Last week, Gwen Wheeler, a consultant with the Southern Ontario Library Service, retired. For the past twenty-five years, Gwen has helped to guide us through the often bewildering changes happening in the world of public libraries. SOLS is a provincially-funded body that provides advice and training for librarians, and several times each year we have gathered with librarians from across the Simcoe/Muskoka Region to share ideas and to participate in workshops under Gwen's leadership.
This past week we looked at examples of how libraries were changing their physical environment to become more relevant in a digital age. Most librarians expressed discouragement because we are expected to do more, but without any extra funding to add that extra layer of service. We discussed the current trend to streamline collections to free up more floor space for tables and computers, and how some libraries are cutting their collections in half so that they can create room for maker spaces and recording studios.
In the fall, the library board of the Collingwood Public Library will be starting a strategic planning exercise, to consult our community and to see how they would like the library to evolve. It should prove interesting, but we will miss Gwen's guidance. Fortunately, we have an new and able consultant in Allyson Fox. Goodbye, Gwen. We will miss you.
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