Giving To A Community That Gives Back
Thank you to everyone who participated in Summer at Your Library. It was one of our best summers yet and I enjoyed seeing people of all ages learning and engaging through themed programming, enjoying entertaining summer presenters and, of course, participating in summer reading. OCLS brings real value to the residents of Orange County and I encourage you to share what you love about the library with your friends and neighbors.
This month, we are celebrating library volunteers, and you can read about adults and teens giving back to the library on pages 18–21 of the August 2026 issue of Books & Beyond as well as the OCLS Blog. We have a variety of volunteer opportunities available at locations across the county. Middle and high school students can earn community service hours by participating in monthly online advisory board meetings and hands-on activities at branches including contributing to teen zines. Adults can join the Friends of the Orange County Library System, a non-profit, independent volunteer and advocacy organization that helps us improve the quality and scope of our services. Adult volunteers help in a variety of ways – giving building tours and helping in the bookstore at Orlando Public Library, sharing information about library programs at community events and prepping crafts and shelving books at branches. You can learn more about the Friends at friends.ocls.org or stop by your local branch.
We have several great events coming up. Learn about sustainability initiatives in your community, participate in gardening workshops and talk with a variety of environmentally conscious organizations at GreenFest on August 21 at South Creek Branch. Our popular Music in the Library series continues with Friday and Saturday Jazz at Fairview Shores, Chickasaw and Southwest branches this month. And you can celebrate the 25th anniversary of our West Oaks Branch and Genealogy Center August 25–29 with themed activities, community spirit and lots of library fun for everyone.
Orange County is fortunate to have a strong library system that provides robust resources for the community including access to neighborhood meeting spaces, children’s storytimes, homework help, computers and internet access, books, e-books, audiobooks, cultural programming and services that support small businesses, job seekers and families.
We provide safe after-school spaces for students, free places for seniors to gather, rooms for homeowner’s associations and civic groups to meet, resources for entrepreneurs and nonprofits, and training opportunities for people seeking new skills. In Orange County and across Florida, libraries serve to help residents learn, work, connect and participate in civic life. I hope you will make time this month to visit one of our 15 locations and experience or explore something new.
