I’d momentarily forgotten the significance of August 24 until I abruptly found myself following a leisurely school bus down the road that morning. While I felt a mild sense of impatience at the delay, I also felt a sense of happiness that kids would be rejoining their friends, making new ones, meeting teachers and getting back in the school year groove that day.
Well, almost back in the groove. While I’ve followed this particular bus on its route many times last school year, it looked different this time. It looked…empty. We all know that school is different this year – some students going 100 percent virtual or homeschooling, fewer kids on buses, and schools divided into A and B teams to preserve social distancing during the ongoing pandemic. It’s an unusual start to the school year, to say the least.
This school year will be challenging for everyone – administrators, teachers, students, parents, childcare providers, IT personnel, librarians, and so on. At the public library, we’re trying to see this year as an opportunity to be adventurous and creative about providing our services in unique ways. We’re thrilled to partner with schools – and especially school libraries – to get books and other resources into children’s hands as seamlessly as possible. We’re gauging the needs as we go along, preparing to meet them together.
The Eagle Rock Library is located directly across from Eagle Rock Elementary School, so as of the 24th, we’ve changed the library’s curbside hours to 7:30 a.m.-3 p.m. to accommodate parents, teachers and early morning commuters. If you live up that way and those hours don’t work for you to pick up the items you want, contact the library at 540-928-2800 or eaglerocklibrary@botetourtva.gov, and the librarians will look for a way to accommodate your needs.
Other branches are currently open for curbside services as follows: Blue Ridge and Fincastle are open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m.-8 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The Buchanan Library is currently open on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m.-4 p.m, and Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. These hours may change as we adapt our services and determine where the needs are currently. Please keep an eye on our website at bocolibraries.info or follow us on Facebook and Instagram to be in the loop.
All that to say – if you or your children are missing out on getting great books, movies or music because your schedule doesn’t align with the public libraries’ or the school libraries’ schedules, please contact the library you want to use. Not only will we take your schedule into consideration as we determine future service hours, but we’ll also do our best to find a workaround to get materials to you and your children in a timely manner. If you don’t have time to pick titles out yourself, let us know what you’re interested in, and we’ll pull some suggestions for you to try out. We appreciate your patience as we experiment and look forward to seeing you curbside soon!
– Julie Phillips
Botetourt County Library
