LIBRARY News:
Mesa Public Library (MPL) and White Rock Branch Library (WRBL) staff continue to make adjustments and changes to serve the community during the COVID-19 County and State-mandated facilities closures.
County Manager Harry Burgess announced Tuesday that the libraries are among the county facilities remaining closed until April 30 due to the recent order issued by Gov. Michelle Lujan-Grisham.
Some library procedures changed starting March 17 to adapt to the closure and will be adjusted as needed. Books and other physical items that are currently checked out now have a due date of May 17. To help people with questions, a librarian is available by phone 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Librarians can create temporary library cards for New Mexico residents, help with electronic access, locate your PIN, and answer questions about account blocks and expirations.
The library has put more money into the already extensive digital collection. The collection has books to read and listen to on Overdrive and Hoopla, in addition to music, tv shows, and movies to stream. Movies were just added to the Overdrive collection and patron monthly Hoopla limits were increased from four items to six. Patrons can find Overdrive and Hoopla through the library catalog, where there are instructions for how to use the apps that access library digital material.
In addition to Hoopla and OverDrive, the library has many other electronic resources. Relax with a magazine from the RBdigital collection, learn a new language with Mango languages, and get online tutoring and homework help with Brainfuse.
The library has temporarily ceased home delivery and patrons cannot request books be held for them. Patron requests for both digital and physical items to be purchased are still being accepted.
Patrons are asked to please hold onto their donations until the libraries re-open to the public.
Anything checked out should also be kept at patron homes if possible. Librarians empty both library book drops once daily. Questions can be answered via email using the libweb@lacnm.us.
The library public wi-fi is active and may be used from outside the library buildings both at MPL and WRBL. Residents are asked not to congregate in gatherings of five or more, in compliance with the Public Health Order.
Adult and Youth Services are offering digital connections for patrons. The catalog page has the link to the Books Gone Viral community bingo card. The Community Services Department Facebook page has library information. A pandemic-inspired educator coalition on Facebook called At Home in Los Alamos has posts with librarian tips several times a day on weekdays.
