“I can say that our partnership with the Bookmobile has been a staple in our community,” says Aaron, a resident services coordinator with Mercy Housing Northwest, opens a new window. Aaron’s team serves a low-income community in Lynnwood and partners with Sno-Isle Libraries to bring the library closer to home for residents.
“Bringing books here onsite through the Bookmobile program creates that accessibility for the kids that I work with every day,” Aaron shares.
Sno-Isle Libraries Bookmobile offers freshly stocked books, friendly staff, and resources for anyone who comes aboard. As a part of Sno-Isle's Library on Wheels program, the van stops in many communities around the county to make its resources available to all.
“They can come here instead of having to trek down to the local library, which would be tricky for a lot of them. They get to come here, just outside their front door, and bring books home.”
The staff play a huge role in the experience Aaron and the kids have at the mobile library. “They help the kids feel welcome and to understand the system and fully participate in it.”
He says he enjoys seeing library staff “put on their helmets and get goofy” with the kids. “We all think of these serious librarians, always telling us to be quiet,” he says. “But they’re just people and they want to engage and have fun with the kids and the community.”
Aaron says the kids can hardly wait to visit the Library on Wheels when he greets them every day at the bus stop.
“They’re all shouting ‘Bookmobile!’ and they’re running down the sidewalk to get here and see what new decorations they have up, what new stickers they’re giving out, and to bring books home.”
Aaron has attended Sno-Isle Libraries since he was young and continues to go with his family today. He shares that the one thing his daughter wanted for her ninth birthday was a wallet so she could get her very own library card.
“We went down to the local branch and looked through all the different cool designs they had,” he says. “She was ecstatic, and the first thing she says is, ‘I want to use my library card and check out books!’”
Aaron values the love for reading the library instills in kids and families. “It's a wonderful experience to be able to sit down and read with kids,” he says. “It helps engage their minds in a way that a lot of other things don't. They get a lot of screen time, a lot of stimulation that's not personal. And I think sitting down and reading with a kid does a lot for both their imaginations and their education.”
Aaron hopes that future generations will continue to utilize the library.
“I love the library because it brings community; it brings learning and fun,” he says. “The library is a steady, consistent piece of the community. The partnership that we have with this Bookmobile here at Lincoln Way creates stability and gets kids off their screens and out chatting with each other and with other people in the community.”
Check out the Bookmobile’s schedule to plan your visit! Have your own library story to share? Let us know at marketing@sno-isle.org.