Bayside library for disabled gets needed upgrade

By Ricardo Lopez

VIRGINIA BEACH

Mary Mathena was born blind. After several surgeries as a child she regained some of her sight, but she's had to wear thick bifocals most of her life.

In her teens, she subscribed to the National Library Service to find relief from the constant headaches she endured reading traditional books. The agency sends Braille and audio materials postage-free to eligible borrowers.

Mathena, now 53 and blind after additional surgeries failed, recalls how cumbersome the large records were and how easily they scratched. The agency later downsized to cassettes in the early '70s and has used that medium ever since.

In a leap of technology, the library service is replacing the 50-year-old format with flash drives this summer.

"We're so excited about this," said Pamela Brown, a librarian at Bayside Special Services Library. "We've been waiting for this change for a long time."

Bayside is a network library under the National Library Service that serves 1,100 people in South Hampton Roads who are blind or have vision impairments or physical disabilities. The service is a part of the Library of Congress and has libraries in all 50 states. Patrons sign up to receive materials through their state's regional special services library.

Last week, Brown demonstrated how the new digital machine works. Many disabled patrons mentioned its more compact size, better sound quality and easy-to-use features.

The national project, providing machines and flash drives, cost $75 million. The money will be distributed in sums of $12.5 million over six years, said Kurt Cylke, director of the National Library Service.

The digital machines cost $211 each, about $100 cheaper than the current cassette players. The flash drives will cost about $12 after books are recorded on them.

Mathena and other people at the meeting signed up with Brown to be on a waiting list to receive the new machine later this summer. The Bayside library will receive about 30 machines each month for the first three months.

"I always thought that being blind would be the end of it," Mathena said. "You don't think it's going to happen until it happens, and when you do, you come to a crossroads and you have to decide whether you're going to do something about it."

Eighty-five veterans and six centenarians are part of the eligible users the library serves.

"Veterans, by law, are the first to receive the new machines," Brown said. "Then people over 100, and then it's first-come, first-served based on our waiting list."

To sign up, users must prove their disability with a doctor's note or see a special services librarian who can verify their eligibility. The next step is to order titles through their special services library. Borrowers have no limit to how many titles they can have at one time.

"It's very convenient," Mathena said. "I get a list of new books that are new on tape every three to four months, and I send Pamela a reading list of books I want sent to me."

Mathena, who has a master's degree in history from Old Dominion University, tends to order history books and biographies.

While signing up and using the service is easy, Brown said, the challenge is informing people about the new digital machines.

"Most of these people live alone and don't have anyone to drive them to the library," she said. They try to reach patrons through online newsletters and mailings - typed or in Braille.

In one returned cassette box, a patron scribbled a handwritten note thanking Brown for recommending that particular book title.

"These books are very important to them," she said. "When they check their mail and their books are there, it's like getting a present."

Ricardo Lopez, (757) 222-5125, ricardo.lopez@pilotonline.com