Wednesday, April 10, 2019
Today is National Bookmobile Day! Wisconsin has a proud history of bookmobiles dating back to 1922. Today, we celebrate the newest Bookmobile in Wisconsin, the Dream Bus, with a guest post from Tracy Herold, the director of the Dane County Library Service.
Dane County Library Service specializes in mobile and outreach services to residents who cannot access traditional library service. Established in 1966, DCLS began delivering materials via its first Bookmobile in August of that year. Outreach Services to residents at senior living facilities and daycares grew over the years, along with Bookmobile service. In 2018, we make monthly deliveries to 90 different facilities throughout Dane County, have a 45K-item collection that is shared throughout South Central Library System, make 16 weekly Bookmobile stops, and just launched a new partnership for mobile service with Madison Public Library – the Dream Bus.
In June 2016, the Bookmobile initiated a stop at Owl Creek, a small, highly dense, urban Madison community. This stop was the product of discussions between Sarah Lawton, Pinney Branch Manager, and Tracy Herold, Director of the Dane County Library Service. The discussions began as an exploration of racial equity/social justice initiatives of both the governments of Madison and Dane County. The lack of access to library service made Owl Creek an obvious choice to extend Bookmobile service as a pilot project. The results were astounding and successful. Owl Creek is a busy stop both during the summer and the school year, with dedicated patrons who spend time on the bus checking out reading material, and sharing time with their peers.
The Owl Creek experience paved the way for a 5-year partnership between Dane County Library Service and Madison Public Library to bring mobile library service to five isolated neighborhoods in Madison through a new vehicle. Funding of the project is a 75/25 split, with Madison Public Library reimbursing Dane County Library Service for the mobile visits. Madison Public Library Foundation stepped up to raise funds for the project. Through their efforts, the Goodman Foundation provided funding for the new vehicle, called the Dream Bus.
The Dream Bus hit the road April 1 and makes 2-hour weekly stops in five neighborhoods. Over the course of the next few years, we expect to add hours and possibly other locations to the Dream Bus route. The project has gained additional financial support from various donors and is funded for the next three years. It is our hope that the project success will leave to sustainable funding for many years.
Guest post by: Tracy Herold, Dane County Library Service