Erika Borcherding describes her 8-year-old twins as miracles.

Austin and Charlie were weeks premature. Their births were followed by long stints in a hospital. Charlie has undergone more than 20 medical procedures, including three heart surgeries.

Both brothers struggle with developmental and behavior disorders that can be set off by loud noises, crowds and other stimuli.

The family turns to the Grimes Public Library to help the boys build relationships and social skills, their mom said. They visit often enough that the staff knows them by name.

But the library can be a disruptive environment for children with sensory sensitivities. Echoes can be distracting. Loud noises can be, too. Spontaneous outbursts are not uncommon.

“You just don’t know how they’re going to react,” Borcherding said.

Sunday afternoon, Charlie sat on the library carpet near a docile therapy dog, reading a book. Austin played a game on a tablet nearby.

The Grimes library opened an hour early to offer a "quiet time" for those with autism and other sensory sensitivities. It was the first event in a series developed by nine metro libraries. Twice a month, the libraries will offer special browsing hours.

The "Sensory Spaces" program is the latest in a growing number of efforts local libraries are making to become more welcoming to people with spectrum disorders:

Forest Avenue Library opened a calming room a year ago.

East Side Library began opening one hour early one day a month to reduce distractions for people with sensory needs.

Altoona Public Library recently received a $20,000 Facebook grant to create a designated sensory room for children.

Local librarians said it's a work in progress.

"We’re really trying to break that stigma and let parents and caregivers know that at these times — really anytime — but particularly at these times, we really want you to come," said Erica Eis, youth services librarian for Des Moines Public Library's Forest Avenue branch.

Borcherding said there are many families in Grimes and elsewhere in the metro who will benefit from programs like this.

"We're just a tiny little speck," she said. "There are other families out there that have other obstacles."

For people with sensory needs, libraries can be overwhelming

Though often viewed as quiet places, libraries can be loud with distractions for people with autism and other sensitivities.

Buzzing fluorescent lights, humming computers, wide-open spaces and chatting patrons can make the environment overstimulating. Some parents hesitate to bring children with light and noise sensitivities to a library because they worry about how people will react if a child has an outburst.

That's something Manal Falah of Ames said she has experienced with her 9-year-old son with autism.

"Each kid on the autism spectrum is different," Falah said. "It's sometimes the light, sometimes the crowds and the noise, and even sometimes, for some kids, the bright colors in the kids' section."

Autism affects approximately 1 in 59 children, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The developmental disorder can cause a range of social and behavioral challenges.

Falah said she and her son have been working with Balance Autism, an Altoona-based service organization, to get him accustomed to a library environment.

Evelyn Horton, vice president of children’s services at Balance Autism, said more libraries have started approaching the nonprofit for training.

“The Des Moines metro has really been moving past awareness and moving into acceptance," she said. "It's a very healthy move in the right direction."

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Waukee Public Library Director Keri Weston-Stoll spearheaded the Sensory Spaces project after seeing how libraries in some locations are reaching out to people with autism. She emailed librarians throughout the Des Moines metro, and they quickly joined in.

Twice a month, one of the nine libraries will dedicate an hour to reducing environmental distractions and offering special programming.

"Mostly it’s just knowing that during that designated times, people are going to be understanding of people who might need some different assistance in the library," she said.

Activities will change from library to library.

On Sunday, in Grimes, librarians set up a quiet room with a weighted blanket, noise-canceling headphones and fidget toys. An activity room featured therapy dogs, a balance beam and water beads. Patrons also had access to gloves and other resources.

'We’d love to do more'

Forest Avenue Library's calming room has dimmed lighting and sensory-friendly toys.

“It’s top of mind for us,” said Tim Paluch, the Des Moines Public Library's supervisor of community engagement. “We’d love to do more.”

Paluch said the Des Moines branches take on these projects on their own. At Forest Avenue, branch supervisor Nikki Hayter said staff installed the room after realizing they weren't doing as much as they could to help youth with autism and other needs.

"We have been, for lack of better words, exclusionary in a variety of ways," she said. "Now there's this concerted effort to retrofit our spaces and make them more accessible to everyone."

Director Kim Kietzman said Altoona Public Library will repurpose a room as a designated sensory space. It plans to purchase a sensory-friendly projector system with the money it received from Facebook that will immerse children in calming images.

Kietzman said the library wants to purchase digital tablets with apps that cater to children on the autism spectrum, along with earplugs, toys, gloves and some videos for families.

“A lot of research and a lot of affordable ways to help these families is at our fingertips right now,” Kietzman said. “As the rate of diagnosis goes up and the rate of understanding goes up, it makes it easier to understand what we need to do to make us more welcoming and accessible.”

She said she hopes that improvements for patrons with autism will lead libraries to recognize ways they can better accommodate patrons who have other special needs and sensitivities.

Sensory Spaces schedule

May 18: Des Moines East Side branch, 2559 Hubbell Ave., 9 to 10 a.m.

June 8: Waukee Public Library, 950 Warrior Lane, 4 to 5 p.m.

June 29: Altoona Public Library, 700 Eighth St. S.W., 8 to 9 a.m.

July 6: West Des Moines Public Library, 4000 Mills Civic Parkway, 9 to 10 a.m.

July 21: Johnston Public Library, 6700 Merle Hay Road, noon to 1 p.m.

Aug. 17: Clive Public Library, 1900 N.W. 114th St., 5 to 6 p.m.

Aug. 24: Ankeny's Kirkendall Public Library, 1210 N.W. Prairie Ridge Drive, 8 to 9 a.m.

Activities will continue through at least December. Patrons can check with their local libraries to learn more about the hours and services that will be available.

Other sensory-friendly activities