Timberland conducted a User Survey in Fall 2008 to determine how the public
who uses the library perceives the library and its services. Over 5500
surveys were completed either online or on paper in our 27 community libraries.
See the tabulated results and selected comments.
| I love the Timberland Library and the fact that you can use your
home computer to search the Timberland catalog and request a hold on a
book, Cd or DVD. I also love the internet searching of magazine
articles. Whenever I use the library, I find nearly all staff members to
be outgoing, friendly and helpful! Keep up the great work. |
| The Shelton library is a beautiful place, I spend nearly every
Saturday in the library :) |
| I love how friendly the staff is and how easy you make it to order
online!!! Thank you so much!!! |
| libraries are great for the community to keep us all aware! |
| I have been using the library in Lacey for over 7 years and find the
staff very helpful and courteous and great variety of books and media
available. |
| One thing not mentioned in the survey - I make heavy use of the
library's Wi-Fi connection. |
| When I started coming to the library here I was shocked. I have not
been a big user of the libraries wherever I have lived but have always
supported the need for them. My few uses of libraries in other states
were bland and of no great report. The services you provide and the
staff are incredible! My children and I enjoy coming and checking out
books. I am very thankful for you being here for the community. Recently
I have discovered more about your childrens programs and I will be
involving my children in them. Again thank you for making the library
into the LIBRARY! |
| I love the library! I tell all my students to get a library card, I
borrow books on a regular basis to share with them and I also enjoy
finding my favorite authors to enjoy when I have time to read for
pleasure. Keep up the good work. |
| I have never seen a library staff to match the people at the South
Bend branch. They are unfailingly kind and courteous and personable, and
I always feel very comfortable and accepted there. I simply cannot think
of a single thing I would change about the South Bend Public Library,
unless it was to extend the hours or have it open five days a week. |
| I am an avid reader, reading 2 or more books per week. I don't know
what I would do without the library. I almost never buy books, but
depend on the library. It has a good staff, any new books I am
interested in can be put on hold on my account, and I can access my
account from home. I will miss the downtown library a lot during
remodelling Oct to Dec. |
| Of all the programs that our taxes support, libraries
represent the best tax dollar use as far as I am concerned. Keep up the
wonderful work. We really appreciate it! |
| I've always found the quality of Timberland Regional Library
facilities, staff, programs and services to be outstanding. Your
branches are an irreplaceable asset to the communities you serve. Thanks
you! |
| The library system is a wonderful asset. I couldn't imagine life
without it! Whenever I'm visiting another town in the Timberland area, I
try to stop in and see the library. Most of them, whether new or
remodeled, are architecturally well done and interesting -- real assets
to the community. |
| My lifelong participation in libraries has been rewarded at Lacey
Timberland with pleasant surroundings (I remember the one on Lacey
Boulevard when I arrived here 21 years ago) and delightful, helpful
staff. My friend who was a librarian visited me and we took a busman's
holiday to this library where she was very complimentary. One remark was
that she had never seen a library parking lot so filled and we lived in
a much larger city than the Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater area. This area
should be proud of the vast selection of reading material in varying
media modes and access to so much learning. I was excited to find that
the Olympia library has a genealogy section and plan to use it when
their carpeting and remodeling is done. Please thank your staff for all
that you do; I try to everytime I go in. |
| The staff at McCleary is consistently helpful and very
knowledgeable. As a heavy user of the library, I cannot praise them
enough. |
| Love the Yelm library. Probably the most comfortable, inviting
library space I have ever experienced. |
| Count me as a very satisfied library user. The Timberland Regional
Library is unquestionably the best of the libraries in the communities
where I've lived (Anchorage AK, Las Vegas NV, Chapel Hill NC, Idaho
Falls, Richland, Spokane, and now Olympia). |
| I have lived all over the world and the Timberland system is World
Class!! |
| I appreciate our library. Thank you. |
| I think the library is a fantastic resource, and for a
town this size, we're really lucky to have such a good library. Keep up
the good work! |
| As a young adult and a teacher at the local school, comming into the
community and feeling welcome at the library was a refreshing experince!
I visit nearly EVERY day!!!! |
| That I LOVE Timberland Library System - that I LOVE the interlibrary
loan system - that I LOVE Tumwater library and the staff. |
| the montesano library is very well staffed and easy to find what i
am looking for. if they don't have what i need they find it for me or
point me in the right direction. this library is a great asset to the
community. |
| I retired from Seattle Public Library seven years ago after almost
30 years. The only library I now use is Ocean Park. If all your
libraries/branches are of the same quality as Ocean Park, then you can
be well proud. I couldn't be more pleased with my library and the
friendly and helpful staff here. |
| I love the library - I think it is a fabulous resource and have had
very positive experiences at the Timberland Regional Library since
moving here 4 years ago. Thank you! |
| KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. COULD BE ONE OF THE BEST LIBRARY SYSTEMS IN
THE COUNTRY. CAN'T WAIT FOR THE NEW LIBRARY TO OPEN. I'LL BE THERE. |
| I can't imagine living in a community without public library
services! |
| I really like the way holds are now self serve. It saves me time.
