Virtual “yard signs.”

Have a yard sign? If so, great! If not, pick one up at SimmonsFlint or these other locations.

Use the image at right as a virtual yard sign by setting it as your Facebook profile picture. All you have to do is:

1. Right click the image.
2. Select “save image as…”
3. Save it (on your desktop seems to be the easiest spot to locate the file later).
4. Go to Facebook and change your profile photo, uploading this image.
5. Title the image with this link to this blog post: http://bit.ly/virtualyardsigns

…and bonus points if you:

1. Tag 5 local friends (or more) in your new profile photo. Make sure they’re from Grand Forks (including college students) and able to vote.
2. Update your status, explaining your new photo and stance, with a link to the blog post. For example: “I’m voting YES on May 3 to a new Grand Forks Public Library! Want a profile picture like mine? Go to http://bit.ly/virtualyardsigns.”

With the vote coming up in only 12 days, we need your participation. And soon! Thank you.

Growth is good. For all of us.

Much has been said about how much the Grand Forks Public Library has changed and added programs and services over the years. Here’s a rundown of that growth:

• The library now has 61 computers for public use, 11 of which are used for the online card catalog and databases. Over 50% of their total cost has been provided by grant funding.

• The library provides access to searchable online databases (Ancestry, Auto Repair Center, Ebsco and Gale journal article databases, Mango Languages, NoveList, Proquest Newspapers, etc.) for all library patrons, either within the library or from their home computers. These subscription databases are provided through library consortium funding and are not available from your local Internet provider.

• Computer classes are currently offered on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. Topics currently being explored include Computer Basics, various Microsoft applications, Beginning Genealogy and Social Networking.

• Two self checkout stations have been added at the main circulation desk and one in the children’s department, making the check out of materials fast and easy.

• The library purchases the latest fiction and non-fiction books in print, audio, and large-print formats, making reading about your favorite subject an enjoyable experience. They also have downloadable books available through their Library2Go program.

• The library’s Grand Forks Room has area atlases, cemetery books, city directories, farm and plant directories, military records, obituaries, local reference books and yearbooks available in one research location. Local history resources such as these are generally not available online or as downloadable e-books.

• The Myra Collection features books on farming, agricultural practices and horticulture. This collection is partly funded by the Myra Foundation.

• The library has five active book clubs (Great Reads, Leaders Read, Current Affairs, Classic Re-Reads and This & That), with a sixth one starting this month (Poetry). They also have many Book Clubs in a Bag (everything you need for a great discussion in one tote bag).

• The Children’s Department is a very active place, with toddler and preschool story times, summer and winter reading programs, R.E.A.D. dogs and lots of special guests. They also have computers with homework help sites and kid-friendly search engines for their own information hunts.

• Teens will soon have their own space in the library for Young Adult books and activities.

This growth requires a new library. Vote YES.

If you believe in a new library, please share this post with your family and friends, either through email or Facebook. The May 3 vote is quickly approaching! Thank you.

Statistics show need for new library.

 “There is not such a cradle of democracy upon the earth as the Free Public Library.”  ~Andrew Carnegie

The Grand Forks Public Library is the cornerstone of our community, a public institution of immeasurable worth to the responsible citizens of Grand Forks and the surrounding area – and it needs your help.

Thanks to all of you, we’ve outgrown our current library and desperately need more space to accommodate your reading, research and relaxation needs. Vote YES for a larger, light-filled, comfortable and safe environment!

 * * *

Like thousands of public libraries across the United States, the first Grand Forks Public Library building was constructed with funding provided by Andrew Carnegie. It was located downtown on the corner of 5^th and Alpha from 1903 until 1972, when a new library was built at 2110 Library Circle.

The new library seemed large at 31,415 sq. ft. but it was soon apparent that more space was needed. In 1984, an expansion project added 4,500 sq. ft. for a new Children’s Department on the second floor, as well as space for the library’s first computer room. It was an exciting place for the growing community of readers.

The library’s collections and services have always kept pace with the needs of its patrons, and never more than in today’s ever-changing electronic world. The statistics below contradict the assertion that the Internet has made the Grand Forks Public Library expendable, showing instead that its use increases with every year:

	1979	2009
Population of Grand Forks County	63,425	66,585
Library visitors per year	175,000	283,956
Library visits per capita	2.76	4.26
Total number of library materials owned	137,514	314,310
Total items checked out (the largest number of any library in North Dakota)	360,128	852,129
Total interlibrary loan materials provided to other libraries	293	3,598
Total interlibrary loan items borrowed from other libraries	381	536
Items checked out per capita	5.68	12.80
Number of internet users served	N/A	52,784

Your public library continues to grow and be a vital part of Grand Forks because its mission is taken very seriously.

But… the building is the same size as it was in 1984 and library service has changed dramatically since then. Not only have we outgrown our current building; it has serious deficiencies. The wiring and the heating system have not been updated since they were installed in 1972 and are limping along with continual repairs. The lighting in the stacks is totally inadequate and there are no windows to provide natural light. The library’s bathrooms and stacks are not in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The existing elevator must be replaced. And so forth.

No hype. No exaggeration. We need a new library and these are the facts and statistics to prove it. 

Vote YES.

If you believe in a new library, please share this article with your family and friends. Email or post the link to your Facebook. The vote is only 12 days away! Thank you.