(Spoiler Alert: No)

Many of our phone calls and more than an occasional patron ask variations of the same question:

I was trying to (insert action here) and it said – voice rising questioningly -- my library card had expired?

Sometimes it is followed by the secondary question: Have you guys canceled my account?

Good news! Unless it has been a number of years since you have last used your library card, the answer is “no” – you are not canceled, just in a time out.

So what happened?

Your account is set to inactive automatically every two years to help us keep track of our patrons. After all, people are constantly moving, getting married, changing jobs, retiring, and switching their phone or email accounts.

It may (but probably won’t) surprise you to learn that in the midst of these transitions, people don’t suddenly stop, look at each other and say, “Oh no! We haven’t told the library!”

Fortunately, this can be remedied over the phone, in person, or online. It only takes a few seconds to check your address, phone number, and email address and then add two more years to your expiration date. Easy-peasy!

And, if you have signed up for a card online, we’ll also ask you for a photo ID to verify your account the first time you use it in person.   

If you have a library-related question you’d like to know the answer to, let us know and we’ll address it in a future blog!