Sumter County Library - A Place For You!

High temperature and humidity aside, summer is drawing to a close. Schools will be back in session this week and you can already tell that the days are getting slightly shorter. Here at the Library we are also beginning to make the transition to fall. The biggest change will of course be the students that will be coming to the Library after school to work on homework, science projects, and the inevitable term papers. We are looking forward to being able to provide assistance to our student patrons in our expanded facility. Several plans are in the formative stages for programming for the fall, but it might be a good time to pause and look back over the last few months.

The Summer Reading program, Get A Clue, was a resounding hit. It was evident that the children thoroughly enjoyed the programs that our intrepid Children’s Department staff provided for them. Kudos to Karen Edgar, Vickey Haynesworth, Janet Caldwell, Nipa Brown, Glenda Fulwood, and the entire staff as well as their tireless volunteers who worked so hard to make this year the success it was. And we can’t forget to thank the Friends of the Library who once again sponsored the programs – we couldn’t have done it without their support. Speaking of support and the Children’s Department, the Junior Welfare League of Sumter has once again supplied the Library with a generous donation to purchase books. Some of these have already arrived and will soon be making their way into the hands of eager young readers. The Kiwanis have also done much in the past and continue to provide books for the Children’s Department. These organizations are helping to foster the habit and joy of reading in young library users that will last them a lifetime.

Our movie nights have been a growing favorite, with just the right blend of contemporary and classic movies. One week our patrons have enjoyed Robin Williams in RV, another James Dean in the enduring Rebel Without A Cause. We’ve already worked up a slate of movies for the fall and details will be forthcoming shortly.

The Downtown Library was closed on Friday, August 17. We apologize for any inconvenience this caused our patrons, but the day was spent by the staff in honing their skills to better serve the Sumter community. We were very fortunate to have presentations in the morning from two staff members from the South Carolina State Library, which works tirelessly to support libraries across the state. Deborah Hotchkiss presented a customer service workshop that went against the grain of treating patrons as potential problems to be dealt with or managed. Instead, her focus was on how the attitude of the staff can make patrons feel welcome as soon as they walk through the doors. Amy Duernberger followed with a demonstration of the many tools available through the online databases of DISCUS, which is accessible at the Library and for home use as well. Contact the Library for any information on the incredible goldmine of information that can be obtained from the DISCUS databases. The morning lineup was perfect – the importance of good customer service followed by a great customer service tool. The afternoon session was headed by Joseph Tobiere, the longtime IT for the Library. From the moment the Internet made its first appearance at the Library when we had a grand total of three or four computers for public use, to the 35+ that are in our lab today, Joseph has been their every step of the way as the Sumter County Library has made its way along the information highway. If you ever drive by the Library late at night and see a light burning somewhere in the building, that’s probably Joseph or one of his techs responding to a cry for help from the library staff. Joseph gave a very informational talk on computer use in the library that was very appreciated by all those staff members that attended.

So, it’s been a pretty good summer and we look forward to many new and exciting ways to serve the Sumter community in the fall months ahead.

Robert