Library campaign touts membership benefits

To educate youth about the benefits of library membership, employees and Friends of the La Cañada Flintridge Library are planning a fall campaign that aims to put a library card in the hands of every young person in the city.

And leaders of “Put the World in Your Pocket with a Free Library Card” campaign, which begins in October and runs through the end of the year, say if kids won’t come to the library, then the library will come to them.

“We thought this was a really great opportunity to take the library out of the building and into the community to reach as many people as we can,” said Sarah LoVerme, children’s services librarian for the La Cañada branch of the County of Los Angeles Public Library. “I would just love to get even one child a library card who didn’t have one before — that would be a success.”

In addition to launching a pilot program establishing a relationship with La Cañada Elementary School, in which teachers will be able to sign up entire classes for cards, the Friends of the LCF Library will host a mobile membership station at the Ralphs grocery store on Foothill Boulevard on Oct. 5 and Oct. 19 from 3 to 7 p.m.

Anyone who signs up for a free, first-time library card during the campaign can come to the Friends of the Library bookstore inside the branch and pick out a free book, children included.

Although the library participates each September in a National Library Card Sign-up Month, supporters and staff members have recently made an effort to reach out to the community with special speakers and other public events, according to Greg Waskul, a board member for the Friends of the La Cañada Flintridge Library.

“We’re really looking to provide access to knowledge, education and learning across a broader scale than exists now,” Waskul said.

The city of La Cañada has a population of 20,246 residents, according to 2010 U.S. Census data. The library’s own figures indicate 14,931 area residents are members of the city’s library branch — roughly 60% of the total population.

But when residents are separated by age, about 5,315 kids under 18 are library members, roughly 52% of the total population, compared to the 14,931 adult members, 63% of their total number.

Library officials believe the discrepancy may stem from the fact many young people use the libraries at their school sites, but hope to emphasize with the new campaign the vast print and online resources the countywide system has, including downloadable books, music, magazines and apps.

“[Kids] go to school libraries, but they can use us for homework or they can use us for fun reading,” said Library Manager Mark Totten, adding that circulation figures have been on the rise. “We’re still very much a part of the community, and we are vital.”