In your article, “Survey: Fewer Americans are visiting libraries,” (Herald, April 10) you point out a national trend of fewer visits to libraries but recognize that locally, at least at Ignacio and Durango libraries, residents are bucking that trend. As the director of the Pine River Library in Bayfield, voted the Best Small Library in America in 2014, visits to the library are also increasing. However, door counts in this digital age only tell part of the story. Libraries have always been about leveling the playing field by disseminating as much information to as many people in whatever means and format to provide for our residents’ educational and recreational needs.

Counting the number of people who come through our doors is only one metric we use to determine whether or not we are successful. Certainly the 355,000 hits on our website help to tell our story. Or the 150,000 public uses of computers at Durango Public Library. Or, the more than 500 programs that are offered annually at each of our libraries. Or the 19,000 e-books and e-audiobooks available to anyone with a library card.

When e-books first hit the market, the media headlines spread doubts about the future of the library. For librarians, we understood this was just another format to deliver our information – it did not signal the doom of our libraries. We have watched the demise of many formats, from cuneiform to VHS.

May I suggest another headline? How about: “The various ways libraries promote literacy, cultivate community and expand your horizons.”

Shelley Walchak

Bayfield