2019 Annual Report
Curiosity! Inspiration! Connection!
Every day in the library we touch lives through quiet, welcoming spaces, warm smiles, stimulating programs, and
endless opportunities for people to connect with others. Personal connections throughout life, beginning at birth,
translate into measurable differences in cognitive abilities; we’ve known this for a long time at the Library and its part of
our daily mission.
The Valley Cottage Library was founded by a group of residents who saw the value of coming together for the collective
good. Since the day our doors opened in 1959, the Library has never stopped dreaming about what more can be done.
The Library has continuously reinvented itself by responding to community needs all while remaining true to the
essence of our original mission of enriching the lives of our community.
Programs are an integral part of the “library experience” that bring people into the library who would never think of borrowing a book. They help form a sense of community, giving people the opportunity to engage with experts and professionals and their neighbors; to have fun and be entertained, to express opinions and be heard.
In 2019 we offered 812 programs to our library community which were attended by 12,863 people! They included weekly standards for adults such as Mah Jongg and yarn therapy, meditation and movie matinees to the ever popular Cookbook
Club and Sunday Concerts! Among our regular storytime programs for babies through 5th graders our youngest patrons also enjoyed early literacy and STEAM programs designed as fun! Our Teens enjoyed writing, cooking, and craft classes and were the third place winners of the library-system-wide Battle of the Books this past summer. Our Adult(ish) programming capitalized on its popularity this year; continuing the monthly Book and Pub club meetings at the bars in
Nyack, game nights, and bad art craft classes, and closing the year with the “Totally Rad 80s Prom Gone Bad Murder Mystery.”
Why don’t you join the fun? Your Library has just what you need!
Amelia Kalin, Library Director
Below are some facts and figures for 2019:
Hours open each week 62 (58 in summer)
Active cardholders 6,078
Library Transactions
Reference questions answered 17,789
Public Internet users 16,394
Wireless Internet sessions 82,580
Interlibrary loan transactions 50,057
Total items circulated 147,726
Materials Owned & Downloaded
Adult, Teen & Children’s books 92,639
Electronic books - adult & children 35,286
Audio Visual materials 22,441
Print Magazine Subscriptions 118
Downloadable audiobooks 10,040
Downloadable videos 476
Programs
Adult programs 402
Attendance 5,607
Children’s Programs 327
Attendance 5,636
Young Adult Programs 81
Attendance 335
One-on-One programs 317
Summer Reading Programs
Children’s program sessions 92
Attendance 1,545
Young adult program sessions 14
Attendance 245
Adult program sessions 7
Attendance 642
Early Literacy programs
Sessions 278
Attendance 5,173
Adult Digital Literacy Programs
One-on-One Sessions 135
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