A Message From the Director
Hi everyone, 
 
W e hope you are in good health, staying safe and getting outside to enjoy some fresh air. 
 
When we closed our offices on March 17, who would have imagined we’d still be home? Although our office is closed and our face-to-face events are cancelled until further notice, we are accessible via email and voicemail. I commend the CDLC staff and thank them for all that they are doing to continue to provide quality services. As a membership organization our mission is to serve you, and albeit remotely, we are doing all that we can to support you and to stay connected!
 
Some ways we are doing this: 
 



  • Providing members access to Skillshare, Treehouse, and Tech-Talk

  • Training and supporting members who are adding digital collections to New York Heritage

  • Processing physical collections via cataloging and electronic collections via interlibrary loan

  • Participating in calls and fielding inquiries for the Ask the Lawyer service

  • Supporting services we offer through Empire State Library Network (ESLN), including Empire Library Delivery, New York Heritage, NYS Historic Newspapers, Ask the Lawyer and Ask Us 24/7

  • Using Slack to share information about activities and projects 

  • Taking advantage of remote learning for our own professional development

  • Having biweekly staff meetings to share news and some laughs, and just to “see” each other!

We will continue to update our website, host member forums, share tools and resources with you, and support you however we can to get through this. What can we do for you? Please don’t hesitate to reach out and share your thoughts and ideas with me . We wish everyone the best and can’t wait to see you again!
Helpful Resource: The Ask the Lawyer service has responded to many questions related to COVID-19 .
Connections
Our Annual Meeting scheduled for May has been cancelled. CDLC Board elections typically take place at the meeting. This year directors at member libraries will receive an electronic ballot in May. Additional information will be shared later this month. 

It’s been fun to connect with many of you on the member forums we host Tuesdays and Thursdays. Our 10:00 Tuesday forums are topical while Thursdays at 1:00 are for general discussion. We’ve enjoyed chatting with members on all sorts of topics! Forums are not recorded, but we do share notes and resources from forums on our web site. Join us as you can! 

You can also connect with CDLC members on cdlc-l. A nyone who is subscribed ( cdlc-l@cdlc.org ) can post messages, whether it’s to share event announcements, share how your library operations have been impacted, or to simply connect with your peers. 
Collections
Because libraries are closed, the statewide Empire Library Delivery service has been halted until further notice. We will be working with the courier when the service begins again to get library items back to their home libraries and will be providing recommendations for material handling guidelines.

Physical collections may not be available, but members have been adding to their digital collections on New York Heritage. For example, the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Public Library has added the Town of Halfmoon Historian's Collection and the Albany Institute of History and Art has been growing their digital collection . Visit our New York Heritage LibGuide for tips and resources on how to build your digital collection. 
 
You might also be interested in taking a look at NYS Historic Newspapers, whether it’s for genealogy research or to browse regional, historic newspapers. If you are not familiar with this free resource provided by the Empire State Library Network (ESLN), this Online Chat and Website Tour is a good place to begin.
Member News
In addition to the digital collections in New York Heritage, some members have online exhibits you might enjoy:

The Irish American Heritage Museum in Albany has several virtual exhibits , the Albany County Historical Association’ s online photos are here, and our newest member, the Historical Society of the Town of Chester , has historic photos of Chester, in Warren County. 

Two of our historical societies are asking for your assistance as they document the COVID-19 pandemic:

If you live in Rensselaer County, the Hart Cluett Museum wants to hear how COVID-19 has impacted you. Fill out their form here.  

The Schenectady County Historical Society is building an archive of COVID-19 stories and is interested in hearing from Schenectady County residents. Read more here .  
Your comments and suggestions are always welcome.

We wish you all the best and hope to see you again soon.

Kind Regards,