Decatur’s Central Baptist to host North Alabama library conference

Decatur’s Central Baptist to host North Alabama library conference

Think a library conference is only for librarians? Think again.

The North Alabama Conference for Church Librarians, scheduled for Nov. 4 at Central Baptist Church, Decatur, certainly will cover topics such as starting and maintaining a church library, cataloging a collection and taking care of old books.

But this year’s conference will offer so much more, said Eva Nell Hunter, library team leader at Central Baptist.

“We are now the largest church library conference in the Southern Baptist Convention,” she said, noting that conference leaders include national and state experts including six national library specialists representing LifeWay Christian Resources.

Variety of sessions

Sessions at this year’s conference, whose theme is “Building Blocks for Church Library Ministry,” will include every aspect of church library work, as well as sessions for pastors and church staff members, including: “Collecting, preserving and promoting church history,” led by Lonette Berg, executive director of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission; “Disciple making for pastors and church staff members,” led by David Francis, director of Sunday School at LifeWay; “Disciple making for church librarians,” led by Morlee Maynard, LifeWay church library ministry specialist; and other sessions on topics like upcycling, creative promotions and reading club ideas. Maynard and Francis also will facilitate a roundtable discussion for pastors and librarians, as well as provide luncheon entertainment.

Hunter said topics covered at the conference will be helpful for church librarians, as well as those who assist with tutoring or mentoring, English as a second language classes and other ministries that utilize online and print materials.

Lunch will be provided for participants. There is no cost to attend the conference, but reservations by Nov. 1 are appreciated, Hunter said. “Your only expense is transportation,” Hunter said.

The conference will begin with registration at 8 a.m. The first general session begins at 8:30. The conference will close at 3:30 p.m. Participants who pre-register will receive a gift bag and all participants will be eligible for door prizes given throughout the day. A LifeWay bookstore will be available.

To register, contact Hunter in one of the following ways: by telephone, 256-353-5912 (church) or 256-303-7739 (cell); email, enhunter1946@gmail.com or library@cbcdecatur.org; or mail, Central Baptist Church, 2801 Highway 31 S, Decatur, AL 35603. Participants should provide their name, address, telephone number, email address (optional), church and association.

Complete schedule

A complete schedule for the conference including course descriptions is available at the Central Baptist Church library website, http://cbcd.booksys.net (click on “Display” then follow conference links). (TAB)