CHRIST THE KING PARISH LIBRARY

The library is located behind the parish stage of the auditorium, door to the left. Its overall mission is to provide a welcoming space for the spiritual and educational enrichment of members and visitors of the parish community. Over 4,000 books, audio-visuals, and periodicals are available for take-out. Staffed by volunteers after weekday and Sunday morning masses, the library remains open throughout the day. When volunteers are unavailable easy directions for take-out are posted.

From its' humble beginnings over ten years ago, the library has adhered to its' original intention of providing wholesome Catholic values. A good number of core, valuable, Bible Study, Biographies of Saints, Church History and Church Documents have accumulated, as well as large sections on Prayer and Spirituality. At present over 40 different categories of offerings are found on our shelves, including topics as Inspirational, Parenting, Family Life, Women's Issues, and others.

Accessing the card file under Author, Title, or Subject facilitates finding a book or audio-visual. A short description of the offering is found on each card, as well as how to locate it on the shelf. New acquisitions are posted on the bulletin board, and also found on displays in the library. Periodic thematic displays are found in the entry. A database is maintained on computer, matching shelf offerings to database.

In recent years growth has especially occurred on our audio-visuals shelves. We offer Catholic videos, dvds, and audio cassettes/cds for adults and children. One shelf is dedicated to family viewing, encouraging families to view together and discuss. Currently a Children's' Bible Story Hour for 5 year olds takes place in the library during the religious education semesters. Children leave with a book and audio-visual each week, returning them the following week. This has enlivened the interest of  families in the library.

During the past six months, the library has undergone a couple of major changes under the new minister coordinator. One of these changes has been the complete revamping of the display areas with the audio video and childrens’ sections all relocated to the main portion of the library. This move specifically highlights the increasing usage and demand among these three categories.

To continue to foster growth in these areas of interest nearly 150 new offerings have been made available during the six month period ending May of 2009. The other change has been the concentration or the augmentation of these three higher demand categories. Nearly 45% of our new offerings are videos for all ages with a concentration on DVD format, the audio section has been augmented by 8 new multi-pack CDs including our first audio book, “The Shack”, a donation from friends of one of our ministry volunteers. Another 20% are new children through young adults books with the remaining 30% either donated or purchased to provide a copy of each of this year’s bookclub selections available to our patrons.

We are thankful for the donations and gifts from various individuals or groups, especially from the Faith Formation ministry. Through these donations, we have been able to devote more of our available monetary resources to updating both the audio and video sections of our parish libarary.

Please drop in! Visitors are always welcomed, as well as volunteer to help us increase our reach. All in the service of the Lord!