Back to books

MONROEVILLE — Arriving at the Monroeville Public Library feels a bit like coming home for the new director. Kate Burns, the new director of the library, grew up down the street from her library back home and felt like Monroeville "was perfect." "It was so meant to be. I love that Monroeville is a small village because I grew up in the village of Ashley and it's totally comparable," Burns said. "This is what I want. I love small libraries. I love the community." Burns is a former educator, turned librarian. She has a teaching license for language arts, English, social studies and history and a degree in early to middle childhood education. Burns started as a substitute teacher and eventually became the middle school librarian and media specialist. "I never turned back, I absolutely loved being the librarian," Burns said. "It just fueled a passion in me that I didn't realize I had." Burns hopes to update and increase the library's collection and expand programming. "We'll start small and add things each month. In January, we'll have storytime starting back up," Burns said. "We also will be doing things for preschool and kindergarten readiness, working with shapes and numbers." Burns is also beginning a new needlework program, called "In Stitches." A knitter herself, Burns said the program will be a place for people to do needlework together, or learn how to knit. "I'll be making hats, I want to make sure everybody has one. We'll have them here and you can come to grab one if you need it," Burns said. "I want to figure out what the community, the area, needs." The library also has an adult book club that meets on the last Tuesday of the month. On Jan. 22, the library will be hosting a bingo night. In February, Burns hopes to start having yoga classes at the library, as she is a certified yoga instructor. "We're going to have interactive movie bags. It's a take-home bag to do with the whole family for movie night," Burns said. "We're just going to keep going from there. I want to do some crafting programs each month and take inventory of what the community wants to see." Burns said she wants the Monroeville Public Library to be available for whatever the public needs. "The most important thing is that people come in. I'd love to see everybody's face and I want to get familiar with everyone," Burns said. "I want people to start coming back to the library. There's so much that libraries have to offer and I don't want anyone missing out." Burns said the Monroeville Public Library is connected with 100 other libraries and if they don't have something, they can get it from another branch. "I want people to give their ideas. If there's something we don't have or offer, talk to me about it," she said. "We can look into it. I want to try and make things happen." Burns said she developed her love for reading young. Her mother would take Burns and her sister to the library almost every day to find books, were involved in library programs and summer reading. "At the library is where I started wanting to become a teacher, but come to find out, I was meant to be a librarian," Burns said. "It's actually really cool because my sister is a librarian as well. We're a little family of librarians." For Burns, the Monroeville Public Library is right where she wants to be. "This is perfect. It's like coming home, it's where I want to be," she said.