Many people in small towns and rural areas have fond memories of a bygone time when the Book Mobile would make regular visits to their neighborhoods and communities, bringing stories from faraway places penned by great authors. As time went by, the days of the Book Mobile faded away, and libraries became more accessible.
But the Book Mobile is set to make its return, now referred to as the Mobile Library, to serve all five counties in the Mid-Mississippi Regional Library System (MMRLS) area.
MMRLS Executive Director Josh Haidet, said, "We serve five counties with 13 branches, and we want to be convenient for everybody and reach everybody. And the Mobile Library is going to enable us to do that. We can actually take our services to them."
He added the mobile library could serve a day care, a long-term care facility, a school or whatever the need might be.
Haidet stated that the schedule for the library had not been worked out yet, but they do intend to visit all five counties on a regular basis so patrons can know when to expect a visit.
The new Mobile Library, which was on display at the Red Hills Festival in May is bright and colorful, and Haidet said they wanted to make it fun for the kids. He added they are going to place their more popular items on the library including different types of books and DVDs. He said that they are also working on having Wi-Fi and other services, such as printing and fax.
He stated, "We would love to be able to do what our permanent libraries can do.”
The Mobile Library was almost completely paid for with ARPA funds, and all books and other items are newly purchased.
The MMRLS covers Winston, Attala, Leake, Montgomery, and Holmes counties, and patrons can look forward to seeing the new Mobile Library in their communities soon.
