September is "Library Card Sign-Up Month" at the Lincoln County Library. Pictured are: (seated, l-r) Keats Thackston, technology specialist; Alayna Davis, holding her new library card; Dianne Poteat, genealogy librarian; (standing) Marie Smalley, library volunteer; and Shirley Dawkins, library director. September is "Library Card Sign- Up Month" throughout the East Central Georgia Library System.

"We are reminding parents that a library card is the most important school supply of all," said Shirley Dawkins, director of the Lincoln County Library. "Studies show that children, who are read to in the home and who use the library, perform better in school and are more likely to continue to use the library as a source of lifetime learning.

"The public library is literally a goldmine of books, magazines, videos, and CDs as well as computer and Internet resources."

The director went on to say that in Georgia, one library card gives an individual access to the collections of 290 libraries across the state.

The Georgia Library Public Information Network for Electronic Services or PINES is the public library automation and lending network that creates a statewide "borderless library" which provides equal access to information for all Georgians. Those with a PINES library card have access to materials beyond what is available on their local shelves and enjoy the benefits of a shared collection of 8.5 million books and materials that can be delivered to their home libraries at no charge to the library user.

Dawkins indicated that the East Central Georgia Library System is the largest system in the state participating in PINES.

Moreover, in keeping with the technological age, there are currently over 5,000 public access computer work stations available at Georgia public libraries. An average of 190,000 individuals use public access computers at Georgia public libraries each week, an annual total of over 10 million users.

According to Director Dawkins, "PINES cards are free to all Georgia residents, with proof of their current address such as a driver's license or a recent utility bill. Persons, who live outside of Georgia but have proof that they attend school, own property or are employed in the state, may also have a card at no charge. Others must pay an annual fee of $25."

Library cards are available for children of all ages. However, children under the age of 18 must have a parent's signature to receive a PINES card.

Dawkins indicated that with a PINES card, it would be possible for a Lincoln County Library patron to:

.. Learn how to surf the Web, using the Cullars-McCrimmon Computer Lab. The lab was funded by John Cullars McCrimmon in memory of his parents, George Robert McCrimmon and Kathleen Cullars McCrimmon.

.. Check out videos, DVDs, and books on tape at no charge.

.. Learn more about the history of Lincoln County and the City of Lincolnton.

.. Read a newspaper from another country.

.. View an art exhibit, courtesy of the Morris Museum of Art in Augusta.

.. Make photocopies and fax documents.

.. Pick up voter registration information and/or tax forms. In addition, the staff provides assistance in using the Internet to procure those forms that are not available at the library.

.. Reserve the latest murder mystery.

.. Use the library's resources to start a small business.

.. Scan the system's card catalogue from home.

.. Play Scrabble on designated Sunday afternoons.

.. Enroll your child in the annual "Summer Reading Program."

.. Enjoy the library's large collection of paperback books as well as its sizable Christian fiction section.

.. Check out the weather in Paris, Anchorage, Moscow or Tignall.

.. Obtain a book from the inter-library loan system.