The Westlock Intermunicipal Library Board has been recognized as a provincial leader in innovation.
Library director Doug Whistance-Smith said the board has been presented with the Award of Excellence in Innovation from the Alberta Library Trustees Association.
“This is based on some of the programs we’ve had running for the last little while,” he said, describing programs like Pets in the Library, Toddler Tales, Mother Goose and pajama parties.
“That award is well deserved,” he said. “I have asked the board to do a lot of work and they have stepped up to the plate.”
While the library board has been awarded for its innovations, Whistance-Smith said the library has also been working hard to make sure the entire Westlock community is involved with the library as much as possible.
To that end, he said the biggest accomplish is getting the Village of Clyde back on board with the library.
Prior to getting that done, he said Clyde was one of only a handful of municipalities in Alberta that was not supporting libraries.
“To get that done took a lot of effort and time,” he said. “It’s great because now just about every place in our area is involved in library support.”
The lone exception is the Summer Village of Larkspur.
While having the support of all major municipalities in the region is a big step, Whistance-Smith said he still wants to have as many residents as possible step up and get library cards.
“I would like to have at least 25 per cent of the population with a library card,” he said.
“I think that’s a do-able number. Right now we sit at around 20 per cent.”
Having more people holding their own library cards is a perfect way to enhance the level of intelligence and literacy in the community, he added, which can have a positive effect on the local economy.
In light of recent upgrades and renovations to the main branch in Westlock and the satellite branches in Jarvie and Fawcett, Whistance-Smith said the library is working on its plans for the future.
“We’re at the point where we need to plan for where the public wants us to go in the next five years,” he said.
In order to achieve that goal, he said the library is holding a public forum at the library on May 9 at 6:30 p.m.
“Come in, tell us what you want us to do for you, and how the library can adapt to meet the needs of the community,” Whistance-Smith said. “The more people that come out and talk to us and tell us what they want, the better our service will be.”
Whistance-Smith stressed the forum is not limited to library cardholders — any and all community members are invited to come out and give their thoughts on where the library should go.
“It’s about customizing the library to the community’s needs,” he said.
There are similar meetings in the works for the branches in Jarvie and Fawcett, but those dates and times haven’t yet been determined.
