At only eight years old, Tarrawanna's Caroline Wang is a seasoned library user.
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She started coming to the library as a baby with her mother, Joyce Jiao, for storytime; now, she often visits to borrow books and, in school holidays, participate in special events.
Ms Jiao and Caroline's experience encompasses just some of the many and varied functions Wollongong's libraries now serve for the community, far from simply acting as a book repository.
"We use the library a lot, it's an important part of our life," Ms Jiao said.
Clara Wiebers, coordinator of connection and learning for Wollongong City Libraries, said they served people of all ages, providing a variety of programs and events.
These range from baby literacy programs and after-school prorgams to knitting groups and special, one-off events.
"We basically reflect the community that we serve," Mrs Wiebers said.
"It plays a big role in social inclusion and cohesion, and reducing isolation."
This role is evident in the Old Boys Social Club, a group of older men who meet to socialise and have a laugh; each Tuesday, some of them get together at Warrawong Library to play games.
One man said he was also a member of a Monday afternoon book club at the library; another, Ernest Mansell, said he also used the library to borrow DVDs.
Meanwhile Ms Jiao said she and Caroline both made lasting friends through the storytimes they attended in Caroline's younger years and recently joined some of them for a school holiday robotics workshop at Wollongong Library.
In her almost 20 years at the libraries, Ms Wieber said the introduction of more diverse programs and events was one change she had witnessed; no longer a "storehouse of books", it was now a place for the community to connect.
Technology is another factor that has had an immense impact on libraries.
Once the place people went to learn about the internet, Mrs Wiebers said, libraries now provided an extensive array of online resources.
Members do not even have to step foot in a library to take advantage of them once they have a library card.
With a smartphone, computer or tablet, people can access news, entertainment, books and education, 24 hours a day.
Wollongong's libraries offer more than 17,000 online courses in multiple languages through LinkedIn Learning; a digital library for children with books in over 60 languages, accompanied by English translations; a language learning service; streaming services; and local, national and international newspapers (including the Mercury).
Wollongong City Libraries also has a local studies collection, which tells the stories and history of the Wollongong area, and a special team based at Wollongong Library.
"It's kind of a unique aspect of our collection," Wollongong City Libraries service quality and development specialist Lindsay Carapella said.
Despite these many other services, physical books remain a vital part of Wollongong's libraries.
Mrs Wiebers said the library service was improving its collections and buying more of the popular books than ever, in response to the community's wants.
And as for the future of the city's libraries?
"Where the community wants us to go," Mrs Wiebers said.
"They want us to remain free, inclusive, open, welcoming spaces."
Have your say on the future of libraries
Wollongong City Council is now seeking feedback on its draft library strategy for 2024-2028.
Wollongong City Libraries service quality and development specialist Lindsay Carapella said the strategy was about creating a place that not only held books but somewhere everyone could learn and connect.
"Overall, our goal for Wollongong City Libraries is creating that world-class library service for our community," Ms Carapella said.
The strategy was based on the changing needs of the community and feedback from library members, she said, reflecting the changing uses of the library.
Ms Carapella said the library was looking at what it offered not only through its physical collections but digitally too, and facilitating community connection.
The strategy outlines four goals: engage and connect with the community; inspire the community to learn, share and develop; develop customer-driven, dynamic and sustainable collections; and create welcoming, vibrant and inclusive spaces and places.
It also lays out actions to achieve these goals and measurements, among them increasing library membership by 5 per cent each year.
Ms Carapella said a key way to do this was to focus on the community's needs and use events, services and programs to encourage people to not only use the library's spaces but become active members, as well engage in outreach activities and partnerships.
The strategy also includes targets to increase the use of online resources, such as digital loans and the library app.
Ms Carapella said this was about opening up choices for people, with the digital space one people that felt comfortable using to access information.
Growing the number of loans, she said, was about meeting the needs of the community and making sure libraries had the right items available, highlighting the libraries process by which members could suggest items for purchase.
The strategy also contains actions to celebrate and share the cultures and histories of Indigenous and culturally and linguistically diverse people.
"We believe that our purpose as a library service is really to empower people... through resources, through information, through learning and through experiences," Ms Carapella said.
The draft strategy is available online and is open for feedback until August 6.
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Natalie Croxon
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
Reporter at the Illawarra Mercury, mostly covering social affairs. Previously of the Bendigo Advertiser, Northern Daily Leader and Quirindi Advocate. Our Watch award winner.
