Libraries offer volumes more than books

From the Saturday, Oct. 11, 2008 edition of the Northwest Herald:

Libraries offer volumes more than books
By DIANA SROKA - dsroka@nwherald.com

On a recent afternoon, 10-year-old Reilly Orpen was studying. Her 8-year-old brother, Michael, was playing Wii, and their father, Jerry, was doing some work – all at the Crystal Lake Public Library.

Libraries aren't just a place for books and card catalogs anymore, but a place for everything from book clubs and knitting classes to Wii tournaments and Guitar Hero.

Some wonder whether that's an appropriate use of taxpayer dollars earmarked for library districts, while others say it helps bring more people into the library and provides a valuable service.

"Some [programs] are educational, some are entertainment," said Johnsburg Public Library Director Maria Zawacki. "The library also serves as helping to meet the recreational needs, trying to function as a community center."

Zawacki said it's diverse programming – which often doesn't cost anything – that helps bring foot traffic into the library.

This past Tuesday, about 70 people attended a presentation at the Johnsburg Public Library about haunted locations in Illinois.

"You kind of have the educational thrown in with the entertainment," Zawacki said.

Another crowd-pleaser is the Eclectic Café, a monthly poetry gathering at the Algonquin Public Library.

It's a teen event that celebrates all things related to self-expession – from reading original poetry to performing short skits or music.

"Most of them are quite creative," said Virginia Freyre, young adult librarian at the Algonquin Library. "[They] read narratives they've written, stories, sometimes they get up and rant."

The poetry café takes place the second Wednesday of each month, September through July. Freyre said between 25 and 35 teens attend each session.

To attract yet another crowd, local libraries offer recent music CDs and DVDs for borrowing. A number of libraries in the area, including the Johnsburg, McHenry, Algonquin and Crystal Lake libraries, have purchased video gaming equipment.

In the past six months, the McHenry Public Library has seen increasing interest in Wii and Playstation 2, and purchased a brand new Wii in spring. It's used about twice a month, said Lesley Jakacki, assistant manager of young people's services at the McHenry Library.

"[Kids] can come after school and hang out with friends, or they can come by themselves and make friends by playing the game," Jakacki said.

While the Wii and movie rentals have nothing to do with research, Freyre said it's well-spent taxpayer money.

"Those taxpayers are paying for it, but they're also the ones that are coming in and borrowing them," Freyre said. "The taxpayers are enjoying what their tax dollars are [paying] for."

However, not all residents are buying it.

Orpen said that given the choice between paying less taxes to libraries or having the programming, he would rather pay lower taxes.

"As much as I want to support things like that, I don't think I can," said Orpen, of Crystal Lake.

However, he said he would be willing to pay small fees for the programming in which he partakes.

Not all libraries use tax money to fund these programs, however. At the Johnsburg library, most of the programming is paid for by the Friends of the Library, a volunteer organization that raises money through book sales. The Friends paid for the Haunted Illinois program this past week.

Jakacki said she wasn't concerned about youth recognizing the library as a place for recreation, rather than a place of research.

"As a young people's librarian, you're there to help mold the recreational part of their life as well as the educational," Jakacki said.