Welcome back to Behind the Stacks!
Staff here at the library have got their marching boots on, bubble wands in hand, and the Bookmobile gassed up and ready to take part once again in this year’s Memorial Day Parade here in West Haven! The library returned to the parade last year after over a decade, and staff are thrilled to be back taking part of this long-standing West Haven tradition. The parade begins at 10:30 on Campbell Ave, from Captain Thomas Boulevard to Center Street, on May 25. Both library locations will be closed that day in observance of the holiday, but please say hello and give us a wave if you see us on parade day!
The Main Library will be hosting monthly conversational groups for English speakers to practice their Spanish, as well as for Spanish speakers looking to practice their English! These groups offer a way to practice your language skills in a casual, welcoming environment with other learners. The sessions are led by a bilingual volunteer to help facilitate the conversation–feel free to drop in! Visit the Events page at or call us at (203) 937-4233 for dates, times, or any other information.
Our Ora Mason branch will be introducing new Take & Make crafts for the month of June, as well as a fun Drop-In craft for children: Ice Cream Scratch Art! Use a scratch tool to reveal bright colors and create your own sweet ice cream design, just in time for summer. Children can also pick up a Take & Make DIY Summer Visor to design and decorate. Adults are invited to come pick up a DIY Strawberry Lemonade Sugar Scrub kit to take home!
Lastly, come join members of the West Haven Delegation on June 2, from 6:30-8 p.m., .at the Main Library for an End of Session town hall wrap up to discuss what transpired during the 2026 legislative session. In attendance will be State Reps MJ Shannon, Bill Heffernan, Trenee McGee, and State Senators James Maroney and Gary Winfield. Registration is not required–feel free to stop by! And now, a word from our Executive Director, Colleen Bailie, with some important updates from the West Haven Library:
Happy spring Westies! This is Library Director Colleen Bailie who wanted to take a few minutes to highlight some library information for you.
“In the past year, we saw over 105,000 visits, with 8,273 people attending programming, and 192,040 items checked out! We added a library of things last year, with items such as a metal detector, CD player, tool sets, and beach items, and hope to add more items soon. All these can be checked out with your library card. Did you know also with your library cards that you have access to museum passes, and helpful databases such as Ancestry.com, homework help, language learning, and crafting? Check out our website for more information! And of course, books, audiobooks, and movies in physical and digital formats. All you need for any of these is an active library card.
“One thing you do not need a library card for is access to our Wi-Fi. Just come in with your device and get the password from the front desk. Last year, we had over 32,765 sessions on our Wi-Fi in both locations. We are also a part of the Eduroam network in Connecticut, so if you have been connected at many schools and universities, you can automatically connect at the library.
“I would be remiss if I did not mention that the library is able to provide the services we offer at a mere 1% of the city’s total budget, which equates to $33.32/capita. We are extremely grateful for the current administration’s unwavering support for the library and recognizing the rising costs. Like everyone, we are feeling the effects of rising costs on our utilities and supplies.
We are extremely fortunate to have an endowment to help with capital costs, so when things like our elevator go down, we can quickly repair them, thanks to quick work by the library board (also known as the Village Improvement Association). Thank you to everyone who is always vocally supportive of the library, especially all seven of our book clubs and Friends of the Library!
“If you have checked out items online (34% of last year’s circulated items were digital), then you know the wait times for these items can be lengthy. Last year, Connecticut passed the first in the nation eBook bill, that will be triggered if another state with more than 7 million residents also passes a bill, which seems likely soon.
“This bill will allow libraries to negotiate with our vendors for better pricing for digital material, which currently we cannot do. Ebook pricing is much different than physical copies, as we get physical materials at discounted rates thanks to the CT Library Consortium. Libraries pay nearly 3- to 6-times more for eBooks and audiobooks than consumers, and those items disappear after 26 checkouts.
“You do not want to know how many times we have had to purchase the Harry Potter series! We share these costs via a library consortium, but the demand for books is also much higher than we can keep up with. But like everyone, it’s worth the wait to be able to finally get that latest Abby Jimenez or Dungeon Crawler book! Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have any questions!
“Obviously, all these services are not possible without our super talented and friendly staff that provide so much awesome programming and purchase the books and DVDs you are looking for. And we thank you so much for supporting the library by coming to programs, taking out materials, using our spaces, and attending the Friends of the Library book sales!
“Finally, I simply must mention the Allingtown Library. The library board and I continue to explore all our options for bringing back the much-needed library services to the Allingtown community. I still hear from many residents who speak fondly of the Piantino Branch. The original Allingtown branch opened in the 1930s in a storefront, which then moved to 1 Forest Rd in 1978 until it closed in September of 2020 with the sale of the building.
“All of us at WHPL are working hard to bring back services to Allingtown fully.
As always, feel free to stop by and visit us anytime and be sure to check out our social media and website for all that’s happening at WHPL.”
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