Turning the page on poverty: Hood County Bookmobile rolling into town next month

Starting next month, Hood County residents who are unable to travel to the library can have the library come to them with Hood County Library’s new bookmobile.

PURCHASE

Back in 2021, the Hood County Commissioner’s Court approved the purchase of an 18-foot-long 2022 Ford F550 that would be used as a mobile library to bring books, programs, and internet access into economically disadvantaged neighborhoods, as well as the communities of Cresson, Tolar, and Lipan.

However, it soon became apparent that a different vehicle would be needed to accommodate everything that the Hood County Bookmobile would be used for, so the decision was made to purchase a 29-foot-long Freightliner MT55 instead.

“(The vehicle was originally a Ford), but this is a Freightliner and it's so much better,” said Hood County Library Foundation Board President Susan Scott. “The shelving inside is movable, and because it's such a nice big bus, you can go in and come out. The other truck, there was one entrance in and out, but this one, if it's a nice day in the summer, they can move shelving out next to the bus and set up tables.”

Jennifer Logsdon, Hood County Library director, said the Freightliner cost a total of $322,988 — adding that $50,000 of the funds were donated from the Library Foundation Board, while the Hood County Commissioner’s Court and donations from residents covered the rest of the purchase.

A generous donation of $100,000 from local resident Rachel Ledbetter also contributed largely to the purchase and is one reason why the bookmobile will be coming to Hood County sooner rather than later.

“Timing is everything,” Scott said. “It would have taken us a lot longer to raise $50,000, so we're going to take the bus to Pecan Plantation and one of the first stops will be to her house, so she'll get to see the bus. We also have a plaque for the library and a plaque is going on the bus (with her name on it, thanking her for the donation)."

FEATURES

The Hood County Bookmobile is blue, featuring the phrase “Hood County Library on Wheels: Delivering Stories and Technologies to You!” painted on the side, with an image of an open book with stars and sparkles emitting from the pages.

“It was kind of hard to narrow (the design) down, but I wanted something that would be timeless because this vehicle's going to last a long time, so in 10 years, I didn't want something that would be so trendy that it wouldn't catch people’s eye anymore,” Logsdon said. “We wanted a little element of magic, so that's why they kind of did the book open with a little fairy dust coming out of it because books are magical because they can take you places that don't really exist and they can take you places that you can't afford to travel to, so I wanted to make sure we included that element.”

The bookmobile will be equipped with 3,000 books, ranging in genres like nonfiction, fiction, young adult, and children.

“Right now, we've got enough books to fill it up, but our goal is to have enough books to fill it up twice so that we can have a collection that's always being rotated,” Logsdon said. “For example, if we have a series, we don't want to put a whole series of books in the bookmobile just because it takes up a lot of space, so we might put the first two or three books in a series, but it might be that we have the rest of the series in the library. If they've started that series and really like it and they want number four and we don't have it on the bookmobile, they can request it, they'll put it on hold, and then the next time we go to that location, we'll bring them that book that they wanted.”

The bookmobile will also have audiobooks and DVDs, with the goal to incorporate Chromebooks and printers in the future.

"We're going to start with the books, but yes, eventually, we hope to have a way to set up computers for those who need access and also printing availability,” Logsdon said. “It's just a smaller collection that mirrors what we have in the library.”

With built-in Wi-Fi, the bookmobile can also provide internet access for residents if the vehicle is in range.

"It'll help to close some gaps there as well,” Logsdon added.

SCHEDULE

The Hood County Bookmobile is set to make two to three stops a day, with each stop averaging a couple of hours — providing plenty of time for residents to utilize its features.

“We'll go out to Cresson, Lipan, and Tolar and some of the other neighborhoods that maybe are transportation-challenged to be able to get to the library so we can bring it to them,” Logsdon said. “That's kind of our goal is to serve the youngest and the oldest people in our community — not that we won't serve the ones in between — but we want to cater to those who can't get here by themselves.”

Logsdon said the bookmobile will be on the road anywhere from three to five days a week on a regular schedule of Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, with Wednesdays by appointment only, and Saturdays twice a month.

"We plan to go to some of our gated communities too, like DeCordova and Pecan Plantation and some of those that are further out, who don't always get (to visit the library),” Logsdon said.

Monthly schedules of the bookmobile route will be posted on the Hood County Library website and Facebook page.

LAUNCH

The Hood County Bookmobile is currently on order and is set to be delivered closer to the end of April, with the official launch set for some time in May.

A ribbon cutting event for the bookmobile will be held on Saturday, April 29, from 2-4 p.m. at the Hood County Library.

"After that, hopefully we'll be able to get it out on the road,” Logsdon said. “I would say at the latest, middle of May, but we want to get out to some places before school is over because we hope to get some regular stops and families signed up for summer reading.”

Logsdon said she feels “like a kid on Christmas Eve,” waiting for the bookmobile to be delivered.

"I'm just excited to take the library out of the brick and mortar,” she added. “The library belongs to the county and a lot of people in Hood County live far from the building, so I'm really hoping this closes the gap for those who can't get here. (Residents) pay taxes to the county and I want them to be able to use the services the county provides.”

For more information, call the Hood County Library at 817-573-3569.