Tired of watching the Eau Claire urban landscape as you ride a bus?
You’ve got additional options now, courtesy of the L.E. Phillips Memorial Public Library and Eau Claire Transit.
The library and the bus company are co-sponsoring a new “Books on Buses” outreach program, which began last week. The program is designed to disseminate free books in the community.
Bus riders are encouraged to take books and read them in transit. No checkout is required and a library card isn’t needed.
Books may be kept for personal use, shared with others, or returned to a bus bookshelf or the library.
“Our goal with this project is to spread the joy of reading,” said the Library’s youth services manager, Shelly Collins-Fuerbringer. “We’re excited to give Eau Claire Transit passengers easy access to a wide range of books for all ages. The unofficial motto of Books on Buses is: ‘Every rider a reader!’”
“Books on Buses,” the first public library program of its kind in Wisconsin, stemmed from a suggestion from City Council member Catherine Emmanuelle, who saw a similar initiative on a trip to New Mexico.
“We want people in our community to have access to books,” said Library Director Pamela Westby. “Reading sparks the imagination, relieves stress, and makes life more enjoyable. We believe in improving lives one book at a time.”
Most of the “Books on Buses” materials have either been withdrawn from the Library materials or received as donations from the community. The Career Development Center designed and built the bookshelves.
Financial support for the project was provided by Thrivent Financial and the Noon Rotary Club of Eau Claire. Individual and organizational donations to the project will continue to be welcome into the future, according to a Library press release.
Further information is available at the Library’s Information & Reference desk, by calling 715-839-5004 or by email to librarian@eauclaire.lib.wi.us.
Note: The home page photo shows Eau Claire Transit bus driver John Cattau with one of the boxes of books available to riders. It was provided by the L. E. Phillips Memorial Public Library.