'A fantastic opportunity'
Hartley library revamping children's section thanks to grant
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NICK PEDLEY/SENTINEL-NEWS
Adult Program Director Emily Pearce and Board Member Archer Seaman assemble one of the new fixtures at the Hartley Public Library on Tuesday morning.
Big changes are gradually taking place at the Hartley Public Library.
Staff members have been transforming the west side of the facility with updated fixtures, furniture and other additions over the past month. Once finished, the children's section will change places with the teen section, moving from the front to the back.
It's all thanks to a mini grant worth $4,285 from Lakes Area Community Partnership for Protecting Children (LACPPC), which emphasizes programming for children and families.
"We've been planning this project for months," said library Director Angie Heikens. "We've done so much research on what is good, what is kid-friendly and what is washable."
The children's section will be drastically updated once the project is finished. Heikens said new furniture like a love seat and stools will be immediately noticeable for guests, as will things like a LEGO table, new paint and book baskets to help kids find the perfect story.
"The baskets allow kiddos to file through the books and look at covers rather than seeing them from the spine and pulling them from the shelves," Heikens explained. "Kids like to flip through things – they're not attracted to spines."
Heikens said the children's section will be "basically all new minus the shelves." Additionally, the teen section will be getting new desks thanks to the LACPPC grant.
The primary goal of the upgrades is to get more children through the library's doors.
NICK PEDLEY/SENTINEL-NEWS
New shelving fixtures will allow young readers to peruse book covers more easily. The revamped children's section is hoped to be completed within the next month.
"I want everything to look new," said Heikens. "We're going to promote it like crazy when it's done."
Heikens and other staffers haven't been completing the project on their own. Library board member Archer Seaman has been diligently volunteering his time over the past few weeks assembling the new furniture and fixtures.
"Stuff just keeps coming in and coming in," said Heikens. "Every time Archer sees the light at the end of the tunnel, more stuff just comes in. We're so grateful to have him."
The library is planning to hold an auction of old furniture and fixtures soon. Heikens was excited for the general public to see the changes and encouraged new faces to check out the library this spring.
"We're really hoping to be done with everything within a month," she said. "We're stretching this money as far as we can, because if you don't use it you lose it. This is such a fantastic opportunity."
