KEYSER, W.Va. — The Mineral County library system and BB&T; bank have joined together to offer area residents a wide range of services in how to help people in tough economic times.

Connie Sutton, library director in Keyser, said Friday the bank has purchased a collection of books that offer tips on budgeting, cooking with a frugal budget and job hunting. Other subjects include resume-building and books on how to raise financially fit children. For kids, there are Berenstain Bears books which encourage youngsters how to save money.

The displays and information will be available beginning Tuesday at library branches in Keyser, Burlington, Fort Ashby and Piedmont, Sutton said. The displays are funded by the BB&T; Lighthouse Project.

“We’re also doing resumes for people,” Sutton said. “Just book an appointment.”

Sutton said library staff also will assist patrons on how to navigate online job sites such as Monster.com and local employers’ sites, too.

The local initiative is part of a regional “humanitarian” effort by BB&T; bank, which invested $3 million to the project in eastern seaboard communities, Sutton said.

“They wanted to do something that was more than a one-shot deal,” she said.

Mary Burns, assistant to local BB&T; senior vice president and city executive Richard Hamblin, said the bank received $1,200 through the Lighthouse Project to purchase WinWay Resume Deluxe software and books related to resume-making and personal finance.

Hamblin applied for the funds to help offset a rising unemployment rate in Mineral County, which hit 8.7 percent in July. The application was submitted in May, at a time when the unemployment rate was 7.3 percent.

Library patrons will be helped with creating resumes and can print out up to 10 copies and receive a free disc with an electronic version, Burns said.

For more information, log on to the library system Web site at www.keyser.lib.wv.us or call the library at (304) 788-3222.

Contact Kevin Spradlin at kspradlin@times-news.com.