Parish library opens up collection to Catholics city-wide

By DAWN PROSSER
Director of Communications
 
A multi-year labor of love turned an unused area in a former convent into a beautiful parish library with 2,000 new volumes of Catholic books for children through adults. Just over a year ago, the Sioux City Holy Cross Parish Women of Faith hosted an open house to showcase the library and Catholic resources available to the parish.
 
Around that time, Father Randy Schon, pastor, asked the organizers – Jeanne Hindman, Jeannie Forker and Michelle Brady – if they thought about opening up the library to a wider audience. He suggested reaching out to the other three Sioux City parishes.
 
“We didn’t have a good enough collection,” Forker said. “We had to get it complete. We weren’t ready yet.”
 
With additional volumes, furniture and artwork in the space, they are ready now. Last month, Allison Liska, parish life director, shared a bulletin announcement and digital graphics with the Sioux City parishes with an invitation to visit and use the library.
 
“Holy Cross Parish warmly welcomes parishioners from Epiphany (Cathedral Parish), Mater Dei and Sacred Heart to explore our new, brand-new library at the Blessed Sacrament Spiritual Center (3012 Jackson Street),” the announcement read.
 
Hindman said those not familiar with Blessed Sacrament’s campus can feel free to enter through the church doors to access the library, head towards the sanctuary and take the hallway to the right to enter the spiritual center. Library hours are Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Friday 8 a.m. to noon.
 
Jeanne Hindman in the library located on the Blessed Sacrament Church campus of Holy Cross Parish in Sioux City.“It’s not staffed and there’s a self-checkout,” she said, showing the wooden box with index cards for borrowers to include their name and phone number when checking out books. “The more checked out, the happier we are.” 

Blessed Sacrament Church is more or less centrally located in Sioux City, for convenience of parishioners from around the city.
 
“It’s a great place to spend an hour and read and pray,” Hindman said, noting the adjacent lounge area is brightly lit and has comfortable seating for library visitors to spend time if they wish.
 
Hindman said visitors often stop in Sunday mornings after the 8:30 a.m. Blessed Sacrament Mass.
 
“Families will come in for Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, kids go upstairs and the parents come here and read,” she said, adding that children also stop in to browse the children’s books. Some stay-at-home moms stop in with their young children on weekdays to enjoy the library and check out books.
 
In addition to relaxing in the reading room/lounge area, Brady pointed out that the Spiritual Center offers a coffee bar with coffee, tea or hot cocoa to sip while reading or browsing the volumes.
 
“Anyone who comes, help yourself,” she said of the coffee bar housed in the center’s kitchen, adding that they are excited to install new flooring in the kitchen next month.
 
The three women are excited to share the Catholic library with Sioux City and build community.
 
“We want people to make themselves at home, help yourself to a coffee. That’s what we’re about,” Hindman said. “We’ll build community right here.”
 
What’s available
The team is judicious about what books are shelved as the library features books from well-Jeannie Forker and Michelle Brady read in the lounge.known Catholic writers and publishers and most of the books are new. “We have books here not found elsewhere,” Forker stressed. “Not at the public library or bookstores.”
 
A large collection of children’s books is available and account for half of all checked books. Resources for older students are also available.
 
“We are excited to see kids go through,” Brady said. "We have lots of saints books for first Communion kids that come in.”
 
Students preparing for confirmation or those involved on OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation of Adults) will also find resources for their sacramental preparation. Brady pointed out that library visitors can be assured that books in the spiritual center follow Catholic theology.
 
Forker suggested those interested in coming to the church for adoration on Tuesdays between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. could come to the library afterwards for reading, meditation or prayer.
 
“We have a ton of books on prayer that actually are appropriate to use during adoration – Beginner’s Prayer book, the Manual of Eucharistic Adoration. So, if people want to learn, utilize these books in that way,” Hindman added.
 
Books are grouped by category on shelves and browsers can narrow down their search while at the library, There is a section of Spanish language books, Bibles and the Catechism, large-print books, books on vocations and more.
 
“We also have book sets for study groups,” Hindman said, referring to the over 70 sets available to be checked out to equip a small group with the books needed.
 
As there are multiple copies of each set, depending upon the size of the study group, all or most members may not have to purchase a book in order to participate.
 
“Honestly, with 2,000 books, I was figuring if you took one book a week, you can’t read them all in a lifetime. It’s more than anyone can read,” Hindman said.
 Thanks to an app, the organizers can scan in a book’s code once it comes in to the library and that book’s information and a short description becomes available online: https://holycrosssc.org/parish-library.
 
 “There’s quite a bit you can read on the website because it’s just all automatic,” Hindman said. “People can learn about it before they come in fi they’re looking for something in particular.”
 
Patrons can also submit requests for certain book titles by using the suggestion box in the library that the team can evaluate when making new purchases.
 
Books can be returned to the spiritual center library at Blessed Sacrament, or there is a drop off at St. Michael Church of Holy Cross Parish. That drop-off is outside of the chapel entrance.
 
Advent promotion
In an effort to encourage both Holy Cross parishioners and members of other Sioux City parishes, those checking out books through the Advent season with a completed library checkout card will be eligible for a drawing for new books. There will be drawings for adults and children.
 
“There’s one entry for every book they check out,” Hindman explained. “If someone checks out five children’s books, each of those counts as an entry.”
 
Winners will be able to select the book of their choice from a group of new books the trio selected for the promotion.
 
Supporting the library
Many of the library volumes were purchased by donors, while some supporters contributed cash towards the purchase. (Cash contributions can be made at the parish or online.)
 
There have also been donations of books by clergy including Bishop Emeritus Nickless, Father Carl Zoucha, Father Larry Burns and the Benedictine Sisters that serve Holy Cross Parish.
 
“We have donation baskets for books but because of space we’re more selective and we want Catholic publishers,” Hindman said. “And we have a list of guidelines available of what we will accept.”
 
Books need to be relevant to Catholicism, in good physical condition, are current and accurate. If the library has sufficient copies of a single book, the donation could be declined. (Full copies of the donation evaluation policy are available at the library.) 

The women are hopeful that their fellow Catholics across Sioux City will take advantage of the Catholic resource available at the parish library.
 
“Opening up the library does a couple of things,” Brady said. “It helps share the faith and strengthen the faith community with the different parishes.”
 
“It was a shame to have this building empty,” Hindman said. “And now look at it. It’s like life is getting in here.”
 
“Only God knows the good that can come about by reading one good Catholic book,” St. John Bosco quotation that stretches above bookshelves in the Holy Cross library.

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