{"id":794356,"date":"2019-03-30T17:12:00","date_gmt":"2019-03-30T23:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.summitdaily.com\/news\/summit-countys-new-library-director-reminds-us-about-what-makes-libraries-so-special\/"},"modified":"2019-03-30T17:12:00","modified_gmt":"2019-03-30T23:12:00","slug":"summit-countys-new-library-director-reminds-us-about-what-makes-libraries-so-special","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/local-news\/summit-countys-new-library-director-reminds-us-about-what-makes-libraries-so-special\/","title":{"rendered":"Summit County\u2019s new library director reminds us about what makes libraries so special"},"content":{"rendered":"
Stephanie Ralph, the new director for Summit County libraries, at the main library branch in Frisco, March 27.<\/strong>
Hugh Carey \/ hcarey@summitdaily.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In advance of national library week, Summit County has hired a new library director who will oversee operations and programming at the county\u2019s three library branches in Breckenridge, Frisco and Silverthorne.<\/p>\n

Stephanie Ralph takes the helm of Summit County\u2019s libraries after serving as Grand County\u2019s library director for six years. Ralph was a Grand County resident for 17 years, so she is familiar with the High Country, the people who live here and the need many have to connect with literature and the rest of the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think libraries in mountain towns have a very specific and wonderful role,\u201d Ralph said. \u201cThey\u2019re very much the beating heart of a community, a public place where everyone can come and be welcome, and have access to an entire world of information.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ralph sees libraries as bastions of democracy; places where regular people can go and get any information they want, without filters and without hindrance.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn this country, libraries are a true democratic privilege,\u201d Ralph said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are about supporting people in the ability to be whatever they want to be, to realize whoever they want to be, no questions asked. It\u2019s a remarkable instrument to help people self-realize.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ralph remembers how a shudder went out through the library world a decade ago, when the internet was seen as the downfall of the free public library. With a wealth of information in the palm of your hand, why would someone bother going to the library to find information, or even pick up an actual book?<\/p>\n

As it turns out, the report of the library\u2019s demise was greatly exaggerated.<\/p>\n

\u201cLibraries are really good to adapting to the needs and climate they operate in,\u201d Ralph said. \u201cThey have reinvented themselves as community hubs. We have a huge amount of community programming to bring people to the library.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among the programming available at the three Summit County branches are summer reading programs for children, teens and adults, as well as story time for children, and special programs with guest speakers.<\/p>\n

One such program took place this week. \u201cSkiing off to War,\u201d the story of the birth of the 10th Mountain Division was presented by Col. Tom Duhs USMC (retired). Ralph said that 60 to 70 community members came out to see the presentation, showing the yearning for knowledge we all share.<\/p>\n

She also noted that aside from the practical advantages of a free public library \u2014 the ability to access thousands of books, newspapers and magazines, both at the library and online, as well as media like movies and music, and the programming \u2014 libraries also serve as a very important space for people to study and focus on work without the obligation to spend any money.<\/p>\n

While the stereotype of a \u201cshushing librarian\u201d is ingrained in our culture, Ralph said it was important to understand that they are performing an important task \u2014 as gatekeepers of a special kind of sanctuary who must protect the peace.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you go into a library, there\u2019s this library hum, a sort of noise generated by people doing focused work and getting along,\u201d Ralph said. \u201cSomething libraries often have to deal with is to get people of different demographic groups to a place where they can work respectfully with each other.\u201d<\/p>\n

Looking forward to the summer, Ralph reminds parents of the importance of the library\u2019s reading programs to avoid the dreaded \u201csummer slump\u201d when a child\u2019s reading ability stagnates and even drops off.<\/p>\n

\u201cKids start reading in schools and stop in summer, and during that break their reading levels can go back as much as a grade,\u201d Ralph said. \u201cWhat libraries encourage kids to do is carry on reading during the summer to maintain and improve their reading skills.\u201d<\/p>\n

National library week takes place from April 7 to 13. During that time, Summit County\u2019s libraries will replace lost library cards for free and host contests for prizes such as a \u201cPets Caught Reading\u201d competition, among other activities.<\/p>\n

Ralph will also attend \u201cCoffee with the Director\u201d gatherings at all three branches next week where patrons will be able to meet the new director and listen about her vision for Summit\u2019s library system.<\/p>\n

The coffee talks will take place from 8:30 to 10 a.m. on Monday, April 8, at the Main Library located at 37 Peak One Drive in Frisco; on Thursday, April 11, at the South Branch library located at 103 S. Harris St. in Breckenridge; and on Friday, April 12, at the North Branch library located at 651 Center Circle in Silverthorne.<\/p>\n

via:: Summit Daily<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Stephanie Ralph, the new director for Summit County libraries, at the main library branch in Frisco, March 27.Hugh Carey \/ hcarey@summitdaily.com In advance of national library week, Summit County has hired a new library director who will oversee operations and programming at the county\u2019s three library branches in Breckenridge, Frisco and Silverthorne. Stephanie Ralph takes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[99],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-794356","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-local-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-14 05:25:37","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSMT The Mountain","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794356","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=794356"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/794356\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=794356"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=794356"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/ksmt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=794356"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}