Case Library Teams Up With Businesses for "Show Your Card" Promotion

From a free music lesson at Orange Music Studio to a free home warranty from , an Orange library card can save money this month and provide an excuse to take advantage of local business.

The "Show Your Card" promotion -- tagline: "Saving isn't hard when you have a library card!" -- is the brainchild of director Meryl Farber and reference head Rebecca Harlow. Patrons who show their library cards at select local businesses will receive a variety of discounts. The full list of participating businesses is available through the library's website.

"Your library card will save you money," said Farber. "We're still in a recession and we know we have great materials here. We want our patrons to sign up for a library card, or replace it, or renew it -- just use your library card. And by supporting businesses, you're supporting us as well."

The most recent figures (from 2011) show around 6,000 Orange residents have a library card, Farber says -- a good number, but one that doesn't reflect patrons who may have lost their library cards or let them expire. One goal of the campaign, she says, is to encourage those residents to rediscover benefits of having a card. In conjunction with "Show Your Card," the library will be offering amnesty on replacement or renewal fees.

"So many people think a library card is just books," says Harlow. "There's so much more -- belonging to the library means you can attend free events and programs, get materials for job searching, get downloadable e-books and audiobooks, plus lots of different valuable online services exclusive to Case Library."

Farber and Harlow have spent months planning the program.

"It's been a lot of work," said Harlow. "There was a lot of customizing to this -- a lot of personal contact with each business. A lot of phone calls, a lot of driving around. It's very important to us every step of the way these businesses are involved in and happy with the process."

Orange's business owners say they're looking forward to participating in the promotion. Michael Papa of says he sees the connection that could benefit both his store and the library.

"The library is a very central part of our community, and being tied into a central part of our community, we like to be hand in hand with them," says Papa. "And a lot of people that are into music are also into books -- they're into that, sit back and read, sit back and listen type of thing. So we are a good marriage together."

The "Show Your Card" promotion will run to September 30.