Thanks! |
| I love!!!my library. It is the best one I have known in 65 years of
checking out books in many states I think is vitally important that
libraries to be very well-funded. I went to graduate school with a
wonderful woman who told me that as a child of migrant farm workers in
the 40's and 50's, she got most of her pre-college education primarily
from the local libraries (not the schools of course) near the farms
where her family worked in the fields, orchards, and vineyards of
California. At the time I met her, she was close to completing her
doctorate. She spoke with great gratitude and reverence for the public
libray systems of America. |
| I'm amazed at the tremendous selection of books we have available to
us by use of the entire Timberland system. It is wonderful! I am
grateful for it. |
| Libraries have always been a part of my life, hopefully they will
continue to be. Libraries are used by everyone young old and inbetween
for learning and enjoyment. |
| I love the library! |
| I think TRL is a wonderfully fine library system. The staff work
incredibly hard to meet patron demands and needs. They are wonderful
people, always friendly and helpful. It is distressing that budget
shortfalls may reduce library hours. When I win the lottery, things will
definitely be better for the Olympia Library. We'll get a great big new
building, at long last, and it will be downtown on the waterfront, have
a great library gift shop, a lovely place to eat indoors and out. Maybe
a small auditorium for bookish events and will be a "go to" place for
young people and old to hang out. More POWER TO THE LIBRARY. From, I
love libraries, you are quite welcome. |
| No society without a good library can be called civilized. Hoquiam
TRL is the best public library I've ever used, and I''ve lived in 4
western states. |
| The staff is a good mixture of styles and types, all of whom are
friendly, knowlegeable, and bend over backward to help the idiots in the
general public, like me, who can ask the strangist questions. |
| Public libraries are part of our democratic system; along with
public schools. I can't imagine living in a community that did not have
a free public library system available to all.Public libraries along
with schools provide a way for all to engage in life long education. |
| Thank you so, so, so much for having a library system for me to
use!! I REALLY appreciate it. I read like crazy and it would cost so
much money if I had to go out and buy all those books instead of reading
them from the library. So thank you!!! |
| I have enjoyed visiting the libraries at salkum,randle,and packwood.
There employees have all been very helpful,for the past 10yrs with
getting my yongest son into reading! thank-you all very much!!! |
| I think the Timberland Library System is amazing...our family are
frequent users and we love it! I especially like the fact that I can do
almost everything on my computer at home, and just go into the library
to pick/up and return my checked out items. |
| i love my library !!!!!! |
| I just want to say thanks a bunch. My life would be a lot less
interesting if I did't have access to the library. |
| Libraries are vital to our sense of community! I am a college
student and it's great to have the Olympia Timberland Library as a
resource in addition to my own college library. I love the FOREIGN
LANGUAGE section and all the wonderful range of music! |
| Thank you, especially for those of us on fixed
incomes..............to offer just about anything, I have been searching
for.Blessings. |
| The Belfair Public Library is wonderful. The staff are always
amazing and everything is always clean and tidy. I have never had a bad
experience there. |
| We have been very impressed with the children's programs offered at
the library. We've recently moved to Olympia from the Southeast where
library offerings were nearly nn-existent. What a treat it has been to
bring our toddler daughter to a beautiful children's section and many
great storytimes. We have also *loved* the library book sales. Your
libraries are splendid resources, much enjoyed by our family. Keep up
the great work! It is most appreciated! :o) |
| I love the online/hold request service. I value particularly the
feature to make holds inactive. All I can say is Thank you for the fine
library service. |
| I love the library. Since learning I could order books and
audiobooks online, it has changed my life! |
| thank you for the ability to have free Knowledge and entertainment I
hope this is one thing that never Get cut from the budget , for its the
last place to be able to learn and get together with Friends I think we
need to Give even more for obtaining new materials books, Cd, DVD 's |
| I use the library 3 to 4 times a week. It is a wonderful resource. I
consider it my "home away from home |
| I consider the library my friend. It supplies me with books
unlimited. I could never afford to buy everything I read. The system
that allows me to place reserves on books from my home computer and then
notifies me when they are available is part of my daily life. Thank you. |
| Both the online catalog and the e-books available on line are
fantastic. Both systems are easy to use for reserving books. My Mom
lives in Yakima and her library's online system is very cumbersome and
email notification of when a reserved book is ready is spotty at best.
