In October, the Healdsburg Regional Library received a special national award—for Excellence in Book Bike Outreach Programming from the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services. Charity Anderson (our Children’s Services Librarian) and I traveled to St. Louis to accept the award on behalf of the library, and I want to give the community the full story of Healdsburg’s BiblioBike so we can celebrate together.
In the pandemic summer of 2020, we looked toward an uncertain future and hoped for anything that might bring back in-person activities. We decided to focus on outdoor programming, knowing we could do that much earlier than events inside the library.
Charity suggested a book bike, given Healdsburg’s bike-friendly community. We proposed the purchase of a front-load cargo trike from Haley Tricycles in Philadelphia, with approval from library administration and funding from the Friends of the Healdsburg Library.
In Fall 2021, as we began to provide full in-person programming outdoors, Charity and I welcomed the long-awaited bike, which we named our BiblioBike. Ever since, Charity, Donna (our Adult Services Librarian) and I have showcased the bike around town.
We brought the bike to storytimes in both Giorgi Park and Gibbs Park, which we thought of right away. We also brought it to the farmers’ market, L&M Village and other housing complexes, the Día de Muertos festival, emergency preparedness resource fairs, the Vamos al Tianguis events, the Twilight Parade, the Healdsburg Elementary Spring Fling events, our Take Time To Read community gatherings and many others. We even brought the bike out for unannounced pop-ups and offered free-book giveaways in the park for dozens of children.
People often ask how we stock the bike. The most common expectation is that we carry ice cream. Although that would be tasty, usually our bike is filled with materials that fit the event we are about to help with. For example, for storytimes, we fill the bike with fun activities, shakers and scarves, bubble machines, books, and even microphones and a sound system to carry our voices across the park.
When we are in a parade, the bike helps provide access to additional giveaways as we walk through town. When we bring it to a festival, we often bring activities for kids like coloring pages or a prize wheel, as well as posters and flyers alerting people to our upcoming events and free BiblioBike swag. We also usually bring a selection of free books for all ages, in case we run into someone who needs a good read.
It always feels great to receive an award for doing something one loves—and we have truly relished the last four years of working with the BiblioBike. This award is one that can be celebrated by everyone in our community, because the bike helps raise the quality of life for everyone around town. We can’t wait to see you all at the next event, rolling in on our blue BiblioBike.
The Healdsburg Regional Library is located at 139 Piper St., open daily.
