A comprehensive approach to services for patrons with low vision is provided by the Special Services department which includes a variety of low vision materials and equipment which can be loaned to the patron.
A low vision magnifying reader is located on the first floor between the
adult fiction and
newspaper areas. No reservation is required. Ask for assistance at the
information desk.
There are six electronic magnifiers available for 4-week
checkout (limited to Library district residents). For information, call
847-438-3433, extension 140, 212, or 219.
MAGic Screen Magnification Software is available on the computer located on the second floor in study room number 9.
JAWS Screen reading software for low-vision patrons is also available on the computer located on the second floor, study room number 9.
WYNN word processing software is also available on this computer . This software is very useful for those with learning disabilities as well as the visually-challenged patron. Study room 9 also has an adjustable height computer table for the convenience of our wheelchair patrons. To reserve study room number 9 and for login assistance, contact the Adult Reference Desk.
CRIS Radios provided by the Chicagoland Radio Information Service are available for one-month checkout. This service provides 24-hour reading of local, national, financial, and sports news. Please call Special Services staff at 847-438-3433, extensions 140, 212, or 219 if you would like use of this service.
“Talking Books” or Books for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (BPH) is a free federal recorded book program available to the blind, visually impaired, physically handicapped or learning disabled patron. A BPH tape recorder is supplied to each certified user and tapes of client-selected favorites are mailed to and returned from the client’s front door. The Special Services Department has application forms available and is also able to certify applications. We are also able to assist patrons with a defective BPH machine to make returns and obtain a replacement if necessary. The regional site for this area is located in Geneva, IL (insert link for Voices of Vision Talking Books). Please call Special Services staff if you are interested in this service for additional information.
Hand-held magnifiers are available at most public desks for in-library use. Individual plastic page magnifiers are also available.
An Adapt-a-Lap device is available for patrons who have difficulty holding a book or other mobility problems. This device will hold the book, has a magnetic line-finder arm which allows patrons to follow text line by line. It can be utilized while seated in a chair or lying in a bed. Adapt-a-Lap may be borrowed by Library district patrons for a 4-week period.
A small, but growing, selection of DVS videos are located on the end caps of the shelves in the large print collection. These feature audio descriptions of the movie for those with limited or low vision.
Our ever-expanding collection of over 6200 items in large print fiction and non-fiction is located on the first floor next to the Circulation desk. The collection also includes biographies, recent bestsellers and some classics. Large print titles not owned by the Ela Area Public Library may be available through interlibrary loan.
The Library has an extensive selection of audio books, fiction, nonfiction, and biographies, available in both audio cassette or CD formats.
There are two wheelchairs available for in-library use. Inquire at the Information Desk.
Our Outreach Coordinator and her dedicated volunteers provide this valuable service for patrons who are homebound or have temporary illnesses or conditions which make visiting the Library impossible. Patrons may request specific items or materials—musical CDs, DVDs, books on tape etc.—for weekly delivery. Please call Special Services staff if you require this service.
These are on-site collections of materials available for checkout and are located at the Ela Township Senior Center ( in the Foglia YMCA), Lexington Health Care facility located on Rand Road, and Midlothian Manor located on Lakeview Drive. The collections contain popular best sellers as well as audio books, and non-fiction materials. These collections are rotated approximately every six weeks .
Monthly site visits are also part of outreach services.. Library materials are brought to the following sites for the convenience of the patrons—Queen of Peace, Midlothian Manor, the Keenagers group of St. Francis church, and to the Senior Group at the Ela Township Senior Center. Materials are checked out until the date of the group’s next meeting or returned to the Library anytime prior.
A monthly senior book discussion group meets at the Library to discuss books the group has chosen. Copies of these books are available in large print format as well as on CD and/or tape and are available for checkout at the Readers Services desk at the Library. Please call staff for further details.
A kiosk is also maintained near the large print collection featuring topics of interest as well as services available to the senior patron.
A small selection of large print periodicals and magazines of special interest to older adults (Johns Hopkins Health Newsletters, Kiplinger’s, Readers Digest, AARP, and various other retirement publications) are available in the magazine section of the Library and are located in the section immediately before the alphabetized regular print periodicals on the first floor.
A collection of various world language materials (Polish, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, and Hindi) including fiction, nonfiction, and newspapers, is located on the second floor of the Library to the left of the main staircase directly behind the computers
Additionally, Spanish language computer classes are held at various times throughout the year, and a Conversation Café affording an opportunity for ESL students and others for whom English is a second language to utilize their English are held twice a year with both morning and evening sessions available.
The Library also provides ESL classes which are taught during the school year on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Again morning or evening sessions are available. (insert link to ESL brochure)
“ESL Express” is a mobile collection of English language learning materials which includes tapes, CDs, workbooks, textbooks, and Easy English News. It is located on the second floor adjacent to the adult World Language Collection.
Listening amplification devices are available on the first floor in Meeting Rooms A & B. the Children’s Program Room and the Children’s Computer Lab, and on the second floor in the computer lab.
Illinois Relay Service is a free service, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and is easily accessed from any phone within the state by simply dialing 7-1-1. All calls are received by a trained communications assistant who acts as a facilitator/interpreter between those who are deaf, deaf and blind, hard of hearing or speech impaired and those with normal hearing and speech. All calls are confidential and no record is retained of any conversations.