Jonna Bridgman requests the following:
My church library is slowly dying. I am the only staff. I have moved it three times. The last move was to the old choir room. The choir officially died. I need more patrons! I need ideas on how to attract more patrons. The problem is that people can read on their tablets or phones. Almost all information can be obtained on the Internet. Help!
Replies
I'm new to church libraries, and I love all the responses I've read here. Our church had to close and move due to roof damage. When it is ready, I'm wondering, how often should it be open and for how long?
Thx!
Many of us on the CLN have found ways to leave the doors to the libraries open so that people can use the libraries during the week. The schedules for many of our churches on Wednesdays and Sundays when people are at church limits the time people can use the library. When we made this change several years ago, our circulation increased in remarkable ways and continues to grow.
George Williams asked me to post his reply:
In the three churches I was strongly engaged with the library, I had great success by connecting with the pastor re his sermon topic...and specially if he was promoting a specific book/author/subject. Then I would make a display around that subject at a high traffic area. Needless to say, if those books were displayed "spine-out" the impact was minimal!! On a major topic/author, we would have a display rack of a quantity of books.
Hi Everyone,
I am new to the group but also would really love recommendations to boost book circulation in the libraries that I serve in at my church. We have two libraries, one for children up to gr 8 and the adult library high school age and up. I've done so many things to create interest even adding a YA section in the church library. We've added new more current books and I post them so people will know. I change the display of books to reflect different seasons, message series, etc. The children's library definitely gets used more frequently but still not as much as it should. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thank you!
Valerie
What is your church's congergation like? First question is do your books appeal to what they want or need to read? Our current church library is full of books that no one wants to read, so I am going to overhaul it completley and work on building the collection back up to reflect our church's needs. A conversation with your pastor about what he would like to see in the library might be helpful.
If you have members with small children, perhaps you can obtain some great children's books and host a "storytime" for littles and their moms (like the public library). Or you can host book clubs. If your pastor is a reader (most are :) ) - perhaps he can make a "Pastor's Recomendation" shelf and remind the congergation that the library exists. :)
I am planning to create a reading incentive program at my library that is based on the fun "Book It" program that Pizza Hut promoted when I was a kid in the 80's and 90's. I hope to offer small incentive prizes (and maybe even pizza certificates) for people who complete reading challenges. :)
Reply from Denise Roberts
Well, we decided to do a campaign that would give people a reason to use the library. We set a motto: Equipping Followers of Christ. Then we put out a newsletter, which I will admit did not get read as much as we had hoped. Still, it helped us focus on new and popular books, and it also helped us evaluate what we considered important.
A friend of mine recently started a new library. She had a reception on Sunday night after church and explained why the library was more important for children, families, and those wanting to be sure what they were reading was true and on target. She asked a few people who might like books, then rounded up two or three to work with her. It is slow going, but it will yield results because many families are looking for ways to help their kids grow in Christ, and fun or factual books that emphasize virtues and truth are hard to find unless you know where to look. That is where you, the librarian, come in. I believe the success lies in how much those working in the library are willing to invest. Investing in this as a ministry really does pay off in the long run.
When I took over our library, our goal was to have it seen as a ministry, so we asked women and some men we knew loved books to work with us to promote the library by serving alongside us. We brainstormed what would work for our church.
In a nutshell:
1. Determine your target audience 2. Teach your families the importance of books. 3. Consider who you can enlist to help. 4. Create activities that draw people to the library. i.e., we started with SS groups coming down on one Sunday a month for story time. This got the kids excited who then asked their parents to bring them. 5. Set a budget or be creative for getting new books. i.e. book showers; donations per a list you establish; New and old books are welcome if they are in good condition;
There are so many things we have tried over the last 10 years. Some have not worked, but those that have have drawn in families. We now have a church of about 350 attendees, and anywhere from 25 to 100 books go out most weeks. Don't give up on your library!! Be creative, enlist help, and cast a vision for your church family. Hope this helps.