The Lone Oak Library may not be very big, but the longstanding free service is home to more than 4,000 books and is looking to expand its services in the new year.
Lone Oak Library head volunteer Bill Helrigel and volunteer coordinator Ruth Blough showcase the bookcase that is home to best-selling authors. Lone Oak has a large selection of best-selling books and a wide variety of genres.In addition to continuing free book checkouts and providing as many best-sellers as possible, the library is taking steps to add Internet access, expand its operating hours and automate its database in the coming year, according to volunteer coordinator Ruth Blough.
“On this side of the mountain, a lot of people do not have computers or Internet access, nor do they have the funds to buy books,” she said.
Part of the Lone Oak Community Center on Signal Mountain located at 1278 U.S. Hwy. 27, anyone can borrow books from the library free of charge for one month by leaving their name and phone number with the librarian, said Blough. A 10-cents-per-day overdue charge is applied if the book is not returned within that time period, she said.
Organized alphabetically by author in categorized sections, the library is intended to be an accessible place for anyone to come and borrow books, said head volunteer Bill Helrigel.
Popular book categories include fiction, autobiography, biography, history, children’s, young adult, health, religion, classics, arts and crafts, paperback and reference, he said.
Through iris sales, used book sales and donations, the library remains a self-supporting program that allows people to read for free, said Helrigel.
“Reading is a great source of entertainment for people who like to read,” he said. “And the library can also be an important source of information.”
For more information, contact the library at 886-7250. The library is open Wednesday and Saturday from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m.
Email Rachel Sauls at rsauls@timesfreepress.com