Services at the Detroit Public Library

I visited the Detroit Public Library to learn about services and programs the library system offers for older adults and people with disabilities. I learned that, as my previous perusal of their website indicated, most such services are offered through the Frederick Douglass Branch for Specialized Services, which also houses the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped.

The Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped provides audio, large print books, and other formats to patrons who have difficulty using traditional print media. The librarian there offers programs such as book clubs, programs about the arts, and a sensory garden program that invites patrons to experience plant life through their other senses such as touch and smell.

I also spoke with the librarian in charge of the Library on Wheels, the bookmobile service also headquartered at the Douglass branch. The bookmobile delivers books and other media to senior living apartments and personal residences for patrons who might have difficulty going to the library on their own. They also sometimes set up at rec centers, community organizations and events promoting literacy. For these events, they include a selection of various reading levels to better serve patrons with cognitive disabilities.

Aside from the special services offered through the Douglass branch, free technology courses offered by the Technology, Literacy and Career (TLC) Center at the main branch are, though not targeted toward a specific age group, well attended by older adults. Similar technology courses are offered at other branches in the library system as well.