I recently tried to get my daughter a library card, but due to where we are renting, we are out of the library district. They asked that we pay $84 a year. I tried to explain due to our finances, that would be unrealistic for me. I personally don’t need a card, but I do feel our youth needs to be familiar with being in a library, being responsible for the book you borrow. The whole experience, I feel, is most important to our children.

Not enough kids read nowadays, and my little 4 year old who loves books is being turned away. The library is a beautiful institution that should be enjoyed by all children regardless of where they live. There should be some type of “all children welcomed here” program. It is unfair to punish the child for an adult’s decision to set rules of boundaries and for another adult’s lack of funds. I truly believe allowing a child to be part of a library and borrow books today prepares them for tomorrow.

I hope my suggestion gets taken into account; having to tell my daughter she was not allowed to get her own card brought her to tears. It really broke my heart, and I felt it should of broke the lady’s heart behind the counter too. But unfortunately society leaves us with this “tough cookies; it’s not my problem; I just follow the rules, I don’t make them” mentality.