As Nancy mentioned, September is Library Card Sign-Up month. This is a big deal with the American Library Association (ALA). They were even able to use the “Toy Story 4” characters as official spokespeople (can I call animated characters people?). We also often run a theme for the month on our own. We had decided that September will be “Friendship Month” at the Andover Public Library. We have Christine Mabon coming in on September 26th to speak about the “Five Essential Friendships”, we planned a children’s and adult craft for Friendship Bracelets, and have gathered up books to display that focus on real life or fictional friendships. I felt that the two themes could have a connection.

After a little research, I came across a blog article written by Sadie Trombetta called “Making Friends at the Library”. Sadie writes about how she has always found friendship with like-minded people at the library. As she grew older, moved on to new places and new jobs, she gravitated to the local library. It didn’t matter if it was the New York City Public Library or a much smaller, rural library in Massachusetts, the library called to her. She joined book clubs, writers’ groups, and participated in programs. The library was always a safe place to start in a new community. She felt comfortable from the start, just browsing the shelves and finding old friends on the pages of books. That comfort level made the transition of cultivating friendships with other library enthusiasts easy.

We all need a social connection. Finding someone who shares a passion and love for reading and learning is easy to find at the library. You may also find someone who loves gardening, quilting, technology, or gaming. You’ve been here, you know that your library is full of diverse and interesting people. No shushing in this library. If you have been enjoying the library lately, thank you for coming. You make our day. But what about everyone else? Where are they? We want to shout, “Come back to the library! It’s nice here. Really!”

So, rather than just focusing on new library card sign-ups, we need your help in bringing back those who haven’t visited in a while. You are our best advocates. Talk up the library and its programs and like our page on Facebook and follow us on Instagram (@andoverlibraryohio). Share, like, and comment away. Not a social media fan? Let your friends and neighbors know if there is something coming up or a program that you enjoyed. Together we can bring back old friends and make some new ones, one library card at a time.

Oh, and if you have lost your library card, you can get a replacement for free during the month of September. What a better time to come back to the library?!