Greetings from the Great Bend Public Library! We have more exciting news to share! Next week, on Thursday, April 30, we will be having a ribbon cutting at the library for our new lift and ramps that we recently put in! The ribbon cutting will take place in front of our new lift sometime after 10 a.m., please join us at our north side entrance to celebrate this exciting milestone with us.

Many of you may be familiar with the improvements we made to our ramps but our lift is a bit of a newer addition. Our stairs at our north side entrance were removed while the ramps were being improved in preparation for our new lift and we are happy to announce that it is now operational with a curb cut out right in front of it for easy and convenient access. We have also added multiple handicap parking spots next to the ramp and lift.

We hope that this addition to our library will make us more accessible to all our patrons. Anyone is welcome to use the lift, whether it be individuals in wheelchairs, on crutches, parents with strollers or anyone with mobility challenges of any kind.

This wonderful new lift and our improved ramps were made possible with funding from the American Library Association Libraries Transforming Communities Grant, Golden Belt Community Foundation Grant and funds from the Whelan Endowment. We would like to thank these partners for their support in our ongoing efforts to make our library more accessible and a place where all feel welcome.

Lastly, I wanted to remind our readers that now through Saturday is National Library Week. In celebration, we are offering our patrons free card replacements and a clearing of one lost or damaged item from their account. Whether you have lost your card or lost an item, we have you covered this week, so make sure to take advantage of this week’s celebration!

To see what else we are up to at the library, stop by and grab our spring newsletter or check our Facebook and Instagram @greatbendpl, email us at gbcirc@gmail.com, or give us a call at (620) 792-2409 with any questions about our programming or services.

Hannah Glass is outreach manager at the Great Bend Public Library. To see what else they are up to at the library, stop by and grab the spring newsletter or check Facebook and Instagram @greatbendpl, email gbcirc@gmail.com, or call 620-792-2409 with any questions about programming or services.