​After nearly three decades, the Principal Librarian at City of Cape Town’s Wynberg Library will retire at the end of May and dance to a different tune.

A love of reading and music inspired Luke Townsend to become a librarian and it’s a job he is loath to leave behind.

 

 

‘The CD and LP collection is second to none. In fact, Wynberg Library appears to be the only library in South Africa with an intact LP record collection. The DVD collection is still in its infancy but has many high quality feature movies and documentaries,’ Mr Townsend explains.

 

Other highlights of his time at Wynberg Library include the proactive maintenance project in 2014 which saw the interior of the library completely rearranged the building made disabled-friendly.

 

Mr Townsend says that although people are reading less, Wynberg Library has 8 900 patrons according to membership statistics.

 

 

‘Most people do not read printed materials anymore and are moving more and more towards digital media such as the internet, which means their reading habits are haphazard and they are less likely to develop crucial analytical skills. Few people these days have the attention span necessary in order to cope with reading an entire book,’ he says.

 

Wynberg Library is working hard to change this. The children’s librarians at Wynberg Library have many ongoing programmes including vibrant pram jams and pyjama jams that are becoming increasingly popular.

 

‘One of the most effective ways of encouraging children to read is to expose them to audio books by high quality readers. This can instil a love of language and develop analytical understanding. The word stimulates the imagination. We should also encourage children to listen to music for itself and not always expect music to accompany some kind of image,’ Mr Townsend says.

 

 

The City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Community Services and Special Projects, Alderman Belinda Walker, commended Mr Townsend for his years of service.

 

‘Librarians have become an integral part of our communities. They are more than just the people who check out books and have helped to turn our libraries into safe, educational spaces and recreational hubs.

 

‘While we are sad to see him go, we commend Mr Townsend for his dedication and wish him well on this new journey,’ said Alderman Walker.