The Warner Library in Clinton has been awarded a $10,000 grant. 

The library is one of 300 libraries to participate in round three of Libraries Transforming Communities: Accessible Small and Rural Communities, an American Library Association, or ALA, initiative that provides community engagement and accessibility resources to small and rural libraries to help them better serve people with disabilities.

The competitive award will help the library improve accessibility to the building by improving the ramp from the parking lot to the sidewalk, repairing the sidewalk, and installing a handrail from the parking lot to the front entrance.

Library Director Bobbi Perryman said in a statement Tuesday they are excited and grateful to have these funds to make the library more accessible for all patrons. 

She added they will allow the library to work with patrons with mobility disabilities to ensure that they can safely and comfortably enter the building.

As part of the grant, library staff will take an online course in how to lead conversations, a skill vital to library work today. Staff will then host a conversation with residents about library accessibility and use the grant funds to update and repair the sidewalk leading to the library entrance to make it more accessible.

Currently, patrons must walk roughly 100 feet from the patron parking lot to the front door, and this long walk is difficult, if not impossible, for patrons with mobility disabilities. While VWPLD offers homebound delivery and curbside services, patrons who cannot comfortably enter the building cannot enjoy the full range of what the library has to offer.

If you are interested in getting involved or taking part in the conversation, please contact Perryman at perryman@vwarner.org for more information.