Let books take you places
David Armendariz signs his library card, with his mom in the background.
MOSES LAKE - Some Knolls Vista third graders met at the Moses Lake Public Library to apply for and obtain their own library cards.
The Moses Lake library is a branch of the North Central Regional Library System was built in 1963 and opened in 1964.
Barbara Galloway, Circulation Supervisor, who has been with the library for 26 years, was happy to meet the students on Saturday,
"The best part of my job is that it varies from the young (to) the old, and families that (I've) seen grown up over the years and are now servicing their kids. Kids!" she exclaimed.
It was a family affair for third-grader David Armendariz as he showed up with his mom, dad, two sisters and brother.
"I finally get my own card, how cool," Armendariz said.
The family visits the library more than once a month.
"I love the fact there are Spanish books in which my children can read to keep their heritage language alive in our home. They also love to get on the interactive computers and learn and read," Mrs. Armendariz said,
While there on Saturday, David was moving different parts of the human body, circulatory, digestive and nervous systems around on a computer screen.
"Hey, I remember this from class," he said.
The library is viewed as a tool to reinforce the school district's adopted science curriculum for third grade.
The library's mission statement of "Promoting Reading and Lifelong Learning" is one that Galloway believes in and enjoys watching the young and old "go places" with a good book, she said.
The Moses Lake Public Library offers "Story time" for preschoolers on Tuesdays at 10:30 a.m.; Story time for infants to three years on Wednesdays at 10:30 a.m., and a popular read-aloud-story-time for all ages on Thursday nights at 6:30 p.m.
The Thursday night session is a mixture of English, Spanish and some American Sign Language and is very well received.
The library will also have their Summer Reading Program starting in mid-June. This year's theme is, "One World, Many Stories."
Moses Lake Public Library's hours are Monday through Thursday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Fridays 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and during the school year it is also open on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
The library is located at 418 E. Fifth Ave., and can be contacted by calling 509-765-3489, or visiting the North Central Regional Library System website at www.ncrl.org.