Beginning Monday, May 3, the library's meeting room is once again available to be reserved by community groups. As always, meeting space within the library is available to non-profit educational, cultural, civic, intellectual, and charitable organizations. Meetings in library space must be free of charge and open to the public. In addition to this policy, the following requirements are currently in place for all groups, of any size, that meet in the library.

Meeting Room Requirements for meeting or event participants

• Masks required the entire time participants are in the building (eating not allowed at this time)
  
• Participants must socially distance 6 feet apart
• Up to 10 participants allowed in the meeting room at this time
  
• Participants will be encouraged to leave their meeting or event through the original entrance in the meeting room
  

This month the staff and I wish to thank all of you who made appointments and came into the library under new circumstances. We appreciate your willingness to wear a mask and stay for a limited time. As librarians it is not in our nature to put restrictions on access, therefore making these times challenging for all of us. We know many of you are smiling under those masks, just to be back in the library, and that warms our hearts. We have also enjoyed continuing to provide you curbside service throughout the day. Whether inside or outside, we are pleased to help.

With the success we have had with reopening the building, beginning October 1 the library will be open at limited capacity with no appointments necessary. We will continue to offer curbside service and encourage the use of this service. Open hours to come into the library and curbside service will be Monday-Friday 10am-6pm and Saturday 10am-2pm. All visitors 5 and older will still be required to wear a mask and we ask that you please plan to stay for no longer than 30 minutes, or 1 hour if using a computer. Anyone who is at high-risk of having complications from Coronavirus can call the library to discuss best options.

We look forward to seeing you at the library!

Brittany Overton, Library Director

I am happy to announce this month that the library will reopen its building, inviting our community back into the library by appointments beginning Tuesday, September 1. We have had many of you express how much you miss being in the building and browsing the collection. This is a true testament to how special and valued our library is in our community.

We will welcome the community into the building for 30-minute visits weekdays Monday-Friday from 10am-12pm and 2pm-6pm. Anyone who is at high-risk of having complications from the Coronavirus virus can call the library to discuss best options. Due to the library being open with limited capacity, the appointments are for your convenience to ensure you are able to come inside when you arrive.

The staff is looking forward to inviting you all back to browse the collection, check out items, and use the library's computer stations, printing, copying, and scanning services. To make this possible, and in following safety recommendations, certain precautions will be in place. Masks must be worn by all visitors who are 5 years of age and older while in the library. The library will provide a disposable mask for any visitor without one. For those who are unable to wear a mask while at the library, curbside service is available, and the staff will work to provide high-quality over-the-phone service to ensure all individuals’ needs are met. The library has also arranged its computer stations and checkout area to allow for social distancing. The one restroom will be reserved solely for the staff. The staff and trustees will continue to closely monitor state and county data to determine when to move forward or retreat with the library's phased reopening.

The library staff and trustees have maneuvered through the pandemic alongside you, our community. It has been our pleasure to offer virtual services, providing over-the-phone technology support, and exploring your interests to choose the best items for you during curbside. Now, we are excited to have you back in the library with us. I ask that we please come together in a positive way, and support each other in ways that keep our loved ones safe.

Brittany Overton, Library Director

To our Newfound Area Community,

I am thrilled to announce the library will begin its next phase of reopening on Monday, June 8 with curbside service! The library will begin accepting returns of library items in its drop box outside the main entrance on Wednesday, June 3.

The curbside service, beginning Monday, June 8, will allow library cardholders to request books, audiobooks, videos, and magazines by placing holds using their online accounts, or by calling or emailing the library. Details of how to request library materials and return items can be found further down in this newsletter and on our website at minotsleeperlibrary.org/curbside.html.

The library will also lend museum passes through its curbside service for venues that are currently open, including New Hampshire State Parks and beginning on Monday, June 15, the Vermont Institute of Natural Science. For updates on museum passes, visit minotsleeperlibrary.org/museum-passes.html.

The library has implemented additional safety precautions during the pandemic to ensure the health of its staff and community. All materials being returned to the library will be quarantined for a set period, then wiped down with an alcohol-based solution. Staff will wear masks and gloves while handling library materials, both incoming and outgoing. The library trustees and staff ask that patrons refrain from using latex gloves when handling library materials to protect those with a latex allergy. All COVID-19-related policies and procedures are based on scientific research and guidance provided by the Centers for Disease and Control Prevention (CDC), the Governor’s Universal Guidelines, and local and state Health Officials.

If you are interested in requesting books, videos, and magazines through the library’s curbside service, or you have questions about other services, please visit www.minotsleeperlibrary.org/curbside.html, call the library at 603-744-3352, or email minotsleeperlibrary@gmail.com. The staff and I look forward to hearing from you and to seeing all of your smiling faces, even if it’s from 6 feet away outside of the building!

Brittany Overton, Library Director

To our Newfound Community,

As some businesses begin to open in New Hampshire, I want to share how the Minot-Sleeper Library continues to serve our community. The staff and trustees are developing a phased reopening plan that puts the safety of our staff and community before anything else.

The library staff continues to work remotely. Cindy, Evelyn, Paula, Rayanne, and Shayne are answering phone calls during our normal hours; they are offering online programming and hosting community groups to meet on the library’s Zoom application just as we would in our building’s meeting space. The staff is providing reference services. Much work is being done to plan for an alternative Summer Reading Program for all ages.

The trustees, staff, and I are working diligently to craft a reopening plan that ensures the safety of all and provides services and resources in addition to those that have continued to be available digitally. The first phase in the reopening plan is to get our staff back in the building and prepare for a new workplace. Just to have staff back working in the building requires new policies and procedures. The second phase of the reopening plan is to provide curbside service. Once the library moves to this phase, materials in the building will be available to be borrowed using a process that ensures safety for both staff and patrons. The details of how and when this will begin are still being planned.

These unprecedented times will change how we work and provide service. New health and safety precautions will be put in place. Library materials and resources will be made available in new ways. Change can be difficult, which makes me feel as fortunate as ever to work for a community that is understanding and appreciative of the work done at the Minot-Sleeper Library. 

Brittany Overton
Director, Minot-Sleeper Library