If you think you know all about libraries, trust me, you don’t. Talbot County Free Library (TCFL) Easton and St. Michaels is not your typical library. It’s always been a step above the rest, but COVID took it a step further, thanks to the need for virtual resources and some pretty out-of-the-box thinking.

Have you ever heard about borrowing Wi-Fi hotspots? It’s perfect for those who don’t have great (or even any) internet services or who need one when they’re traveling. You can rent one of the 30 hotspots (free, of course) for a week. Yes, a very small handful of libraries are doing that, but TCFL is taking it even further. Through the Emergency Connectivity Fund, they’re looking to hopefully get funding to add 50 more hotspots. These additional ones would be limited to people who need an internet connection but don’t have one due to affordability or rural location.

Besides hotspots, another unusual service being offered is the seed exchange. In cooperation with the Maryland Extension, any library cardholder can access fruit, vegetable, and flower seeds.  Got extras after a bountiful season?  Bring them back for others to use and enjoy as well.

Something that Dana Newman, TCFL’s director, is proud of is, what she calls, the library’s gem– the Maryland room: “Here is where we have an extensive collection of genealogy and history on Maryland counties. We have a lot of researchers that come from other states and stay in Easton for a few days and use the collection because it is a comprehensive reference source. A lot of libraries have reduced their collections or done away with them. Ours is probably one of the better ones on the Eastern Shore.”

Another area where they excel are the resources available to children, no matter what age. There is the little kid yoga time aimed at children 0-7.  There are the learning computers with literacy and book-focused games for those 2-8 years old.  There is the creative journaling program for older children, ages nine and up. Just learning to read? There are the Vox books where the book reads as the pages are turned. For everyone of all ages, the story times are in the outside garden area, kept beautiful by the Talbot Country Garden Club.

You don’t have to be a kid to get the benefit available at the library. From learning a new language (70 available) or needing to take a prerequisite for college or continuing education courses, the library is also a source for adults. Looking for an eBook, audiobook, movie, or music? Look here first. All without even needing to leave your home. All free.  And TCFL is committed to getting the word out to the Eastern Shore that’s it’s here and available to everyone with a card.

“We’re making an effort to try to become much more visible in the community,” says Newman, “which had been somewhat difficult during COVID. Even then, we did a lot of bringing books out to different places. But now that things are starting to open back up, we’re trying to increase our visibility. Last month we went to airport day and did an outreach table there. Last year, when all the online education was being done, we were able to get every student in the Talbot County Public School System a library card. Actually, it was a virtual card that was attached to their student numbers so that they could access all of our resources. That was a big win/ win for both the library and for all of those students in the school system.”

The outreach doesn’t end there.  “We’re also partnering with places like the Multicultural Center and Building African American Minds (BAAM) to try and reach individuals who may have difficulty getting to the library. We’re trying to bring our collections to them.”

Newman is grateful that the library has received funding from the federal government that allows them to extend that outreach to senior centers and particularly to more of the area’s daycares and other places where they can reach young children. “That’s really what it’s all about,” says Newman, “increasing literacy and getting children to have a passion for books from the get-go.”

One program being offered by TCFL even surprised us—free law assistance. An appointment is needed but, free legal aid is available through the Family Law Assistance program. Interested people can contact coordinator Barbara Mitchell at 410-770-6806.

As we mentioned initially, this is not your typical library and if Newman has anything to say about it, prepare to be constantly surprised.

To find out what’s new and available, check out http://www.tcfl.org.