Library book sale canceled but services still available

As September and cooler weather (hopefully) near, we at the Havre-Hill County Library would usually be preparing for the Friends of the Library Book Sale. This year the Friends have made the difficult decision to cancel the book sale for the safety of the community. The book sale will be rescheduled when it is safe to do so.

In the meantime, we appreciate your continued patronage of the Library during these difficult and uncertain times. As a reminder, here are the steps we are taking to keep the library a safe place for everyone. We understand they are not ideal for our patrons, nor are they ideal for us, but safety is our first priority.

• Patrons are required to wear a mask for the duration of their visit. Those who do not have masks will be supplied with one. MSU-Extension has provided us with reusable masks from community donations. The masks are to be returned to our used masks bin at the end of the visit and will be laundered.

• Patrons are also required to wash their hands on entering the library.

• Our temporary hours of operation are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. We are closed Saturday and Sunday.

• The first hour we are open every day will be reserved for those who are especially vulnerable, such as the elderly and those with any underlying conditions. All other patrons should use the library between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m.

• Patrons must enter through the west- — Fourth Avenue- — facing door, as the east-facing door is being used for curbside pickup only.

• We are currently limiting the number of patrons allowed in the building at a time to 10.

• We also ask that our patrons keep their visits to 30 minutes or less per day.

• Patrons should maintain social distancing, and keep 6 feet between themselves and others.

• We are continuing to quarantine items when they are returned to us, and we are cleaning and sanitizing all frequently used areas of the library (door handles, book drop handles, etc.). The computer stations, photocopier and microfilm readers are sanitized after every use.

• Seven of our computers are available for public use, with a 30-minute time limit. Patrons should notify a staff member when they are finished at their computer station, so that we may sanitize the area.

• Our collections and drinking fountains are currently closed to the public, due to our limited ability to keep them sanitized. Materials may be browsed using our online catalogs with help from the staff, and staff members will retrieve the requested items.

• All seating has been removed, except for seating at the computers. There will be no meetings or programming for the time being.

• We will continue to offer curbside pickup for anyone who would prefer not to come into the building. You can request curbside pickup by calling us at 265-2123, emailing us at [email protected], or contacting us through Facebook or Instagram.

• We also encourage our patrons to continue taking advantage of our digital collections. Free audiobooks and e-books can be accessed at http://montana.overdrive.com , or from the Montana Library 2 Go link on our website at http://havrehilllibrary.org .

As always, patrons should not enter the building if they have signs or symptoms of any illness. Please keep in mind that we have many vulnerable populations who use the library.

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Rachel Rawn is director of the Havre-Hill County Library