Why the Library Should Be Part of Your Life

Free family recreation and educational experiences are only as far away as your local library

EveryLibrary
EveryLibrary
3 min readMay 1, 2024

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Photo by Inna Reznik on Shutterstock

Although nearly everyone in America has access to public libraries in some way, shape, or form, far too many people overlook them. Public libraries are designed to enrich the lives of community members, and their services are available to anyone who wants to use them.

We’ll highlight a few of these services and consider the many reasons why your local library should be a part of your life.

Photo by Sergey Nivens on Shutterstock

1. Providing a Third Place

Third places — spaces for meeting people and socializing that aren’t home, school, or work — are becoming increasingly rare in modern times. They’re either too expensive, too sparse, or both for people to easily enjoy and relax in. Libraries are one of the last bastions of the third place, providing 24/7 access to a public meeting space without cost.

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2. Helping You Find Interesting New Reading Materials

Many people have very particular tastes when it comes to reading. If you’re one of those people, finding a book that scratches your literary itch can feel like a near-impossible task. Fortunately, libraries have massive collections that are sure to have the perfect book, as well as helpful librarians who can help you find it.

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3. Bringing the Community Together

Libraries aren’t just for finding books, though. They’re also an excellent place for people to gather. Libraries often hold community events that allow people to meet, socialize, and form connections that they wouldn’t have otherwise, leading to a kinder, more tightly-knit community.

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4. Free Internet/Technology Access for All

For patrons who don’t have access to the internet or a computer, the library can provide both for free. This allows countless small business owners, students, and workers to do essential online tasks without having to buy a device they can’t afford.

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5. Access to Family Programming

Public libraries are designed to be friendly toward all age groups, with many featuring family programming and events. These events are a great way to spend an afternoon with your little ones, allowing them to burn off some extra energy and meet new friends. Many of these events focus on reading, so your kids will also learn new things and develop a love of literature.

If you’d like to learn more about the many services you can find at the library, feel free to visit us at EveryLibrary today!

Visit www.everylibrary.org to learn more about our work on behalf of libraries.

#librarymarketers: Enjoy this story? Want to use it for your library newsletter, blog, or social media? This article is published under Creative Commons License Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International and is free to edit and use with attribution. Please cite EveryLibrary on medium.com/everylibrary.

This work by EveryLibrary is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0

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EveryLibrary
EveryLibrary

EveryLibrary fights for library funding. Any library budget anywhere should matter to every library everywhere. We are in this together.