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A library outranks any one thing a community can do to benefit its people. It is a never failing spring in the desert. - Andrew Carnegie In 2003, the Advance Community Team reached out to see what services the community felt were missing. Overwhelmingly, they heard that what was missing was a public library. A volunteer group consisting of educators, business leaders, and concerned citizens got together to fix that. These volunteers worked with the City of Advance and the Advance R-IV school district to bring a library to the community.
I got bit by the bug of reading – not via a person, but via the one room library in our small town. - Anita Shreve In November of 2003, the Advance RI-V School Board agreed to allow one room of the old school building they needed additional structural and financial support, which the City of Advance graciously provided them. Slowly but surely, that one room became a library and on June 26, 2004, the Advance Community Library opened its doors.
The whole phenomenon of the computer in a library is an amazing thing. - Bill Gates Aside from the obvious purpose of providing a large variety of reading material to its patrons, another goal was to provide them with computer and internet access. We began with just a couple of computers but were able to increase our numbers thanks to a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In the very near future, we will be offering eBooks and new databases thru MoreNet.
Libraries allow children to ask questions about the world and find answers. And the wonderful thing is that once a child learns to use a library, the doors of learning are always open. - Laura Bush The main focus of outreach remains to engage young readers. Throughout the year we provide opportunities for children to come into the library and enjoy a variety of different programs. Every summer we sponsor a summer reading program to keep kids reading when school is out.
Perhaps no place in any community is so totally democratic as the town library. The only entrance requirement is interest. - Lady Bird Johnson For the past 15 years, a dedicated group of volunteers, in coordination with the City of Advance and the Advance R-IV school district has kept our little library humming. We are the little library that could! |