Greetings all -- My supervisors and I met this morning and had just decided to cancel programming if/when there were confirmed cases in the SWMI area. As soon as I left that meeting we learned of a case in South Bend. We also learned that Kalamazoo Public had just issued a statement that they had canceled all use of their meeting rooms. As such, we made the decision to cancel our programming through the end of March and we will reevaluate each week leading into April as to how we will proceed with April programming. This pertains not only to our programs, but use of the meeting rooms by any group. We are in the process of notifying groups today and tomorrow. Below is the statement I posted on FB and will be on website: Greetings everyone -- We consider the health and safety of our patrons and staff a top priority. Due to the recent confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Michigan and a recent case in the Michiana area (St. Joseph County/South Bend area), and the recommendation from Governor Gretchen Whitmer to avoid meeting in large groups, starting tomorrow, Friday, March 13, we are cancelling all of our programs effective through the end of the month. We will continue to evaluate the situation each week and, as we get closer to the end of the month we will keep everyone updated on April events . Please note: All public use of meeting rooms and community rooms from outside organizations is also canceled until further notice. We are working on contacting all of the groups that use our meeting rooms as well as community members who have signed up for our programs. We would also ask that for the foreseeable future, if you have donations you were planning on bringing in for the Friends, please wait to donate until we give the "all clear." The library will remain open for the time being and we will continue to disinfect surfaces and books. For those who are limiting their exposure by staying home but still wish to use library services, remember that we offer a large variety of ebooks and audiobooks through Overdrive at https://smdl.overdrive.com/ We will also work to add "virtual"/recorded storytimes and post those as well, for those who still want to have a storytime experience. We will keep you updated through our website, social media, and newsletter and as always, you can call us at 983-7167 if you have any questions or want/need to renew materials. As noted in our previous post, we do not want anyone to panic... but we do want to err on the side of caution. Thank you for your understanding. Stephanie Masin - Library Director Stephanie Masin Library Director Maud Preston Palenske Memorial Library 500 Market Street St. Joseph, MI 49085 (269) 983-7167 www.stjoseph.lib.mi.us<http://www.stjoseph.lib.mi.us> *This message is for the intended recipient only and may be privileged, otherwise protected, or subject to other legal rules. If you have received it by mistake, please let me know by e-mail reply and delete it from your system; you may not copy this message or disclose its contents to anyone other than the intended recipient. If you are receiving this email as part of a group that is subject to the open meetings act please reply directly to me only, not the group as a whole.