7/18/23 UPDATE: The elevator has been fixed and is now operational again. We appreciate your patience during the downtime. All events that were relocated due to the elevator issue will proceed as planned at their new venue.

As many of you may know, on the first day of the Mayor's Summer Reading Club, the Library's elevator unexpectedly went out of service. Our team worked quickly and diligently to find alternative ways to provide services and programs during our busiest season. They hand-carried hundreds of baskets of books upstairs and identified new locations for the 114 scheduled events and classes with 100% customer service focus and positive attitudes. We are grateful for your patience and kindness towards our staff during this challenging time. 

Despite the Library staff’s best efforts, several of our Thursday programs are impacted.

The following events are affected:

• Brett Roberts’ Colors of Kindness Magic Show (June 22)
  Rescheduled for our Winter Reading Challenge. New dates will be announced at a later time.
• Wildlife on the Move (June 29)
  This incredibly popular event is moved to Tuesday, July 25, at the Grand Hall at the NRH Centre.
• Ramblin’ Rita’s Texas Tales (July 6)
  Rescheduled for our Winter Reading Challenge. New dates will be announced at a later time.
• Austin Reptile Show (July 13)
  This event is canceled and will be rescheduled for later in the year. A new date will be announced at a later time.
• Celebrating Culture: Hula Performance (July 24)
  Moved to the Grand Hall at the NRH Centre. Date and times will remain the same.

• Percussion Things (July 20) and Creature Teacher (July 27)
  Moved to the Grand Hall at the NRH Centre. Dates and times will remain the same as scheduled.

We apologize for the inconvenience these changes may cause. The first two of our Thursday programs had record attendance, with 444 attendees for the A&M Chemistry Show and 860 total at the two Wild Things Zoofari programs. While we are thrilled to be able to provide free educational programming for so many families, our first floor can only accommodate crowds of around 120 people.

I want to thank the Parks and Recreation Department and the staff of the Grand Hall for juggling renovation projects to allow us to move the Mayor’s Summer Reading Club programs at the Grand Hall. Their team has been instrumental in delivering as many of our highly attended Thursday programs as possible.

The Library and its staff are honored by the support our community has shown us and are doing everything we can to continue to provide fun and educational programs to encourage reading this summer. Thank you again for your patience and understanding. We are grateful and fortunate to serve the people of North Richland Hills.

Sincerely,

Cecilia Barham

Director of Library Services