On March 11th at noon, a group of us deliberated the fate of the annual SOKY BOOK FEST. We entered the meeting with plans to press on; we exited knowing the world would look very different for a season. If you had asked me at 11:49 on March 11th if I believed WKU would dismiss for the semester, we’d have an everyday appointment with Governor Andy, or that the Olympics would be delayed, I would have said, “Surely not. That sounds like the beginning of The Stand by Stephen King.” But here we are, adapting, social distancing, and connecting safely.
“If we don’t have each other, we go crazy with loneliness. When we do, we go crazy with togetherness.”
― Stephen King, The Stand
Here’s the good news: The Warren County Public Library is here for all your loneliness needs and together craziness wants and you never have to leave the comfort of your home.
If you have access to a phone, call the Main Library (270-781-4882) between the hours of 9am-12pm, Monday through Friday, to get assistance with a digital library card or ask questions about digital library services or community resources. You can even email the reference desk directly at refdesk@warrenpl.org
If you have access to the internet, please utilize our website (warrenpl.org) and Warren County Public Library’s Facebook page. We’ve moved our fantastic weekly programming online. Parents, story times with Ms. Tamara and Ms. Elizabeth are Live and Ms. Veronica and Ms. Cecilee are coming at you each week with baby/toddler yoga. Yogis, leave on those unwashed Christmas PJs and tune in to Laura Beth on Monday evenings at 6pm. Find your calm among the chaos.
Special programming is digital, too. We’re hosting online local concerts/performances, special story times with community leaders, book clubs, and various workshops; i.e. Learn magic tricks from Broadway the Clown or get financial advice from Joanie Evans. Or you can check out our #AtHome tab and click on activities for every age group.
Our buildings are closed until further notice, but books and streaming services are open 24/7. Your library card grants access to free ebooks, audiobooks, and magazines (Overdrive/Libby/RBDigital), free movies (Hoopla/Kanopy), even free music (Freegal). If your Covid-19 entertainment looks more like research, I’m excited to tell you about online databases. Discover your family history through Ancestry Library Edition or Heritage Quest. Learn 71 new languages with help from Mango. You can even find college and career help. Online classrooms never close and we have too many to list.
For those without phones or internet, we’re utilizing community partnerships to distribute free books, activities, and games to families who might not have other means. This is a unique time for humanity to shine and we’re grateful to be rays of light. If you’d like to help with these provisions, please email veronicar@warrenpl.org or courtneys@warrenpl.org and we will help you partner or direct you toward partnerships.
Here’s one last bit of good news: WCPL is committed to adapting to the service needs of Warren County. We adapted on March 11th and we will keep adapting. None of us know the safety guidelines Governor Andy will share tomorrow, but we promise that our goal to serve patrons will never change. Please feel free to reach out with your questions and ideas via Facebook. Make us part of your daily click and scroll. We’ll be here.
-by Courtney Stevens
About the Author: Courtney Stevens is the Community Outreach Manager for Warren County Public Libraries. She is also the author of some well-known young adult fiction books including Faking Normal and Dress Codes for Small Towns. She can be reached at courtneys@warrenpl.org or 270-781-4882 x223 or check out her website at www.courtneystevens.com.
