| Donations
Donations of books launched what we now know as the Flagler County
Public Library and they still play a vital role today. Years ago when a
small group of Flagler residents donated books to be shared with others,
they began a great tradition. Donated books, magazines and other
materials support the library in several ways. It is understood that all donated items become the property of The Friends of the Library of Flagler County. New Books Many patrons head straight for the new book section when they visit the library- there is just something special about a new book. New books arrive on those shelves by a variety of routes. Some are donations from patrons. Others are leased from Baker & Taylor, the library's primary book jobber. The rationale for leasing is that "best sellers" create a tremendous demand for copies of books that will languish on the shelves after their initial appeal. Other new books and materials are purchased by the professional staff. Their decisions are influenced by a number of factors including best seller lists, professional journals and patron requests (those orange cards at the Circulation Desk). Collection Building The library is evolving from a volunteer initiative focused on recreational reading to a full service, regional information center. As such, the thrust of acquisitions is shifting from the purchase of individual items to the building of collections of information needed to serve this particular community. Analysis of Flagler County demographics and input from its citizens will be crucial to sound decision making. The collections may be increasingly digital in the days ahead. Two recent acquisitions illustrate the point, the Gale Group's General Reference Center and the Health Reference Center. Both of these online services offer resources that here to fore would only have been available in the largest academic or metropolitan centers. The advantages of the digital resources are impressive. They offer unmatched content, exceptional currency and easy access. The Library Journal says of the Health Reference Center, "Highly recommended for academic, public and special libraries; its content and search interface will serve very well the needs of researchers, healthcare professionals and healthcare consumers." Inter libraryLoan (ILL) The Internet has also created a virtual neighborhood of libraries, where resources can be loaned and borrowed. Patrons with a particular interest or need may not find the desired information at the Flagler County Public Library, but an Inter Library Loan will probably elicit it. Patrons fill our the forms at the Circulation Desk, providing as much information as possible, then Colleen Mc Nally submits a request on the Internet. A cooperating library having the book ships it to us and the patron is notified by telephone. As a participating library we also loan items from our collections. |