The Edmonton Public Library is marking its 100th birthday by giving Edmontonians a big gift: free library cards for 2013.
The library made the announcement at its centennial year celebration kick-off event at City Hall on Tuesday.
“One hundred years ago on March 13, 1913, the Edmonton Public Library was established as a place where everyone was welcome to find community, to share knowledge and to pursue life-long learning,” said Linda Cook, CEO of the Edmonton Public Library.
“Today EPL is still a place where everyone is welcome, where you can still find a quiet place to read or relax but where you will also find people of all ages, learning to use e-readers or download the latest e-book on their mobile device, or new Canadians in a lively English conversation circle or children laughing with delight during story time.”
Ellen Calabrese-Amrhein, EPL board chair, says a library card is a powerful way to enrich Edmontonians.
"It is the gateway to a lifetime of endless possibilities and we want every Edmontonian to have one," Calabrese-Amrhein said.
Mayor Stephen Mandel proclaimed Wednesday, March 13 as Edmonton Public Library Day.
The proclamation praised the library for being an “information, education, entertainment hub instrumental in building the economic, social and cultural foundation of our great city since 1913.”
“We are truly blessed to have a library that is remarkable,” Mandel said. “It started small and it became big, which is really the story of Edmonton. Things grow here.”
A number of events are planned to mark the milestone including activities at all Edmonton Public Library locations on Wednesday, which will include café, prizes and musical performances.
The Prairie Cats will be performing the best songs of the last 100y ears at the Penny McKee Abbotsfield branch. Local musician Kristilyn Robertson will perform during the birthday party at the Riverbend branch.
Click here to find out more information on birthday activities at each branch.
For the month of march, the gallery at the Stanley Milner Library will feature displays that showcase the library’s 100-year history including a photo essay on the EPL bookmobiles and a look at how technology in libraries has changed over the century.
Community barbecues are being planned for July and the library will be partnering with Movies on the Square to host a giant outdoor interactive movie in August.
EPL history
When the library began in 1913, there were fewer than 20 staff at two branches.
Now 600 staff across 17 locations offer 12,000 free programs and events to Edmontonians each year – with more than 6.5 million physical and digital items in the library’s collection.
The EPL has strived to be innovative with its services and programs – including creating North America’s first streetcar bookmobile in 1941 and Canada’s first computerized circulation system in 1979.
The library recently broke new ground with Canada’s first off-site lending machine at the Century Park LRT station and is the first library in Canada to open an outreach office inside a public library.
“We are considered to be one of the most innovative library systems in North America,” Cook said.
And they have big plans for their second century.
The library is set to launch new initiatives such as Welcome Baby in the Community, to deliver services for babies through public health clinics at two-month immunization visits. They’re also using Literacy Vans to bring the latest technology, library programs and services to those in new or underserved communities.
"These literacy vans would go out to under-served parts of the city, where there simply are no branches or to those people who need us the most, boys and girls clubs, seniors homes," Cook explained.
Cook says the future is bright for the EPL, and while the second century may bring even more changes, the core will remain.
“Our direct connection with communities has been our strong focus,” Cook said.
“Our buildings may change, what is on our changes will most certainly change but the library will always be a place for people.”
Adult library cards are typically $12.
Click here to find out more about the free cards and to sign up.
Currently the library has about 471,000 borrowers with a circulation of just over 10.3 million items.
