club Family Literacy Day Business and Job Seeking

7 Our library supports jobs seekers and businesses by: à à Providing public access computers and free internet service, along with staff support when possible for accessing any desired information (such as help wanted ads, job postings, etc.), filling in applications and forms, writing business letters, resume writing, etc. à à Providing space for an Employment Opportunities board in the library reading room à à Prominently posting jobs, especially local opportunities, on our notice board à à Having links relevant to job seekers on our website, including Kootenay Career Development Society à à Including several community links on our website that are useful for businesses considering our community, as well as for newcomers à à Hiring one or two students each summer for full time employment and job skills training à à Hiring at least one student each year under the Community Access Program à à Displaying some local newspapers in reading room that include classified ads for the area à à Offering a Business Information Service to local businesses who want a librarian to research specific information on a fee-for-service basis Managing you Library Training and Professional Development Our strategic plan identifies the seeking out and promoting of training opportunities for staff, volunteers and Board members as an important objective in improving service to patrons and thereby making the library a more welcoming facility. In 2011, our Children's Librarian and one volunteer completed the Community Librarian's Training Program, and another volunteer completed her first two courses in the program. The library covers the cost of these courses upon completion. Our librarians and volunteers all participate in relevant webinars offered by Libraries and Literacy, as well as watching the Evergreen upgrade training videos. In May of 2011, the Kootenay Library Federation hosted a major conference in Nelson. Because of this proximity to Salmo, seven volunteers, two Board members, and three staff were able to attend the conference. Collectively, they took workshops in collections management, library promotion, fundraising, cataloguing, use of statistics for library development and promotion, risk management, digital photography, patron relations, HR management, children's programming, Reader's Advisory, teen programming, library vitality, advocacy, local government relations, and TOP training. Our library was able to cover participants' costs so that everyone who wanted to could attend. We will be reaping the benefits of this training for years to come. We encourage new Board members to take the TOP training when it is offered in our area, and we cover the workshop cost. We try to send at least one paid staff member to the BCLA conference every other year. This is much more feasible for us to do when that conference is held in the Okanagon. We often received financial support for this through our regional district representative. Vision, Mission, and Strategic Plan MISSION The Salmo Public Library strives to meet the needs of the citizens it serves by: à à Providing a broad range of reading and related materials for pleasure, information and lifelong learning; à à Maintaining a facility that is accessible, pleasant and welcoming; à à Collaborating with other organizations to enhance the well-being of the community. VISION An enlarged and

8 improved library that is sustainably resourced and serves as a vibrant and dynamic centre for the community. VALUES à à Fairness à à Respect à à Collaboration à à Innovation à à Freedom to access information à à Fostering literacy