Tannie Evita Launches Library Week in Darling

“Grab the future and run with it”, said Evita Bezuidenhout as she launched Library Week at the Darling North Public Library. Her well-known brand of humour had the audience laughing out loud. On a more serious note, Evita graciously accepted a donation of books from the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport (DCAS) for the Darling Trust’s Early Learning Project and Parental Learning Project.

“Educate yourself @ your library” is the theme of this year’s programme to promote the use of public libraries. The DCAS Library Service prepared a variety of materials for the event, including informative posters on discrimination, religion, South African authors and national symbols.

Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport Dr Ivan Meyer said he regularly visits libraries because he loves books and reading. “We are here to celebrate knowledge and the benefits of belonging to a library”, he said. Dr Meyer admired the cultural warmth that could be seen in the posters on display.

Library Week is an exciting annual national initiative that has been celebrated since 1965 during the third week of March. The celebration helps to support the national drive to promote literacy through the use of library materials, to cultivate a growing culture of reading, and to open doors by providing information services and resources. If you haven’t done it yet, this is your opportunity to join as a member at your local library; you will have access to a variety of services as well as books, CDs, DVDs and the Internet.

The hard work and care that goes into maintaining a good public library can clearly be seen in the quality of the public library service in Darling. It is a welcoming environment for the people of the town to read for information and for relaxation.