HELLERTOWN, Pa. — The year 2024 was good to the Hellertown Area Library, its director, Ali Finkbeiner, said.
There were more than 31,000 patron visits and nearly 54,000 circulated items (the library has almost 40,000 items in its catalog).
Nearly 500 new patrons joined the library — and that number is expected to increase with state approval of adding Lower Saucon Township to the HAL service area.
“We will continue to provide a friendly and open atmosphere at the library where all are welcomed."Hellertown Area Library Director Ali Finkbeiner
Those were some of the statistics Finkbeiner relayed to Hellertown Borough Council on Monday as part of the library’s annual community report.
“We will continue to provide a friendly and open atmosphere at the library where all are welcomed,” she said.
The library, at 409 Constitution Ave., also has a new library director and two new support staff, along with 10-year funding agreements with Hellertown and nearby Lower Saucon Township in hand.
A year of activity
Here are some other 2024 figures from the library, according to Finkbeiner:
- 966-plus volunteer hours logged
- 200 interlibrary loans fulfilled; 1,727 items borrowed from cloudLibrary; 105 shows/movies streamed from Kanopy
- 301 programs for all ages and more than 8,500 attendees
- Another nine “self-directed/passive learning activities” for youth, with 325 attendees
- The summer reading program offered 80 programs for families, with 2,500 attendees
- Seven adult craft nights with a total of 189 attendees
Using $50,000 from a state grant over the past two years, the library was able to offer new technology programming and more for adults and youth, Finkbeiner said.
Other HAL data provided at the meeting shows juvenile fiction and nonfiction and adult fiction offerings together make up the great majority of what’s being checked out by the library’s 5,235 patrons.
That number includes nearly 2,000 adults and almost 1,000 juveniles in Hellertown, along with about 900 adults and 900 children from Lower Saucon.
HAL also represents almost 80 people from Freemansburg, as well as 515 adults and 165 juveniles through the ACCESS PA system.
Not just books, director says
Moving forward, the library has themed backpacks (birdwatching, space explorer, etc.) available for checkout, two adult book clubs that meet monthly, and passes for attractions for Saucon Valley patrons, Finkbeiner, said.
Finkbeiner said the passes — good for two adults and up to four children — can be checked out for a week at a time, and provide free admission to some walking- and driving-distance attractions.
“The library is one of those community assets and treasures [that] just can’t be replaced in any shape or form.”Hellertown Borough Council President Thomas Rieger
They include Bowman’s Hill Wildflower Preserve in Bucks County, Hands-on House Children’s Museum in Lancaster County, National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, National Museum of Industrial History in Bethlehem and the Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania near Lancaster.
The library also offers a central meeting spot for local groups, such as Girl Scout & Brownie Troops, Saucon Valley Women’s Club and 2nd Saturday Spinners.
“I love that about our staff — that we know who we’re serving,” Finkbeiner said.
Following the presentation, Hellertown Borough Council President Thomas Rieger said, “The library is one of those community assets and treasures [that] just can’t be replaced in any shape or form.”
The Hellertown Area Library’s hours are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday and Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and closed Sunday.
