Sept 7 - A Special Day

September 7 is a very special day. Why, you ask? Well ... it's my Dad's birthday and that's special to me. It's also the day the Library Board held a special meeting to award a contract to Summit Body Works in Commerce City, CO to build the Iowa City Public Library's first Bookmobile. That meeting set into motion a wonderful journey of serving our community in a new way.

The need to serve our community away from the Downtown Library was first identified in the Library's Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan was created with the help of a community survey, focus groups, user survey, and planning meetings to digest the feedback received and craft a plan to guide our work. Thanks to a strong vision in the Strategic Plan, support from the City Council and Library Board, and financial support from the Iowa City Public Library Friends Foundation, we have a Bookmobile that makes a difference in our community every day.

Recent news stories on KCRG and KWWL (click on the link to play the videos) tell a wonderful story of how the ICPL Bookmobile is taking Library service on the road and serving our community in new ways.

Every time I work on the Bookmobile, I see first-hand what a difference the Bookmobile is making in our community. One young patron and I dream together about what it would be like to live on the Bookmobile. Each time we see each other, we work on our plan. More than once, a patron has told me, "Every time I pick up a Hold on this Bookmobile, I think this is the best decision the City ever made!" So many miles, so many happy stories!

On September 7th I will say Happy Birthday to my Dad and I'll think about ICPL's Bookmobile journey that was set in motion by the Library Board three years ago on that day. If you haven't visited the Bookmobile, please make a plan to see us soon. I promise it will make you smile and you may also dream about what it would be like to live on the Bookmobile. Schedule information is at icpl.org/Bookmobile.