The ability to keep multiple lists in the online catalog tied to my
account lets me keep track of my favorite authors and then read their
books in the order they were written. Thank you for all you do! |
| We have the best library system I have ever used. Being able to
access the card catalogue over the internet, order books, and pick them
up when they come is efficient and easy. It feels like Christmas to me
when I receive notification of books waiting for me! And I love to
browse the new book lists every month. Thanks for doing a great job! |
| TRL and the Olympia branch in particular are two of the things that
keep me living in the area. I really depend on the library for
information, education, and entertainment. It is very important to me
and my family. I think, overall, TRL is an excellent system. I would
love to see even more events for all age levels. |
| Hooray for libraries and librarians! They have always been a major
part of my life. I'm so glad you all are there. |
| As a homeschooling family for the past 17 years, we use the Library
extensively. I'd be lost without all the incredible resources that help
me to enrich my curriculum. I love being able to place things on hold
on-line at home, and being able to collect my holds on my own at the
Library is a wonderful idea. Everyone at my branch is warm and friendly,
and always helpful. Thank you for this amazing service to our community. |
| The library staff at the Aberdeen branch is WONDERFUL!!! They've
always been personable. Our two boys (3 and 11 yrs. old) love to visit
the library--as much for saying, "Hi" to the staff as for looking for
books. |
| I feel very fortunate to live in a community that offers the library
services that Timberland does. The convenience, accuracy, friendliness,
and overall outstanding service provided by the library staff are above
comparison. Thank you for everything you do! |
| The staff at our Chehalis library are excellent - Corine and her
staff are very friendly and knowledgeable. It's great to go "where every
one knows your name"! We're excited about the opening of our brand new
library in a couple of weeks. |
| Thank you for the great service to our community. I'm quite
impressed with the Timberland system. I like the online options, many
book sales, a number of locations in our area with convenient hours, and
the availablity of current releases I can't afford to buy, but enjoy
reading. Keep up the good work! |
| It is my perception that the library has enriched our community
culture in a different way in recent years, and continues to do so. The
Big Read program not only introduces many proplr to literary enrichments
they would not otherwise have had, it brings people together in a new
way, and iltimately binds our community more closely together. I see a
need which could be met by the library, at least in our local community,
and that is to offer targeted programs to draw the latino population
into a cultural dialogue, with each other and with nonlatinos. All in
all, the library is doing its job extremely well. Thank you. |
| this system is the best and should probably be used as the model for
all others- you guys do such a great job and the system is so well
designed that I just can't say enough about it. bravo!!!!! |
| I think the library is the most important service for the whole
community. Knowledge is power and the library provides a unique
opportunity for all ages to explore in a safe and helpful environment. |
| I regard Timberland Regional Library as one of the most important
resources in Washington State. Books and A/V materials are easy to
reserve and the large number of branches make it extremely easy to
locate rare holdings. Thank you very much! |
| Thanks so much to the staff and management of the Timberland
Regional Library system. Your hard work helps keep our community
informed and educated. An educated public is one of the cornerstones of
democracy. Keep up the good work! |
| I hope this is helpful...thanks for your interest in assessing the
value of the library system to users, |
| the library is one of my favorite places to go. I'm grieving the
fact that I will only have limited service during the remodle. Thanks
for all you do to make this a great place. |
| I have visited the Timberland Regional Libraries located in McCleary,
Shelton, and Tumwater each of them have there own special ambiance and
have always been very welcoming. It is very nice to be able to enter the
establishments and be treated like the staff are happy to see you no
matter what social class you may "appear" to be from. Thank you to
Timberland Library Systems for being a great place to visit! |
| I LOVE THE TIMBERLAND LIBRARY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
| Timberland library system is the best. It greatly enhances my
family's quality of life, particularly because our very small budget for
books and entertainment can not match our strong appetite for either.
The staff is fantastic, the special displays almost always draw me to
something new and interesting, and your selection in some categories
(such as graphic novels) is truly impressive. When I lived outside
Timberland territory, the library was one of the things I missed most
because the Tacoma system paled in comparison. The library is the one
use of my tax dollars that I appreciate every day. Thanks for doing such
an excellent job! |
| I have been a regular Centralia library user for more than 50 years.
