The Ontario Community Library has a collection of over 100,000 books and other media for patron use. Currently there are two Story Times available --Tuesday at 4:00 pm and Thursday at 11:00 am. Craft hours are held bi-weekly for all ages. Regularly scheduled public programs are held each month. In 1906, a small group of Ontario women organized the Work and Win Club and in November of its first yea
r the club founded a subscription library. Members of the group contributed $75 for books and Mr. Lou Adam donated the use of a small building for one year; this began the Library system in Ontario, Oregon. In 2012, the Library has increased to 40 open hours with 10 employees, 3 of which are full time. It has a functioning website and with the support of the Libraries of Eastern Oregon Library Consortium (LEO) and the Oregon State Library opened up the availability of numerous patron access links for online use. Malheur County is also still supplying funding to the bookmobile to ensure library access to all of Malheur County year round. During 2013 and 2014 the Library increased it’s open hours to 47 and a new employee joined the ranks, making a total of 11 employees, with 4 at full time. The website is flourishing and the email event letter and page has given the Library more opportunity to communicate and interact with the community digitally. The Libraries of Eastern Oregon Library Consortium (LEO) and the Oregon State Library have continued to support the library by helping to provide numerous patron access links for online use of catalogs, patron accounts, informational links and eBooks. Malheur County continues to supply funding to the bookmobile to ensure library access to all of Malheur County year round. From 2015 to 2017, the library has continued to grow its book collection and increase programming for patrons. The interior of the building has been painted, new carpet installed and upgraded computer tables brought in to make using the computers more comfortable for patrons. Over the last two years, 8 new computers have been added for patron use along with monthly classes on basic computer and internet use. The Bookmobile has a total of 20 different stops it makes periodically through out the year averaging 15 stops a month. The library staff and board strive daily to make the library a vibrant and safe place for the community to use and enjoy. Between 2017 and 2020, improvements include two AWE Learning Computers for the children's section and three Card Catalog tablets. Which are located in the Children's section, Adult Non Fiction and near the Audio Books. Ontario Community Library's mission and philosophy is to enrich lives by fostering diverse opportunities for all people to read, learn and connect. We hope to continue serving the community for many years to come.
