Lavon Scott remembers Bill Reilken, one of her patrons who lived at Alden-Long Grove Rehabilitation and Health Care Center.
Every other week she would bring him videos on sports, the most recent People magazine and maps, which he would spread out and use to pinpoint where his grown children lived.
Reilken, who died last year, was one of several homebound people who looked forward to visits from Scott and the Vernon Area Public Library Bookmobile.
The bookmobile made stops in neighborhoods and nursing homes in the area. But since March 17, when transmission problems became too expensive to fix, the Bookmobile has not made its appointed runs.
Scott, who is known to her clientele as Scottie, started working at the old library on Indian Creek Road a few months after the Bookmobile program began in 1979.
She spent more than 17 years making the scheduled stops.
More than just a set of shelves inside a van, the Bookmobile brought its services to people where they live.
Neighbors gathered outside to talk about their days, show off a newborn, and talk about their kids’ schools.
Inside the Bookmobile, the shelves can hold up to 2,000 items. All the resources of the library, except videos, are on board.
Scott has watched many patrons grow up; some who go off to college return on break to just visit.
In recent years, Bookmobile usage has dropped off as library resources and services have increased. Its patronage is estimated at 26,000, but its share of the library’s circulation has decreased to less than 2 percent.
Last October, the library Board of Trustees in a survey discovered that many patrons liked the Bookmobile’s convenience, but 88 percent of the respondents also used the regular library facilities.
The trustees recommended taking the Bookmobile off the road following this or next summer’s reading programs, or if repairs became too costly.
“This was not an easy decision for the trustees,” said library director Allen Meyer. “There was a lot of concern about reaching the people who can’t get to the library. But this was the responsible decision for all of our patrons.”
The library plans to buy a smaller van to replace the old bookmobile, officials said–welcome news to many.
“The majority of our residents still enjoy reading or listening to books on tape,” said David Shamrock, co-director of therapeutic recreation at Brentwood North Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Riverwoods, to which the Bookmobile has come bimonthly.
“But many of our residents can’t go out. I’m hoping they will continue the service long after we’re all gone. It’s been invaluable.”
