Readers, it’s been a while. I wasn’t someone who kept track of the number of days we were home, but it felt like 3,005,567,908 days, didn’t it? The pandemic is still going on around us, but it’s feeling more and more like a fog that’s slowly getting thinner. So many New Yorkers are still dealing with anxiety, fear, and for too many, grief. I wish we had a date that I could circle on my calendar and write, “Pandemic Over” in all caps, but sadly, that seems an unrealistic wish. What I do know is that we’re crawling back to some sense of normalcy, though it looks different than what we imagined or what we’re used to seeing. For us at the LPL, that means returning to our home base–the Levittown Public Library.
We’ve all been working hard from home since we closed our doors on March 13, 2020. We’ve created new content for our website, including tutorials on how to use our databases and other resources. We’ve created videos and hosted live programs to keep you and your families entertained and informed. We’ve even stayed in direct touch with so many of you who have used our chat service, email, and call back service to ask us your questions. The next step is LPL To Go. Our Contactless Pickup service is the first step in getting physical materials back into your hands and homes. You can call, email, or use our chat service to tell us what you want. Although we still cannot get materials from other libraries for you, our librarians are always happy to select replacement items based on your tastes if something you’re looking for is unavailable. Our Circulation Staff is coordinating appointment times to pick up items in a manner that keeps us all socially distanced. Returns can only be made using our outdoor book drop and all materials returned are quarantined for 72 hours before they are handled by staff. Employees are not exempt from this rule; I hauled my two giant tote bags packed with books and DVDs to the book drop just a couple of weeks ago.
More good news: Our Seed Library is open! Levittown cardholders can request up to 10 packets of open-pollinated, GMO-free seeds. You can pick from vegetables, flowers, and herbs. After filling out a simple Google request form, a staff member will contact you to set up an appointment time to pick up your seeds. The timing for this new service is appropriate as we all begin a new phase of renewal.
Despite the circumstances, some things will never change. Summer reading, for one, has not been cancelled. Registration for all ages will begin Monday, July 6th. For the first time, we’ll be using READSquared, an online platform that’s easy to use and even lets you link all members of your family into one account; so, there’s no excuse for you adults to only sign your children up!
As we continue the reopening process, I would encourage each and every one of you reading this to please keep watching our website and sign up for email notifications. As with every other local business and organization, there’s a learning curve to every new step forward we take, so please be patient with us as we navigate our way through. And if you have a question or a concern, please ask us!
Lastly, thank you for voting to pass our budget! Thank you for believing in the work we do. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to do more.
Stay safe and be well,
Jess
