mmg.com.au

The Echuca library is proving to be a hot-spot this month, with more than 10,000 visits recorded in the past three weeks.

Since re-opening on January 2, after a 12-day closure for the Christmas/New Year period, an average of 650 people a day have walked through its doors.

Campaspe Regional Library services manager Jenny Mustey said even though a ‘visit’ was measured by an electronic counter at the library’s entrance and did not neccesarily mean a long-term visitor, the library had been extremely busy.

‘‘It’s been a mad house,’’ she said.

‘‘We are so busy. It’s fantastic. School holiday programs are being well attended. We have two craft activities a week and we get anywhere between 30 and 40 children.

‘‘Many tourists also come in to keep cool and they end up using our facilities.’’

Although loan figures will not be known until the end of the month, the library has received 250 bookings to access wireless internet and the eight PCs have been booked out every day this month.

‘‘People are using it for social networking, games, emailing, applying for jobs, to make tourism bookings and find out what attractions there are here,’’ Ms Mustey said.

The Summer Reading Club is also proving popular, with about 400 children from around Campaspe Shire registered.

‘‘The program encourages children to read 10 books over the holidays,’’ Ms Mustey said.

‘‘They fill out a book log and once they’ve read 10 books, they can enter our competition and be in with a chance to win some great prizes.’’

The competition closes today, with winners announced on Wednesday, January 30.

With school starting back next week, the library will resume its popular online support service, Your Tutor.

The service, which has been running for the past six years, provides tutoring for grade 4 to 12 students on any topic.

‘‘It’s great for kids who can’t get to a library and allows them to have a chat session with a tutor and upload essays,’’ Ms Mustey said.

It is available at www.yourtutor.com.au, or via a link on the library website, from 4pm to 8pm.

Story-time and rhyme-time sessions and Sunday book chats will start in February.

A free feng shui workshop, hosted by feng shui consultant Sally Fischmann, will be held at the library today from 6pm to 7pm.

Bookings are essential.