When it comes to residents who have either permanent or temporary disabilities that affect their mobility, the Smith Public Library has a playbook called Silver Linings to assist them.

The program offers monthly delivery and pickup services for books the third Thursday of each month. Deliveries typically take place in the morning, said Reference Assistant for Adult Services Megan Goode, who oversees the program.

A resident looking to take advantage of this program must have a mobility impairment in addition to an active library card. For those wanting to join the program, they can reach out to Goode by calling 972-516-6259 and conducting a survey about the materials an individual may be interested in.

Those participating in the program must also live within Wylie city limits.

Silver Linings also allows individuals to select the types of reading materials they want making it more than a monthly book drop-off service.

“Each month she will reach out to you a few days before the delivery date to discuss what items you want her to bring out,” said Library Director Ofilia Barrera. “It really is a truly customized service.”

The service’s first delivery took place April, 23, 2020, as a way for the library to continue engaging with its patrons who are senior citizens, said Goode, adding that it also allowed the library to check on their well-being.

“It was so popular that we decided to keep it going after pandemic restrictions were lifted,” Goode said. 

The mission of Silver Linings is to inspire, inform and interact, she added. 

“We all want to be valued and stay involved in our communities. This service is one way to ensure that this happens for seniors, or any citizen with a mobility impairment within our Wylie community,” Goode said. “We have had citizens use our service who are going through chemo, or have had surgeries as well.”

Additionally, the library does not currently have a limit on the number of books it delivers to a patron each month. 

“Some of our patrons only want one or two items, but others are voracious readers, and we have taken 10 or more books to them at a time,” Goode said.

For the full story, see the Oct. 12 issue of The Wylie News.