Arts & Entertainment

Montville's Library Shines on Snapshot Day

There Were Plenty of Patrons at the Raymond Library on Wednesday, and Their Comments Show Their Love for the Library

Tim Bushby, 34, is sitting in the Raymond Library, using one of the library’s computers Wednesday afternoon, looking through Netflix choices.

He’s there three or four times a week, he says, doing stuff on the computer, surfing the internet, looking at jobs, whatever.

“It’s a good place,” he says. “The People are nice. It’s a good place to go when there’s nothing else to do.”

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He stops for a moment and considers.

“Actually,” he says, “it’s one of my favorite places to go. It’s nice here. It’s quiet.”

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Wednesday, Snapshot Day in the Raymond Library and libraries across the state, it’s not as quiet as usual.

Library Director Joanne Westkamper says it’s been a busy day, with a big story hour, and lots of people coming and going.

And that’s good, because part of Snapshot Day involves a small questionnaire that asks people how they use the library, and what they enjoy most about it.

Snapshot Day is a way for the libraries in the state to document their place in the community and to find out how their patrons use the library and its features. Wednesday was the second Snapshot Day; to read more about it, click here.

“We love the library,” writes Jennifer Vogt. “We come weekly for the preschool program.”

Westkamper recognizes Vogt’s name.

“She’s a homeschooler,” Westkamper says. “She’s great.”

Janelle Fedus writes that the library “teaches my children to find books on things they’re interested in.”

“We have real regulars,” Westkamper says. “Mothers love to bring their children.”

Casey Spinks writes that the library “is a great safe place for the kids and myself to read and enjoy.”

Westkamper says that one of her favorite things about the library is that it’s so friendly.

Susan Young, who works with Westkamper, says that she’s relatively new in Montville, and the library is “a nice way to meet friends.”

Patricia Alquist is searching the bookshelves. Today, she’s collecting books by Jude Devereaux.

A big reader, Alquist uses libraries throughout the region.

“I go where I can get books I haven’t read,” she says, adding that it’s an increasingly challenging task. When she finds an author she likes, she reads all of that author’s books, and reads the new ones as they come out.

The Raymond Library is a little different from the area’s other libraries. It is privately owned, and so its selection and approach are a little different.

“They have a lot of other services,” Alquist says. “It’s small and founded differently. I think it’s pretty good.”

These days, Alquist says, she finds herself doing a lot of reading, and using the libraries often.

“TV’s not so great any more,” she says.


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