Plenty of activities, fun at local libraries

Vincent Howard looks over a display at the Monroe-Walton Library. Photo credit: Sharon Swanepoel | Walton Living

Bored children don’t have to be entertained by pricey trips or complicated excursions. All four of Walton County’s libraries offer a full itinerary of free summer fun. Depending on the library, residents and children can keep themselves busy and entertained all summer playing chess, making crafts, tie dyeing T-shirts, story times, book making, movies, puppet show, reptile rescue show, fire safety, petting zoo, magic show, poodle show, stuffed animal sleep over, learning about agriculture, adult cross stitch classes, Native American history lesson and craft, adult magnet craft, adult diamond painting, and more.
Walton County libraries have added several resources to make acquiring materials easier.

Play Card
“Play Card initiative began in 2020 during Covid to make sure students in Walton County have access to books, no matter what,” said Ivy Corder, marketing and outreach coordinator. Students use their lunch number as a library card and can check out five items with no late fees. This removes the barriers of a patron being unable to return to the library because the patron has a late fee they cannot pay. There are lost fees for lost items. Students can check out items inside the library building or can use digital libraries from their school Chromebook or home device. Play Card also applies to students in the Pines Library System.
“Parents love it, too,” Corder said. “We are busy and we get fines, too.”

Book Lockers
The Monroe-Walton library now has a book locker that lets patrons get their materials 24/7. The patron can put an item on hold, scan their card at the kiosk, the door pops open allowing the patron to take their item. This works well for shift workers, people with pets or children in the vehicle, no time to go inside, or people with anxiety. Each of the six counties in the Azalea Library System has one book locker
Georgia partnership passes
Patrons can check out from the library passes for several Atlanta attractions including Zoo Atlanta, Shakespear Tavern, Carlos Museum, Alliance Theater, Center for Puppetry Arts, as well as a free parking pass for Georgia State Parks. Patrons can also check out a backpack stuffed with items like binoculars and fold outs.

Georgia Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled
A free braille and talking book library service for individuals who are blind or who need books and magazines in audio, braille or other adapted formats. 
Many more services from the libraries
Patrons can find a plethora of services at Walton County’s libraries, including classes to learn foreign languages and American Sign Language, how to start a business, tech lending program, 1,000 books before kindergarten program, link to the Sandra Deal Center for Language and Early Literacy, Hoopla, with TV, music, and more.
“We want the community to know we are here, and we offer amazing resources,” Corder said. “Come in and let us help you. The resources are free.”

Loganville residents to get a new library building
Established in 1989, O’Kelly Memorial Library is one of Walton County’s busiest libraries. Willie D. O’Kelly Dubois enjoyed a long career as a schoolteacher. Mrs. O’Kelly Dubois gifted a tract of land to the City of Loganville in June 1986 for the purpose of building a library. Regional Library Director Steve Schaefer recalled that O’Kelly desired to provide the children in her hometown with a local library to ensure that they and future generations would always have access to valuable resources and service
Loganville has outgrown the library’s 7,162 square feet of usable space. Furthermore, the library faces an impending roadway expansion project by the Georgia Department of Transportation. This road project leaves the library with no room to expand and eliminates existing parking and green space. Plus, wetlands at the rear, a city sub pump on the right side, and private property on the left, make expansion impossible.
“I would use the library more, if it were in a better location,” said Tina Mercer.
The City of Loganville owns the library building and the land on which it stands at 363 Conyers Rd. and will also own the new library, once it is built. The new library will be built on property owned by the City of Loganville on Main Street, at the intersection of Main Street, Covington Street, and Lucy Streets. The city bought the land in 2015 for redevelopment paid for from the general fund, said Danny Roberts, city manager.
“I love the library,” Brittany Sullivan said. “Where it is now is a bit hard to get in and out of, traffic-wise.”
The new site was approved at the July 20, 2023 City Council meeting. Its name will remain O’Kelly Memorial Library.
The new library building will be funded by $3 million state grant, $1.2 million in County impact funds, and $1.5 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds allocated by the City of Loganville. Friends of the O’Kelly Memorial Library are working to raise an additional $2 million in funding for the initial construction phase. It will be constructed in two phases, and when each phase will be built will depend upon what the budget will allow. Phase one should construct 10,000 to 15,000 square feet, twice the size of the current library. This phase will give residents a children’s area and meeting spaces. The City of Loganville and the library will share a greenspace for outdoor programming opportunities and will also share parking. A 2021 comprehensive feasibility study states Loganville needs a 24,900 square foot library facility.
The city and the library system have chosen an architect for the project and will approve a design for the building in the near future. An architectural rendering of the new library has not yet been released.
“It is necessary for our new library to have a conference / meeting room for classes, meetings, presentations, author visits, etc.,” said Barbara Adams Webb. “This is crucial for a fully functioning library. I love the library. The best dollar for dollar investment in the USA!”
City Council members have not yet decided what will become of the old library building once the new library is open, said Roberts said.

Walton County’s four libraries are members of the Azalea Regional Library System, headquartered in Madison, which is a member of the larger Pines Library System. The Azalea Library System began in 1952 when Jasper and Morgan Counties signed an agreement to become the Jasper-Morgan Library System. As more counties joined, including Walton in 1986, the system grew into the Uncle Remus Library System with nine libraries in six counties. The name was changed to Azalea Library System in 2020, to honor the official wildflower of the state of Georgia (adopted April 19, 1979).