Although the term “data informed decision making” can seem quite dry and quickly lead to a glazing of the eyes for some, taking a look at the numbers can often lead to inspiration from patterns not noticed before. It is in this spirit that we share some numbers from the past year at the library.

Just over 4,000 books, audiobooks and DVD’s were circulated from our physical collection of 6,280 titles in 2018 which was an increase from the previous year. We also saw an increase in the number of registered borrowers, despite removing nearly 145 inactive accounts from our system. We enjoyed 2,017 visits from adults and children alike as they checked out books, asked reference questions or used the computers. In 2018, our ECHO pass had the most number of checkouts, followed by Celeste Ng’s book “Little Fires Everywhere” and “The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane” by Lisa See rounding out the top three. Most exciting was a record attendance of 924 of you at our programs, which ranged from Bullet Journaling, Dungeons & Dragons and the ever popular Moretown Open Mic, to collaborating as MRV Libraries and presenting events on racism, fake news and our summer reading program Libraries Rock.

In 2019, we hope to help meet the needs identified during our community engagement and continue providing opportunities for people of all ages to get together and connect. New this year we are offering “Read and Play” Fridays at the Moretown Town Hall. Starting January 25th at 10:30am, children 0-5 and their caregivers can come play big and small, then enjoy a few stories and songs to say goodbye. We are very grateful and excited that GMVS students and the Sculpture School are hard at work building furniture and toys for this program, and they may even be on hand to deliver their pieces and play with everyone on Friday, February 2nd. On Sunday, January 27th at 1:30pm, we invite you to join us to discover your tree traits. Meeting at the Moretown Recreation Fields, we will learn more about the trees that inhabit our forests and incorporate the practice of forest bathing to connect to them on this gentle nature walk. As the MRV libraries and partnering with Community Capstone Action, MRV Community Fund and the Big Picture Theater, on Tuesday January 29th at 6pm we bring a screening of the documentary  “The Hungry Heart” and a conversation about the opioid epidemic and how it manifests in our community. Our monthly Dungeons & Dragons meet-up will be happening Saturday, February 2nd at the Town Hall from 3-6pm. Finally, we welcome Paul Lesure from Green Mountain Solar on Thursday, February 7th to share what is happening with solar and energy storage in Vermont in 2019.

Looking to the year ahead, we want to continue your involvement as we plan for the future including our potential move to the Town Hall. To that end, we are offering two opportunities for interested community members to meet at the Town Hall and think about ways the library could act as an anchor in a community space. Join us on Friday February 8th at 5pm before Open Mic Night or Sunday, February 10th at 3pm for an interactive design session. We will also continue to share the results of our surveys, interviews and focus groups and welcome your feedback at any time. We hope to see you at the library soon!