By Carmen Rodgers
Elmore Autauga News
During the Elmore County Commission meeting held Monday, April 28, commissioners appointed Debbie Jones and Dr. Jeff Langham to the Horseshoe Bend Regional Library Board of Directors.
Established in 1940, Horseshoe Bend Regional Library is the headquarters for ten public libraries across Coosa, Elmore, Lee, and Tallapoosa counties. In addition to managing these branches, the library also operates a bookmobile with an outreach program that extends access throughout the region.
HBRL Director, Samantha Brasher Godsy addressed the Commission.
The library delivers resources and services designed to support all residents in accessing information for their educational and personal development.
“We provide the bookmobile and other services to anyone, and everyone who lives in Elmore County,” Godsy, said.
Currently, the bookmobile makes three stops in Elmore County—two in Eclectic and one in Tallassee, on the Elmore County side—but the program may expand to include additional stops in the future.
“We are always looking for opportunities to expand,” Godsy explained.
Much of Elmore County is made up of rural communities, with residents often living far from centralized resources. This program is open to all and is designed to reach individuals who may not have easy access to educational resources.
“Homeschool families and individuals who live in parts of the county where they find it difficult to get to their local libraries,” Godsy explained.
While the bookmobile has three regular stops in Elmore County, it is out and about serving homebound families and individuals on a monthly basis.
“We go to a significant number of senior centers, nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and childcare centers, as well as individual homes,” Godsy continued.
The mobile library is also looking to deliver to families who have just had a special delivery of their own.
“This is something that we are going to try. We are going to offer our homebound services to individuals who have recently had a baby, or have adopted, or have brought a foster child into their family,” Godsy explained.
The bookmobile can be more than an educational resource, to some it is companionship.
“We regularly interact with individuals who may not have a conversation with another human being during that week,” Godsy said.
Godsy also announced the mobile library’s upcoming summer reading program, aimed at keeping students engaged and learning as they transition between grade levels.
“To retain and stay up-to-date on the things they learned throughout the school year,” she said.
According to its website, HBRL The Horseshoe Bend Library Outreach Program delivers books, audiobooks, and DVDs to individuals who are homebound. A homebound patron is someone who cannot get to the library to choose their library materials, and usually aligns with one of the following examples:
• Someone who cannot physically get to the library because of a disability.
• Someone recovering from surgery and needs books for a limited time.
• The caregiver of a homebound person who cannot spend time away.
• Daycares that would like reading materials for children.
The library’s physical address is 207 N West St, Dadeville. For more information about HBRL, call 256-825-9232 or visit them online at http://www.horseshoebendlibrary.org.
