When Borrower and Technical Services Manager Kim Perry came to Bradford West Gwillimbury from the Vaughan library system, she brought along the popular Food for Fines program.
Food for Fines allows library patrons with overdue books to pay their fines with donations of non-perishable food for the local food bank.
Over the last six years or so, it has been a success in Bradford, where late fees range from 15 cents a day up to a maximum of $2.50 for kids, to $1 per day (maximum $10) for overdue Quick Reads - and $2 per half-hour, with no maximum, for lap tops. Last year, fines contributed over $23,000 to library coffers.
Once again, from September 23 to October 2, Borrower Services will reduce fines by $1 for every non-expired, unopened food item donated for the Helping Hand Food Bank. Food donations can’t be used to cover the replacement cost of lost or damaged books and other materials, or room rentals at the library and no home-canned or preserved items will be accepted.
The annual event collects “quite a bit” of food for the food bank, Perry noted. “The food bank counts on it because it’s around Thanksgiving.”
For more information, see the Fall Library Guide, or visit www.bradford.library.on.ca.
In addition to donations of non-perishable food, the Library is also accepting donations of gently-used paperback and hard cover books for adults, young adults and children, plus CDs and DVDs, for the upcoming Friends of the BWG Public Library Fall Book Sale, taking place Sept. 28 to 30.
Out-of-date text books, Readers Digest condensed books, or used cookbooks will not be accepted; those can be recycled in the blue bin, minus their covers.
The Friends of the Library book sale begins on the Friday night, Sept. 28, with a preview from 7 to 9 p.m. For $10 per family, patrons get first pick of the thousands of donated books.
The sale continues, with free admission, on Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Sunday, 1 to 3:30 p.m.
Donations for the book sale can be dropped off at the service desk. Book donations support children’s programs at the library.