When the goin’ gets tough, the tough go… To the library!

These are tough economic times for the country. The housing bubble burst, resulting in rapidly declining house values, increased foreclosures, and deterioration of housing related businesses. But this was only the beginning of what looks like a financial meltdown.

The effect locally has not been as pronounced as in other parts of the country, but it’s only a matter of time. The one area where we have been affected is the extreme increases in the price of gasoline — and we have seen where this expands to increase prices in almost everything, from food to electricity.

In these times of economic anxiety, what’s a person to do? One thing you can do is go to your library.

How can your library help?

You’d be surprised how much your library can do. We looked at some libraries in other parts of the country that have been hardest hit by the economy. They were shocked by the increase in their usage. Overall the increase in library usage is the highest spike in memory and since they’ve been keeping track of these numbers.

The first thing to get cut in families’ budgets is entertainment, and the library provides free entertainment. People who normally buy books are now borrowing them from the library. More people are reading than ever before, especially families with children who are discovering the treasure trove of children’s books in the library. In addition to your regular printed books, there are books on tape and cd. They can even borrow movies at their library — no rental fees.

Computers are no longer a luxury item, but many families cannot afford one. So they come to the library to use the free computers. There are even computers especially for young children. Not only are they used for entertainment and education, but for the necessities of life.

People who have lost their jobs come to the library to look for new jobs in newspapers and on the Internet, prepare resumes, and get information about starting new businesses. There’s no better place to do research than your library.

Unfortunately, just as libraries reflect an increase in usage during difficult economic times, local governments (their funding agencies) also start to have money problems. So when libraries are most in demand, they have the fewest resources with which to provide services. In Natchez, when your library asked for additional funding to extend its hours, among other things, the city gave no increase, because it was suffering its own financial problems.

As you anxiously watch the unfolding economic drama on Wall Street and in Washington, you can find comfort in your library, and be assured it will be doing the best that it can with the resources it has. Come see what it has to offer!

The Natchez Adams Wilkinson Library Service consists of three branches: Armstrong Library in Natchez (the headquarters of the library system), Van Cleave library in Centreville, and Woodville public library in Woodville. The Armstrong Library is located at 220 south commerce in Natchez, and is open Monday through Thursday from 9-6, Friday from 9-5, and Saturday from 9-1. You can call us at 601-445-8862, E-mail us at armstrong@naw.Lib.Ms.Us or visit us online www.Naw.Lib.Ms.Us.