As artist-turned-author Bruce Garrabrandt said, “Creativity doesn’t wait for the perfect moment”, and nor have staff at Moreton Bay Regional Council, Queensland.
Inspired by the overwhelming number of calls received during COVID-19 lockdowns, the clever staff in the galleries, libraries and museums team decided they had to reopen their facilities with a bang.
It lead to the creation of the ‘Been Missing You’ campaign which gave members an opportunity to fill out ‘Been Missing You’ postcards or snap a picture with a sign and use the hashtag #BeenMissingYouMBRL to share the love.
Mayor, Peter Flannery said during the April-June quarter digital library memberships surged by 2103, and demands for digital loans have increased at least 36 percent month-on-month since then.
“We’re seeing record digital numbers continue post COVID-19 lockdown despite our libraries only being fully closed between April 20 and May 16.
“It goes to show just how important that service is to locals, but also, what a great a job the libraries staff have done to make our digital platform just as good as the real thing.
“I know they have been inundated with positive feedback since launching the ‘Been Missing You’ campaign alongside the libraries reopening.”
But they aren’t the only recreational service that’s come back stronger after lockdown as Moreton Bay Region looks toward spring with optimism.
“We’ve continued our staggered reopening of Moreton Bay Region Galleries and Museums while offering virtual experiences, such as ‘Meet the Artwork’ online, which have been a major success.
“Soon we’ll be ready to open the exciting new $5.5 million Redcliffe Art Gallery, with a special exhibition of 96 year old artist Marc Clark’s life works.
“And just last month (July) we launched our revamped Healthy & Active Moreton free or low cost activity program for the rest of the year.”
