Altamont Library Notes for Tuesday, October 4, 2022
Since March 2020, the leadership team at the Altamont Free Library has been very conscientious about making sure that our community was able to use the library in as safe and healthy a way as possible. For a time, that meant that we had to be entirely closed to the public and only allow for digital lending through services like Libby and Hoopla, and doing video story times on our YouTube channel.
As the pandemic progressed and we learned more, we were able to be more accessible and open: First with grab-and-go service, then with browsing by appointment, and then with fully-open doors, as long as patrons and staff were all masked. At every stage of our pandemic response, we’ve done our best to balance safety with access, and for the most part I think that we’ve done a pretty good job.
No member of our staff, for instance, has ever gotten COVID even once, which is pretty remarkable, and it’s pretty hard to imagine that any of our patrons have picked it up here either. I’d count that as a success.
On the other hand, I absolutely recognize that our requirement that patrons continue to wear masks has annoyed and frustrated some folks. Most of the frustrated people have been polite about it and to all of those, I say a full-hearted thank you for your patience and understanding as we’ve done our best to navigate through a changing public-health environment.
But now the time has come to loosen that restriction. Beginning on Oct. 1, masking is optional for both patrons and staff at the Altamont Free Library.
We will continue to provide disposable masks for all who would like to use them, and we ask that if you’re feeling that you put one on. For the many of you who have told us that you feel more comfortable in a mask-requiring environment, please know that we will continue to do all we can to make sure that the library is as clean and sanitary a place as we can reasonably make it, and you are encouraged to wear a mask yourself if you prefer.
Many of the staff will continue to wear masks. If you have any comments, questions, or concerns about this new policy, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at director@altamontfreelibrary.org.
Thank you all for your support, patience, and understanding. We look forward to seeing your smiling faces again soon, if you’d like to show them to us. (Or keep that mask on if you prefer! We like you either way.)
“Branching Out” mural
You may have noticed something new outside the library. It’s pretty hard to miss! This past weekend at the Altamont Fall Fun Day, we unveiled a temporary traveling mural created in the summer of 2021 by a group of BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) teen artists from Albany, Troy, and Schenectady.
The mural is called “Branching Out” and its creation was a collaborative program of Albany Public Library, Amplified Voices, Albany Center Gallery, and the Albany Barn. The teen artists worked with mentors and educators from Amplified Voices, whose mission is to elevate the work of BIPOC artists and to address racism in our society.
The artists were asked to consider what libraries meant to them, and their response was the incredible mural that you can see outside of the library though Oct. 8. Their mural challenges the viewer to “create your own world.”
The mural has been on view at several libraries around the Capital District, and we are very proud to be able to share it with the Altamont community. Please come take a look!
Campion exhibit
Speaking of temporary art exhibits, for the next month-and-a-half or so, we’ll be hosting a really cool display in our foyer display case. Diane Campion is a local artist who works in many media, and we’ll be showing a collection of paintings and drawings that she has done in her extensive travels around the world.
Her travel journals are an inspirational and vibrant expression of the magic of seeing new places. Come check it out! Thank you, Diane, for letting us display a small bit of your incredible work!