What Would You Checkout From A 'Library Of Things'?

BEAVERTON, OR — To help Beaverton City Library officials establish the library's forthcoming Library of Things, the community has been asked to provide input regarding what kinds of 'things' they would most likely checkout. From board games and sports equipment to musical instruments and cookware, the Beaverton library's Library of Things will provide new ways for kids and adults to interact, learn, and explore.

Patch reached out to the Beaverton City Library for a brief Q&A to better understand why the Library of Things is such a big deal in Beaverton. Providing the answers is Aubrey Tate from the library's Technical Services department:

Where did this idea come from?

The Library of Things collection has been emerging in libraries around the world, each offering their own unique take on it, helping to serve their patrons best. Beaverton has noticed the popularity of that kind of collection and, with the funds now in place to get us started, we are thrilled to be able to offer something similar to our patrons.

What do you hope a Library of Things does for the Beaverton Library and its visitors?

Much like when Hillsboro started their collection, we hope this collection offers the tools needed to support lifelong learning and creativity. We hope it will enable people to explore what interests them, helps them to develop the skills they wish and offers to aide in their goals and dreams.

When do you expect to have the Library of Things established and fully functional?

We are aiming for Spring to reveal the collection. We have two teams currently working on the collection, reviewing feedback we received from our surveys, evaluating data from other libraries within WCCLS, and all that comes with purchasing and cataloging the items for our library.

Why should residents and library visitors, specifically, be excited for the Library of Things?

We hope this collection to be exciting for our patrons and residents because it will offer them an opportunity to try before they buy, to be a bit more green, to save them a bit of money and to allow them to test out something they didn’t know was out there. In addition, we think that while they are ‘things,’ they can help to create skills and memories for all who try.

How will this enhance the Beaverton Library?

This collection will give us an even more well-rounded approach to helping our patrons, giving us another collection that meets needs and wants not yet met. We also hope it will encourage those not currently Beaverton patrons to test out our library by offering something a bit different from what’s perceived of a library

Click here to take the Beaverton City Library 'Library of Things' survey

Image via Beaverton City Library