Looking for a chill way to help out your local library and cool off from the humid streak hitting town? The Two Harbors Public Library is looking for volunteers to help count visitors this next week, from July 13-17. Volunteers work in hour-long shifts, though you can sign up for multiple hour-long slots if wanted. The library has made it easy to sign up either in person at the library itself, through email, by calling, or online on their website at www.twoharborspubliclibrary.com.
Libraries throughout Minnesota do “counts” on library visits, program attendance, and book traffic, among several other metrics, to learn how their facilities can best serve the public. Although larger libraries have automated systems to track visitor count, smaller public libraries such as Two Harbors rely on volunteers to do a hand count. This count, done four times a year, gives a sample of the traffic using the library. With the information about visitor traffic, the state as well as the library can plan accordingly for the future. As an example, previous counts have shown that Wednesday morning is an especially popular time for people to come to the library, making it perhaps a better option for when to host future events. “We’re really appreciative of our volunteers,” Two Harbors Library Director Madeline Jarvis commented when asked about Counting Week. “Without them we would not be able to do nearly as much as we do.”
Aside from Counting Week, Two Harbors Public Library gets help from volunteers with shelving books and other media, wiping down board books and Legos, dusting, and other simple but important tasks to support the librarians’ work. In 2025, the library had the aid of 93 volunteers who put in a grand total of 1,320 hours, roughly equivalent to 25 hours a week on average. The cumulative effect of these hours has resulted in a library that feels well loved, clean, and always prepared for helping the public.
“We are so lucky in the North Shore area to have great community libraries in Silver Bay, Two Harbors, and Grand Marais,” Jarvis said. “If you can’t find a book at one branch, let a staff member know, and we’ll connect you to a resource,” essentially combining the resources of all North Shore libraries into one. She emphasized that, most importantly, “I encourage everyone to have fun reading,” and that the library would do all it could to help connect people to books. Jarvis’s enthusiasm for the system, its services, and its volunteers is exactly what one would hope for from such a valuable resource as their local library.
Along with volunteering and checking out their collection, the Two Harbors Public Library is always running events for visitors, and Jarvis was kept busy with children participating in an ongoing scavenger hunt taking place all within the library itself.
With over 35,000 visits in the past year, Two Harbors Public Library is going strong, but we should never take that strength for granted. It takes a lot of hands to keep such a facility going.
Sign-ups for this Counting Week are open through the end of this week, but even if missed there are always more chances to help out at this important local fixture in the future.
