General news

Curbside Pickup Resuming 1/19

The Library temporarily suspended all in-building services on January 15, 2021 upon learning of a case of COVID-19 on staff. The staff member had no contact with the public and observed all safety protocols, including wearing masks and gloves during their shifts. They are now resting and recovering at home. No additional staff members have tested positive or are reporting COVID-like symptoms. Following the closure of the building, the Library had the building professionally cleaned and disinfected by a company that specializes in COVID-cleanup.

On Friday, January 15, the Lake Bluff Public Library became aware of a positive COVID case on staff. The individual wore a mask and gloves while working at the Library and had no contact with the public (for more information on the Library’s safety protocols, take a look at the Keeping the Library Safe section on our Curbside Pickup page). However, out of an abundance of caution, the Library is temporarily suspending all in-building services including Curbside Pickup effective immediately. We have hired a company to do a COVID specific deep clean of the Library building and we anticipate being closed through at least Monday, January 19.

Service changes are as follows:

The Lake Bluff Public Library is saddened to announce the loss of a beloved longtime staff member, colleague, and friend. Donna M. Williams passed away on December 31, 2020 following a brief illness.

Donna joined the staff in 1991 and spent 28 years working with the children of Lake Bluff. She was a tremendous advocate for children and she had an incredible knack for finding the perfect book for the right reader at the right time. As a colleague, she was an invaluable friend and mentor. More than one of our current staff members chose to pursue a career in libraries because of Donna.

And of course, we would be remiss if we did not acknowledge her as perhaps the greatest cat enthusiast on staff.

Curbside Pickup hours are changing! To accommodate increased demand for earlier hours, Curbside Pickup appointment hours are changing to the following schedule:

Monday - Wednesday: 1pm-6pm
Thursday - Friday: 2pm-6pm
Saturday: 1pm-5pm

Head on over to our Curbside Pickup page for more information on how to schedule your Curbside Pickup.

We are pleased to announce a new addition to our Curbside Pickup service: contactless printing, copying, scanning, and faxing. Our Document Services page has information and instructions on how to use this new service, available beginning December 21.

Winter Reading Club for adults, teens, and children has begun! This year, our theme is Books Like Us, which is all about celebrating the transformative power of seeing yourself and others reflected in a story. Visit our Winter Reading Club page for everything you need to know about Winter Reading Club, including signup, paper logs, and some great reading lists and other resources. We will have a monthly prize drawing for all ages for prizes purchased from local businesses.

Due to the increase in community spread of COVID-19 and the anticipated implementation of Tier 2 mitigations in Region 9, the Lake Bluff Public Library will be suspending in-building services and reverting to a contactless curbside only model effective Monday, November 16. Adjustments to Library services include the following:

Thanks to a generous donation from the Friends of the Lake Bluff Library, we are now able to offer you access to Tutor.com! Tutor.com provides on-demand tutoring, homework help, test preparation and writing assistance for students in grades K-Adult in over 60 subjects. Live online help is available from 2:00pm and 9:00pm, 7 days a week. No appointment required.

The Library temporarily suspended all in-building services on October 27, 2020 upon learning of a case of COVID-19 on staff. The staff member who tested positive learned of their exposure to the virus as they began presenting symptoms on Tuesday. The staff member had some shifts scheduled following their exposure to the virus but was not in the Library building after the onset of symptoms. They were not working directly with patrons during their shift at the Library and wore a mask and gloves for the entirety of their shift. They are now resting and recovering at home. No additional staff members have tested positive or are reporting COVID-like symptoms.

Q: I was in the library recently. Should I be worried about a potential exposure?
A: The affected employee was not working directly with patrons during their shift at the Library. The affected employee also wore a mask and gloves for the entirety of their shift. This does not meet the criteria for close contact as defined by the CDC. The Library has not been contacted by the Lake County Department of Health as part of contact tracing efforts. Should the Library be contacted, we will make every effort to provide that information to patrons.

Q: What will the Library be doing to make sure the building is safe?
A: We have hired a company to perform a COVID-specific deep clean of the Library building.