Altamont Library Notes for Tuesday, August 25, 2020

Two weeks ago, we told you about our “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” StoryWalk in Schilling Park. Last week, we introduced you to our “Sad Birds Still Sing” StoryWalk for teens in Bozenkill Park. Both are still up, and we’d love for you to check them out.

This week, we have one last StoryWalk to introduce, and it’s set in a place near and dear to our hearts: Altamont Elementary School! Around the front lawn of the Elementary School, you can take a nice short walk and read a wonderful story called “What Do You Do With an Idea?” by Kobi Yamada and Mew Besom. We hope you love it!

Many thanks to the Upper Hudson Library System for the idea, and to Altamont Elementary School and Principal Peter Brabant for the space and the support. Thanks, too, to Ann Gainer and Meg Seinberg-Hughes for selecting this story to share with the community. 

Census

There’s still time to complete your 2020 United States Census, and Altamont Free Library can help! On Wednesday, Aug. 26, professionals from the Census Department had a table set up outside the library to help residents fill out census questionnaires, or answer any questions about the census. 

If you missed the event and still need help, that’s OK! You can do it online at www.my2020census.gov, on paper if you still have your paper questionnaire, or by phone at 1-844-330-2020. Take 15 minutes (or less) and fill out your census today. Census workers will also be visiting the homes of households that have not responded yet. Please be on the lookout for them! 

If you have any questions or need help in filling out your questionnaire, send us an email at director@altamontfreelibrary.org or leave a message on the library’s voicemail at 518-861-7239 and we’ll get right back to you. 

Book club

meets in Orsini Park

Mark your calendars, and join us in Orsini Park at noon on Monday, Sept. 7, for an open-air, socially-distant, in-person meeting of the First Monday Book Group. Bring a lawn chair, a mask, and a water bottle, and meet us for a discussion of Lauren Groff’s novel “Fates and Furies.” We have plenty of copies, so call us at 518-861-7239 to reserve yours today. See you in the park!

Grab & Go

Curbside Grab & Go service is in full swing here at the library and it’s been going really well so far, and it’s been so wonderful to see so many of our friends back in the library after so long.

Here’s how Grab & Go service works:

— Hours of operation for pick-up and drop-off will be noon to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday;

— Reserve books and DVD’ at http://www.catalog.uhls.org anytime or by calling us at 518-861-7239 beginning June 15;

— When your items are ready, a library staff member will call or email you with a time you can pick them up. Please make an appointment before you come so that we can be sure to have everything ready for you when you get here;

— Your order will be waiting on a table in the library’s vestibule in a paper bag with your name on it. Please follow the directions you will see posted about “traffic flow” and social distancing;

— At this time, the library building and its restroom will remain closed to the public. Printing, computer, faxing and photocopying services are not yet available;

— Returns can be dropped off in the marked boxes in the library’s vestibule during business hours. Due dates for previously checked out materials have been extended into July — overdue fines are not being applied to previously borrowed materials;

— Returned items will be quarantined at the library for at least 72 hours before they are able to be checked in and recirculated; and

— Library users must maintain social distance and wear masks while picking up and dropping off library materials. 

If you have any questions, please give us a call at 518-861-7239. See you soon!