Debbie Burns and her mother, Beulah, have something special to be thankful for this holiday.
At 97 years of age, Beulah Burns of Arvada is aging in place at her home, receiving support from community agencies and from her daughter, Debbie Burns, who calls daily and travels often from her home in Meeker, Colorado to visit. When an application for Jefferson County Public Library’s ( JCPL) Home Service program came with her VOA Meals on Wheels newsletter, Beulah reconnected with her library.
“This is her lifeline. I call her every day and she just talks about the books she’s reading,” her daughter, Debbie, says about the library service. “She used to go to the Arvada Library for years, but it just got too hard.”
Beulah receives a monthly delivery of fresh reading material in large print format. Her daughter calls in her orders and the library assists with selection in order to keep up with Beulah’s reading habits of 15-18 books per month.
JCPL serves 150 residents with disabilities with delivery and supports 25 of the County’s assisted living and nursing homes with library materials. Home service programs are a common offering through large library systems, including Arapahoe, Denver, and Boulder Libraries. And their value is being felt as the state absorbs the aging Baby Boomers.
It’s free, and there are no late fines or mailing costs to patrons who use the service. JCPL’s Home Delivery Service makes library resources available to all, providing equal access to information and opportunities.
JCPL citizens who are unable to come to the library due to a disability can use the library from home, requesting materials online or letting staff make recommendations. The items are then delivered to their homes by volunteers or US mail.
Because of the program’s personal influence on the community, two grassroots Home Service programs have taken shape. Debbie Burns was inspired by the library delivery her mother receives and checked with her town library to see if they offered a similar program. Meeker Library, serving a population of 2500, responded with an invitation for her to start one so Burns is creating literature to share with their Meals on Wheels program and the Home Health Nurse program.
Similarly, Lisa Maher, of Pittsfield, MA, the mother of JCPL Home Service Associate Katie Maher, was moved to start a similar program at the assisted living facility where she works. “I work in an assisted living facility and realized that the residents don’t have access to any new books. Once they’ve read through our library, that’s it. If frustrates me that people that need the library can’t get there and I want to fix it. I’ve been getting books for residents myself so far.” Maher is working with her library to try and start a home delivery program.