A Year in Review

Wasn’t that fun?

Our first in person conference since 2019 and it looks like we had 22 libraries from the Peace system, 53 people from those libraries, and that was wonderful to see. I’m so glad that it was well attended because that gives us proof going forward that in-person PD is the way to go.

To that end, Peace will again be participating in whatever Stronger Together turns into in 2024, though I can tell you it will be some kind of in-person participation. And in addition to that, Peace Library System will be holding a system PD event, probably in conjunction with the Public Libraries meeting. So start thinking about sessions or topics that you’d like to see next year, and what you’d like to present on! Email requests and proposals to jkergan@peacelibrarysystem.ab.ca.

This year saw a lot of changes taking place here at headquarters as well. One big change was bringing our external courier routes back in house and hiring a new driver. This change will not only give us more control over our furthest-flung routes, High Level, Manning, Fox Creek and Grande Cache, it will also save us the rising cost of the trucking company. As always, our routes are under review for efficiency and efficacy, so if you have comments, questions or requests, please don’t hesitate to let us know.

We’ve also updated our financial system, something about which I’m sure probably all of you have heard me whining in the past few months. It’s hard learning a new system! But we have updated to QuickBooks Online now, which means faster processing (…eventually), electronic tracking and invoicing, electronic payments and, most excitingly, more people who can answer your questions. When the levy invoices go out next month, they will be going out both electronically AND on paper, just to make sure that everyone is seeing them, and then we will be going to fully electronic, so if you have changes to you contact information, or, and this is very important, changes to your electronic payment information, please let us know as soon as possible.

The online ordering tool, CCD, is rising fast in uptake and usage, and with every new use it gets more items into the system for everyone else to see. When you ask for things to be added, it benefits everyone, just like the library catalogue itself. If something isn’t in there that you’re looking for, don’t hesitate to request that it be added, because chances are someone else is going to look for it as well.

The Systems Advocacy committee did great things this year, coming away from the table with raises in both the library grant and the system grant, as well as producing election talking point packages for use when talking to your elected representatives. Those weren’t one-time-only, they can still be used whenever you get to talk to your MLAs, because funding advocacy has to be ongoing for all of us. We don’t yet know if that funding bump is permanent, and it doesn’t begin to cover the cost of living increase since the last time it was increased. I urge us all to continue that conversation wherever possible.

And last but not least, we have new people in interlibrary loans (Sam Turvey), in courier (Dennis Moore), in Consulting (Jill Kergan), in cataloguing (Tanya Huffman), and in administration, (Reena Rani). So please say hi to them when you meet them, and you’ll meet them all next year at the public libraries meeting if you haven’t already, and show them how awesome library people are!

Buckle up, 2024 is coming…

Louisa Robison
CEO