The Kirkwood Public Library inspires a lifelong commitment to learning and creativity, for a more informed and connected community. ~ Our Mission Statement

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October 2024

KPL to Join Missouri Evergreen in October

A new chapter for KPL is upon us as we join Missouri Evergreen, a consortium of over 70+ and ever growing libraries across MO! This exciting venture will maintain KPL as the same community library you love, but expanded with even more resources and items at your fingertips.

During the transition we’ll move to a new ILS (integrated library system) that has handpicked features to make browsing an even better experience for you. You can look forward to:

A fresh library catalog with better, focused searching capabilities
An easy-to-use mobile library app
New access to over 4 million items across the MO Evergreen participating libraries.

There will be some minor interruptions to service as we make this transition. Some things to note about this:

The catalog and access to your account will be temporarily unavailable on Monday, Oct. 14 through Thursday, Oct. 17. During this time, you will not be able to place holds, browse the catalog, or get a new library card. You will still be able to check out existing holds and items on the shelf with your library card and online resources should still be active.
Physical library cards are REQUIRED in order to check out during this time. We will not be able to look up your account in any way.
To help our staff with the transition, no items will be due during those 4 days.
We will have to reset your catalog pin/password — more information to come about this.
Patrons should discontinue use of the old MLC app beginning October 13th.

A few important things to note about our transition to a new ILS:

Your Reading History (if you chose to do so) should transfer.
And Saved Lists you may have created will not transfer.
Our app will change so the old app will no longer work.
Any items returned during our offline time, will be checked in after we go live.
The Free Printing allotment ($7.50) for Kirkwood cardholders will be discontinued. Instead, we will be offering 2 pages free off of print requests.

KPL is dedicated to thinking forward and casting a vision for ways we can better serve you into the future. We take the next step with Missouri Evergreen.

You can check out more about our transition to Evergreen, as well as any updates to this information, by clicking here.

This project is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by the Missouri State Library, a division of the Office of the Secretary of State.

Chipmunk Invades Library

On Tuesday, September 17, the library staff encountered a furry surprise: a chipmunk ran in through the front doors! He ran all the way to the workroom in the back, where staff closed the door once he was inside, thinking that would trap him. What followed was a comedy of errors as six staff members repeatedly tried and failed to catch the quick and nimble little critter. They tried trapping him in a box, shooing him out of his hiding places with a broom, and luring him out with nuts (which had been brought in by one staff member as a snack). He then squeezed out under the workroom door and ran and hid in a little nook behind the front desk no one previously knew about, nor could reach inside.

Eventually the professionals were called, who removed the chipmunk.

Building Updates at Kirkwood Public Library

We are so enjoying watching the use our new garden is getting – from the dogs lined up this morning to drink from the dog water fountain to the mothers reading to their children in the cooler air to the runners who stop to take a breather and sit on the wall for a minute – if you haven’t been by be sure to come soon and enjoy the space!

Now that the garden and courtyard area are completed we are looking forward to making changes on the inside! We will be updating the children’s room in the next few weeks, and then will move on to the restrooms and our New Books Room. Other changes will include updating the front doors so both doors will automatically open when the buttons are pushed instead of just one and changing the location of some of our collections, to make more room for more materials. Never a dull moment at the Library!

Get to Know Evergreen

Four libraries founded the Missouri Evergreen Consortium (MEC) in the spring of 2012. In the 12 years since that time, the resource-sharing consortium has grown to include 70+ libraries and approximately 200 branch/service locations. Member libraries share an integrated library system (ILS) called Evergreen, which is open-source software to allow and support practical resource sharing.

When Kirkwood Public Library joins MEC, we will share resources with 70+ libraries throughout the state of Missouri. This means that over four million items will be available at your fingertips through our new catalog. Click here to see where in Missouri your next hold might be traveling from!

MEC By the Numbers (2022)

Total collection size compared to Missouri's 4 largest library systems

Missouri Evergreen 4,361,039

St. Louis Public Library 3,950,561

Mid-Continent Public Library 3,165,115

Saint Louis County Library 1,950,695

Kansas City Public Library 1,113,026

Film Series: Creepy Film Noir

Come down to the Kirkwood Performing Arts Center for four nights of Creepy Film Noir! Kirkwood Public Library is excited to bring you this grant-funded film series, courtesy of Kanopy and the Staff Endowment Fund. Grab some popcorn and catch these black-and-white crime classics at KPAC’s Ross Family Theater. The transition from September to October has inspired us to pick Golden Era thrillers with an air of menace, morally dubious characters, and good old fashioned suspense.

Travel back in time and experience these atmospheric gems— The Red House on October 7th, and The Naked Kiss on October 14th, all at 7 pm. Cinema has come back to Kirkwood and you won’t want to miss it!

KPL Podcast

Check out the KPL Podc a st. New episodes released every Friday.

Story Walk

Finding a safe, fun and educational activity that your whole family will enjoy may feel like a task. Leave it to the library, we've got the perfect idea!

Head over to Walker Lake (Kirkwood Park) where you can follow our Story Walk. A librarian has handpicked the book that you follow page by page around the lake until you've enjoyed a whole story and some exercise. Look for this story in October: The Ugly Pumpkin by Dave Horowitz.

And be sure to check out our new Story Walk in the front lawn of the Kirkwood YMCA. Look for this story in October: Zombies Don’t Eat Veggies by Megan Lacera.

Thank You Donors!

For their generous gifts to the Library.

See a list of our C ontributors.

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