By Pamela West-Finkle
Happy New Year! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season! Let’s hope that 2022 sees the end of the pandemic.
At this point, however, there seems to be no end in sight. Delaware County numbers are at a record high with hundreds of new cases per week, and 75-80% of the cases are those who are not vaccinated. On Friday, December 10th, the governor of New York put a mask mandate into place, stating that all those entering a public space must have a mask.
Although Delaware County has publicly stated our county will not enforce the mask mandate, we here at the Andes Library ask that for the safety of our staff, volunteers and other patrons, we hope you will agree to don a mask in the library whether you are vaccinated or not.
As we have continued to do over the pandemic, we offer curbside/porch pickup services, and remote printing by emailing an.ill@4cls.org. We also offer copying and lamination of your vaccination card. We continue to wipe down books, public computer terminals, and the bathroom with disinfectant and we are thankful for a donation from Eddie Piervincenzi’s family for the Coway Air Purifier for the community room. This in combination with our brand new HVAC air handling system helps to make for a safer environment for all.
Our library is now fine free!
Good news! At our November Board of Trustees meeting, the board voted unanimously to go FINE FREE! We are in the process of getting our Four County software to be configured fine free, but in the meantime I am forgiving fines in the computer as I come across them.
If you lose or damage an item, we of course wish to have that item replaced or paid for, but we encourage the return of our items without the stigma of having to pay late fines before you are allowed to take out any more items. I understand…I’ve been there! I can remember standing before the librarian with a stack of books in one hand and holding a wiggly toddler with the other, ready for checkout when the librarian sternly said, “I’m sorry, you owe 68 cents and you’re not allowed to check out anything else until that’s paid!” Of course, that would be the day that I didn’t have any cash on me. It’s embarrassing, right? Well, no more! Fine free libraries are a growing trend across the country and research has shown it’s a good thing and encourages more library use.
We are most concerned with just receiving our items back in good condition. As always, we hope that you will call or email us to renew any items you have checked out should you need additional time. Please understand that new materials—especially those on the new best seller lists—often have holds on them, so please try to get those items back to us in a timely manner. Lastly, if you’re feeling exceptionally guilty
Let’s hope for a mild winter!
Weather, Snow, Ice, and Library Hours:
As with every winter, the Andes Library closes during inclement weather, so if there is heavy snow, ice, or school closings, please call 845-676-3333 before you travel to the library to make sure we are open.
When we are open, we ask that you stomp and wipe your feet before entering the library if there is salt and slush outside. If you bring a stroller, please park it on the porch and carry your child in if possible. We are trying to avoid purchasing multiple running mats and rugs because of the trip and fall hazard to our elderly patrons; however, slopping boots, salt, and slushy strollers rolling around the stacks make for a salty mess. We thank you in advance!
Thanks, Santa and Assemblyman Brian Miller!!!
Lastly, we’d like to thank Santa for coming to visit the library on Saturday, December 4th. 
We had some adorable visits and Santa must have put in a good word for us because on December 13th we received notice from the Executive Director of the Four County Library System that Assemblyman Brian Miller has secured $25,000 for our library. What a fabulous present to our community! We knew a few months ago that this was in the works, but didn’t want to get our hopes up. Although the check isn’t in hand yet, we expect it to be coming down the pipeline soon. Some of the improvements to the library we’ve discussed have been a paved parking lot, a new drop box, a new air conditioner for the upstairs, a 3-D printer, fixing the sculpture and sign out front, and offering a variety of programs in the coming years. If you have any feedback or suggestions for additional improvements or programs, please let us know!~
The Library is open Mondays 11-4, Tuesdays 1-6, Wednesdays 11-4, Thursdays 4-7, Fridays 1-5 and Saturdays 10-noon.