Each year, the Hopkinsville-Christian County Public Library grows busier and busier.
Its executive director, Tiffany Luna, confirmed as much during Tuesday’s Christian County Fiscal Court meeting — noting that the 2023 HCCPL Dolly Parton Imagination Library surged into new territory.
With Christian County children 5 and under receiving a free book each month, more than 2,940 students as of November 2023 were enrolled in the program.
More than 45% of those live inside Hopkinsville’s city limits. More than 12% come from Oak Grove. More than 4% are from Crofton. More than 2% are from Pembroke. And more than 2% are from other Christian County communities.
The remaining 33%, Luna said, come from Fort Campbell. And for a good reason.
And while more than 800 children aged out of the program last year, more than 1,100 enrolled. More than 37,200 books were mailed to families, and more than 1,000 books were donated to local organizations for youth reading.
When Luna took over for the previous Executive Director DeeAnna Sova, she said the goal was to generate even more outreach than previously obtained, and she feels like some of those high marks have been met and exceeded.
From July to December 2023, Luna said more than 20,700 unique visitors had stepped foot in the library, more than 5,700 pages had been processed at the popular document station, more than 35,800 different materials had been circulated, more than 170 programs had been hosted, and more than 730 new library cards had been issued.
Furthermore, Luna said HCCPL and its officials had a presence in 33 events during that same span — an uptick of 43% from the same window in 2022.
In the last six months, more than 160 teens have attended the weekly Teen Time during Epic Hour — a 32% jump from 2022, and more than 370 people have attended Kids Club in that stretch, a 63% increase.
A library is also a safe space for adults. Luna said through 237 requests, 188 patrons worked through the HCCPL Genealogy Department, and more than 180 passports were processed. And nearly 200 adults attended appropriate programming.