I like having other Timberland Libraries available when I am in other
towns/cities. The ability to access the library through the Internet is
really great. |
| I just want to say thanks for such a wonderful library system. I've
lived in many places and used many different libraries; the Timberland
system is far and away the best I've ever experienced. Libraries like
Timberland are a tremendous gift to the community. |
| The timberland Library system is superb. The book selection is
excellent and the library policies which allow online reservations
maximizes utilization. The library is my most used service supported by
my taxes. The Lacey library staff are friendly and professional. I can't
praise them enough. |
| the library is one of THE finest resources in a community--it
deserves funding as such. |
| The Timberland library sytem is really amazing and wonderful. The
newsletters and great reads are an easy and enjoyable way to find new
reading material. I love ordering materials on-line. Thank you! |
| I would be lost without the library at my age reading is my
intertainment. I could not afford to buy all the books I read plus I
prefer large print. I also order book for people in several nursing home
who also need large print books. Without library staff there are a lot
of times I would not be able to find books or information that they ask
me to get for them. They are very kind and understanding when I have a
problem. |
| I share with pride to relatives out of state about the amazing job
Timberland Library performs consistantly. I have borrowed out of state
books, asked the librarian on the question hot line questions, used the
library weekly and am a Friend of the Library....because I want all of
the services you provide to continue. |
| Of all the things my taxes go to, the most measurable value I
receive on a consistent, repeat basis is the library. Other things (see
above) are important, but their value is not measured in use as much as
the benefits of the library services. |
| My children and I enjoy using the library in Centralia. The staff is
kind and helpful. I feel that the library is an excellent community
resource. I want to say thank you to all of the people involved in
making this such an accessible and positive experience for our
community. |
| I am so grateful for a public library system in our community. The
importance of books and a repository of learning that people can
literally place their hands on in this so-called "information age" is
essential in what is ironically an increasingly incurious society. |
| I have always regarded the library as the MOST IMPORTANT city
facility in my life. I use it nearly every day. In the last 10 years the
Chehalis library staff has been exemplary as far as their helpfulness
and friendliness. I am a true library fan. The Timberland association
makes our city library great! |
| It is important that you know that the Tenino Library Staff is the
most helpful, professional, friendly, and knowledgable of all that I
have encountered. I have been to Libraries in many states and Countries
and this little Library and its staff surpasses them all. When I first
moved to Tenino in 2005 the Library and its staff welcomed me and my
family and went above and beyond in all areas from helping my son with
the SAT's, to my daughters love of cats. I have told many and will
continue to spread the word about my little Library. |
| The library does a great job of providing service, staying up with
new technologies and updating current technology, and continuing to
provide a wide range of print materials -- all in a time of tight
budgets. Keep up the good work! |
| Thank you for the library system. I use it weekly, carrying at least
two bags of books, movies, and magazines in and out of the library. The
staff is always helpful and friendly. They recommend books spontaneously
(knowing what I like) and they all seem to know me by name! Whatever
taxes I'm paying to have a library system, it's worth much more than
that to me. |
| I love our Westport Library. The people are helpful, cheerful and
kind. It is a lovely place to go. I am so thankful that our library is
part of the Timberland Library System. I depend ont the Internet a lot,
but a book is still a book. |
| Timberland Libraries are an amazing resource, and one of the best
library systems we have ever experienced (we have lived in Seattle,
Portland, San Francisco, Sioux Falls, Chicago, and suburban Virginia). |
| We are very very fortunate to have Timberland Library system! My
husband and I have encouraged many people to use it. |
| You only have to see how many people use the libraries to know how
very, very important they are to our community. I could not imagine
living in a place that did not value a place where everyone has access
to the things that our library provides. Without a library, without what
a library provides in so many ways, would diminish my quality of life. |
| The Raymond Library is awesome. I have used the library for 40
years. I love the inprovements that have happened over the years. I love
ordering on-line and the new easy book pick up. The librarians are
great. |
| You can't beat the price for research, books, movies, computer
availability -- all in a peaceful environment with terrific and informed
staff. |
| I very much appreciate our public libraries, and would feel that
something very essential was lost if we did not have access to them. It
is an amazing public service to have open access to literature, music,
and other resources without cost to the individual. I do not take this
service for granted. Thank you! |
| I love the library! I feel more at home there than anywhere else
except my own home and the place where I worship. The only reason I have
trouble seeing a reaching some materials is because I am 4'11", but as
long as there is a stool nearby, I'm a happy camper! |
| i really enjoy that library asks are opion on these types of
things!! its great that they do this!!! and i love the teen events!! i
have great times with my friend when they do them!! |
| I have lived in many places throughout the West coast of the US and
Alaska, and I can honestly say the Salkum librarian is the friendliest
and most well informed I have had the pleasure of dealing with. What an
asset to the community. |
| Thank you for the reciprocal borrowing program-- I seldom get to
Seattle, but when I do I try to get to a SPL branch. Being able to
return items checked out up at Seattle at Tumwater makes being a
reciprocal borrower "do-able" for me. Thanks again! |
| The timberland Regional library is the most amazing library system
that I know of! I continue to be amazed with the opportunities that it
offers our region. It is one of the top items on my list of what makes
this a good place to live and I brag about it to all my out of state
friends. Keep up the good work. |
| The library has always been a warm and inviting place to be. I have
grown up thinking of the library as my key to accessing other worlds,
improving my daily existence and finding comfort. I have been able to
pass on this love of reading and libraries to my son who delights in his
trips here, knowing he has gathered hours of enjoyment and knowledge.
Thank you for all you do to give us this experience. Libraries enrich
our lives! |
