Flickr user: Library of Congress

To everyone who visited this website, Tweeted, liked our and other support pages on Facebook. To those who wore “Ask me about the library millage” t-shirts and Support CADL buttons. To those who handed out flyers, postcards, bookmarks and brochures. To those who understood that communities without libraries are not communities we’d like to live in. To the 71.45% of voters who turned out yesterday to vote YES to keep Capital Area District Libraries OPEN. To CADL employees, families and friends who support Ingham County libraries daily. We are proud to have stood with you in this year’s primary election. Congratulations, you all helped save our libraries.

TODAY IS THE DAY!!!

It’s the day we’ve been working toward for … well, for a while. And it will all be for nothing if you don’t fulfill your civic duty and head to the polls by 8 pm today. Not sure where to vote? Check out this website. Just enter your name,birth month and year, and zip code to discover your voting location. It’s really pretty simple! Just remember that the CADL ballot question is on the BACK of your ballot, and please vote YES to keep Capital Area District Libraries open. (Remember: if the renewal fails, all CADL branches will close January 3, 2011!)

If you’re really in to supporting CADL, head out to Kelly’s in Downtown Lansing starting at 5 pm to watch the results come in with Support CADL volunteers and CADL staff. If you can’t make it to Kelly’s, keep your eye on the Ingham County Clerk’s website beginning at 8 pm to watch the results come in – just remember to refresh the webpage every half hour or so .

In the first primary following the end of the Great Recession, it’s all about jobs. The question on everyone’s mind is “how are the candidates going to quickly bring jobs to Michigan?” The candidates are pitching their plans and throwing out to see what will stick with voters. “What does this have to do with CADL, libraries, and the upcoming millage on August 3rd?” you say. This may surprise you, but jobs have everything to do with libraries.

Before the Internet exploded on the scene, job listings could be found by your father in the local newspaper or he could obtain a job by networking with his friends, colleagues, and relatives. Your aunt could just type up a simple resume on a typewriter and fill out a paper application with a pen. Today, there are so many avenues for obtaining a job. It can be very confusing. Job hunting can be very costly in a time where your cousin doesn’t have the financial means carry out a job search that involves postage, an Internet subscription, or a computer.

CADL supplies a computer, Internet access, and a printer. Your library also supplies books on making resumes and classes on how to use LinkedIn or Michigan Talent Bank. CADL even provides small business resources for those who want to create their own job and want to focus their attention on their entrepreneurial spirit. Ask a librarian, they can tell you where to start.

Can a candidate for governor supply resources better than this in the future? Perhaps, she or he can. The point is that CADL provides excellent job hunting resources now. You can educate yourself and make yourself the best available candidate for a job.

Grab the economy by the horns. Vote yes for the CADL millage renewal tomorrow. Oh, and tell your job seeker friends to vote Yes too!

Many people think that librarians are in the information business. But most librarians I talk to say they are in the people business. The inner workings of your community librarian are really pretty straightforward. We like to help people. We like to solve problems. We like to feel that we are making a positive difference in the lives of people who visit us.

The patron centered focus is apparent to anyone sitting near the information or computer area of a Capital Area District library. There is an institutional belief that our libraries perform a valuable public service and it resonates through each one of our branches. People visit the library for a variety of reasons from lap sit or toddler story time, research assistance, help navigating the internet, and sometimes just a need to be where other people are. Each person who visits the library, regardless of their reason, is the very reason that the library exists.

We want to thank each and every one of you who have stopped by a library desk in the past few weeks to tell us that you value the Capital Area District Library and support the August 3 millage renewal.  It is our pleasure to serve you and we look forward to continuing our mission (http://cadl.org/about) for many years to come. Talk to a friend (or two or three or…) about the value of the library in your community and ask them to vote this Tuesday!