Dear Fairfax County Community,

Welcome to our fall issue! First, I want to congratulate our summer reading finishers and participants. We were thrilled to see so many readers visit our branches this summer and hope to see people continue their love of reading this fall.

As you probably know, our community and regional branches are operating on a modified schedule as of Aug. 14. The modified schedule for our regional branches is Monday and Tuesday, 1 to 9 p.m. and Wednesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Our community branches will be open Mondays from 1 to 9 p.m. and Tuesday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ongoing staff recruitment challenges, like those experienced by many industries, necessitated this modification to our hours. We chose this schedule because it requires only one shift of staff per day so we can maintain all open days at our branches.

Despite these challenges, we are excited for many new developments this fall. Beginning Labor Day weekend, library guests can check out a pair of binoculars from our Library of Things to take bird-watching or hiking.

We’re welcoming the League of Women Voters to all our branches Tuesday, Sept. 20 for National Voter Registration Day. If you have questions or need to register to vote, stop by!

After more than two years of construction, our Lorton branch is re-opening in a beautiful new facility co-located with other community resources to create an easy one-stop-shop for residents.

We also wish a happy 50th birthday to our Access Services and Kings Park branches!

Later in the season, we have two big events: On Saturday, Nov. 5, we’ll be celebrating Indie Author Day with events featuring local authors at several branches. We’ve also invited New York Times #1 Best Seller Ibram X. Kendi to speak virtually in early December. Stay tuned for details!

Jessica A. Hudson
Director
Fairfax County Public Library