Our Mission
The Butler County Library Outreach program provides library services to meet the informational, recreational, and educational needs of senior citizens, homebound residents of all ages in El Dorado, and the physically and visually challenged in Butler County.
What is Library Outreach?
Can’t come to the library? We can come to you! Library Outreach provides books (large & regular print), DVDs and videos, books on tape and CD, and special activities to seniors and homebound customers who can’t visit their local library. The service is free.
Butler County Library Outreach is a department of Bradford Memorial Library in El Dorado, Kansas, where the collection is housed. Outreach staff and volunteers travel regularly throughout Butler County, delivering library materials to homebound residents, retirement homes, care homes, and assisted living centers. People who use the service may have low vision, are disabled, or lack transportation to their local library. Materials are usually delivered bimonthly, either to individuals or as a “lobby collection” that residents can choose from.
Materials Provided
- LARGE PRINT BOOKS- best sellers, classics, gentle reads, Christian fiction, non-fiction. We offer a wide variety of genres and a large collection to choose from.
- BOOKS ON TAPE, CD OR PLAYAWAY- You can keep reading even when your vision is poor or your eyes are tired. Listen to your favorite books using a CD or tape player. Outreach can supply the players for you as well. OR, try a PLAYAWAY book – no player is required.
- ACTIVITIES- A collection of special activities, including games, BiFolkal kits & an Omnichord are available to serve the needs of seniors and Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. They offer opportunities for maintaining motor and mental skills and for socializing and interacting. Professional literature is also available to staff for checkout.
- VISION IMPAIRMENT- For patrons with vision impairment, Outreach provides vision enhancement products that plug into a television and are for individual use. We also provide a VideoEye for use in Senior Centers or Nursing Homes. These items are available for checkout.
Areas of Service
Outreach delivers materials throughout Butler County to its residents who, because of their disability or other factors, are unable to visit their local library in person. Institutional sites include libraries, senior centers, nursing homes, and senior residences in most Butler County cities and towns. Deliveries are made to individuals in their homes. Butler County Library Outreach partners with RSVP volunteers, matching volunteers with delivery sites. The RSVP program is administered by the Butler County Department on Aging, (800) 279-3655.
Funding sources include Butler County Senior Mill Levy; City of El Dorado Library Mill Levy; United Way of El Dorado; George Trimble Trust; Friends of the Bradford Memorial Library; and donations and memorials. Looking for a way to honor a loved one? Place a book or audio book in the library’s collection in his name. Please call Eva Tower at (316)321-3363 for more information.
How You Can Help
Do you know someone who might benefit from this service? Are you interested in volunteering for the program? Become an RSVP volunteer and get reimbursed for your mileage.
Please contact us via mail, phone, fax, or e-mail with questions about the Outreach Program. We are happy to help you or someone you know!
(316)321-3363, fax (316)321-5546
