Lake Forest Library hired Emily (Emmy) Neal as the new teen librarian responsible for increasing services and programs for young adults in grades 5–12. Neal began working part-time at the library last fall as she concurrently completed her K–12 teaching certification, and came onboard full-time in December 2018.

Small children and parents packed an activity room at Lake Forest Library for a Noon Year's Eve event, counting down to noon on Dec. 31.

Small children played games, danced, crafted party hats and crushed over 100 feet of bubble wrap to simulate popping corks as the magic hour arrived.

Children’s Librarian Mary Webber said the fourth year of the event was one of the largest to date.

"It was very successful. It was a rainy day and we had a lot of people come and I think everybody had a good time," she said. "When the balloons dropped and the bubble wrap (was stomped) it got a little chaotic, but it was all fun."

We love giving patrons what they ask for at Lake Forest Library, and 2018 ushered in many positive changes, including:

• Staying open an extra hour on Fridays, so you have more time to grab books and movies for the weekend.
• Launching an improved catalog system and a new website with an online calendar and registration system, so you can plan what events to attend.
• Redesigning the newsletter.
• Extending lending periods for many materials up to three weeks and introducing automatic renewals.
• Creating the Most Wanted collection with multiple copies of popular titles so that you can get them sooner.
• Added Kanopy movies and Mango Languages to our free digital resources.

These changes were the result of feedback from you, our patrons and Lake Forest residents. Thank you for participating in our 2017 community survey, filling out comment cards, and sharing ideas with our staff.

The Spirit of 67 Foundation is a not-for-profit, parent-run volunteer organization that raises funds and acquires resources to enrich and enhance the educational and cultural experiences of students, faculty, parents, and staff of Lake Forest School District 67.

Lake Forest Library donated a personalized storytime to this year's Thanks 4 Giving Appreciation Luncheon auction held on October 19, 2018.

One of the most iconic landmarks of Lake Forest is its library building, and the circular dome that sits atop the structure. The dome has now become a symbol for the library’s assessment of building preservation efforts and functional relevancy for future use, as two studies were approved by the library board for architectural service to ascertain options on restoration of the dome and the building itself.