Bookmobile Details
The first Lane Libraries Bookmobile was introduced in 1938 providing library services to people who had trouble getting to a library building. The Bookmobile Department continues to fulfill its mission to bring library resources to under-served populations by partnering with organizations, schools and communities throughout our service area.
Bookmobile Events
Bookmobile Services
If you would like to ask about setting up any of the following Bookmobile services, please contact the Manager of Bookmobile Services at bkm_manager@lanepl.org.
Services for All Ages
Activity Directors or other service coordinators for older adult communities can contact the Bookmobile Department to set up monthly on-site browsing opportunities for residents. Bookmobile staff will bring a curated selection of print and A/V items to each lobby stop. Residents can also apply for library cards, request items and pick up holds at lobby stops. Lobby stops usually last for about an hour, and scheduling is based on the availability of Bookmobile resources.
If you prefer to let your community members browse at their leisure and you have a staff member who can be designated as point person, the Bookmobile Department can provide deposit collections on a monthly basis. Bookmobile staff will work with you to determine what mix of items will best serve your community then collect old items and deliver fresh items once a month.
People with mobility issues can choose to have library materials delivered on a monthly basis. Bookmobile staff use patron requests and suggestions to assemble a small collection of materials each month for each individual patron. Patrons can return their items to a library or have them ready for Bookmobile staff to pick up the following month.
The Bookmobile Department will work with book discussion groups at senior communities to determine how we can choose, collect and deliver books to meet your needs.
The Bookmobile staff visits daycares, preschools, elementary schools and middle schools on a regular basis. Services vary depending on the school, the time and space allotted, and the availability of Bookmobile resources. From selection and delivery of classroom collections to monthly Bookmobile visits, and even weekly holds delivery, the Bookmobile means something different to every school we serve. For more information about services to educators and schools, please see The Lane Libraries’ Educators Page.
Public Services
The Bookmobile visits several communities on a weekly basis. Patrons can expect nearly all of the traditional services they find at a library branch, including signing up for a new library card, browsing a collection of materials, picking up holds, and renewing or returning items.
The Bookmobile can appear, as our schedule allows, at community events, festivals and parades throughout the year. Bookmobile staff can provide traditional library services, and may even be able to include story times and/or crafts based on the audience, theme and schedule of the event.
Since the summer of 2013, the Bookmobile Department has given away thousands of discarded – but readable – books to countless organizations across our service area. Recipients of book boxes have included SELF, St. Raphael, LifeSpan, Butler County Care Facility, Juvenile Detention Center, Animal Adoption Foundation, local food pantries and pediatrician’s offices, Great Miami Valley YMCA, and many more. The Bookmobile Department also makes regular contributions to Little Libraries in our service area, upon request.
