These books will travel.
The Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL) is launching an outreach library van as part of new plans to better connect people with the services the GVPL offers. The new outreach van stopped by Royal Bay Secondary School on Feb. 26 to give students an opportunity to get familiar with the service it provides.
The van will deliver library services to 10 municipalities and reach thousands of people each year, said GVPL board chair Kevin Murdoch. “Our new Mobile site brings the library’s vast collection to anyone with internet access on any device,” Murdoch said. “It demonstrates we are responsive to changing needs, and underscores the creative ways we extend the reach of our library system.”
The van will contain a small collection of library materials for GVPL members, and allow people to sign up for library membership at the vehicle.
It will also increase visibility at community events and parades, as well as during outreach programs at seniors centres, for example, explained Jessica Woollard, communications officer for the GVPL.
The new Outreach Library Van (OliVe) ) is part of the GVPL’s new strategic plan - based on public consultation, board direction and staff feedback - and the first of many new launches planned during the next five years. Funding for OLiVe was provided by the Victoria Foundation and Friends of the GVPL.
Maureen Sawa, CEO for the GVPL, said the positive input from more than 100 established partners is one of the GVPL’s greatest strengths, and an invaluable source for future plans. “We are a truly a community inspired library system,” she said.
The GVPL’s strategic plan was launched during Freedom to Read Week, Feb. 21 to 27, an annual event with an emphasis on encouraging intellectual freedom.
To access the new GVPL mobile site go to m.gvpl.ca.
reporter@goldstreamgazette.com