Library visitors can do more than check out books at this Oklahoma City church

Carla Hinton, Oklahoman
Updated ·3 min read
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Serina Freeman with the Almonte Library works in the temporary library space within Trinity Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City.
Serina Freeman with the Almonte Library works in the temporary library space within Trinity Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City.

A visitor will find plenty of Bibles at one south Oklahoma City house of worship, but the church may be filled with more than just the Good Book in the coming weeks.

The Metropolitan Library System has offered temporary library services at Trinity Lutheran Church throughout the summer because construction on the new $6.6 million Almonte Library is being completed nearby.

That temporary partnership between the church, 5701 S May, and the library system has been limited to Tuesday and Thursday each week, but services are about to expand to five days a week in September.

Angel Suhrstedt, Metropolitan Library System's communication director, said the library system and the church recently agreed to extend their collaboration into December because construction on the Almonte Library has met with unexpected delays.

The new Almonte Library is under construction in Oklahoma City.
The new Almonte Library is under construction in Oklahoma City.

What expanded services will be offered at the Almonte Library?

The Rev. Roger Bruns, Trinity Lutheran's senior pastor, said the summer partnership has gone well and he's looking forward to the expanded library services.

Currently, several Almonte Library staff members offer limited services in the church's multipurpose room/fellowship hall. Almonte Library staff have offered a weekly early childhood program and a weekly community gathering called "Spill the Beans," a popular library offering where people stop by for coffee, doughnuts and opportunities to talk with one another. Library staff also give out free arts and crafts kits for children and adults and help people retrieve requested books.

Pastor Roger Bruns is pictured with a rack of books in the temporary space for the Almonte Library inside Trinity Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City.
Pastor Roger Bruns is pictured with a rack of books in the temporary space for the Almonte Library inside Trinity Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City.

For the new expanded service, Bruns and Suhrstedt said there's a likelihood that more books on mobile shelves will be added to what is currently offered in the temporary space. Suhrstedt said the library is also looking into upgrading wifi reception at the church so that computers can be added for library staff and patrons' use.

Bruns said Trinity Lutheran liked the idea of partnering with the library system.

"We are doing it as a service to the community," he said. "As a church, we don't pay taxes. The thing we can do is try to give back to the community."

A sign outside Trinity Lutheran Church advertises the temporary location of the Almonte Library inside the church.
A sign outside Trinity Lutheran Church advertises the temporary location of the Almonte Library inside the church.

Bruns said the church partnered with the library system about 10 years ago when there wasn't space for book clubs to meet at the Almonte Library. He said library book club groups met at the church for a while and he thought it was beneficial because it filled the house of worship with community members at a time when the church didn't have many programs during the week.

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The minister said the church and library system hope to collaborate in other ways through December. One plan is to host a fall festival in October. Bruns said the library's presence at the church will be acknowledged and celebrated because the festival will have a literacy focus.

Temporary becomes permanent

The Almonte Library initially came into being as a temporary space when the Southern Oaks Library had to be closed for extensive remodeling.

In 2011, the library system opened a temporary Southern Oaks location in the Almonte area and library leaders quickly learned that plenty of library patrons lived near the temporary space and wanted library services. The temporary library space drew so many visitors that the library system decided on a long-term lease of storefront space for what became known as the Almonte Library.

Danielle Wright, at left, and Amy Upchurch with the Almonte Library, help visitors in the temporary space for the Almonte Library within Trinity Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City.
Danielle Wright, at left, and Amy Upchurch with the Almonte Library, help visitors in the temporary space for the Almonte Library within Trinity Lutheran Church in Oklahoma City.

The new library being constructed at 2727 SW 59 will encompass more than 20,000 square feet, nearly double the storefront location. The library was paid for through Oklahoma City's Better Streets, Safer City Bond Issue in 2017, according to the city of Oklahoma City.

In the meantime, Suhrstedt said library leaders are grateful that Bruns and his Trinity congregation opened their doors to Almonte library patrons.

"We're pretty embedded in our communities and it's really nice to see our neighbors step up and say, 'Hey, we'll help you out,'" she said. "Because I think we'd do the same thing."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Trinity Lutheran Church is temporarily housing the Almonte Library