Getting Lost In A Library

Scavenger hunts are delightfully fun. Especially when it involves children They squeal with laughter, complain they can't find things, compare notes with friends to see who has found items, and by the end of the hunt they cry for more. Youth Services librarians can turn to this easy programming ideas year round. Its inexpensive, fun and brings patrons into the library. Which leads to another train of thought: why not tell public officials to literally get lost? Preferably in a library. How can this leap be made from a fun program for children to reaching out to public officials? Easy. It's called becoming creative in getting noticed by public officials. Public officials, whether on the local level, state or national, rarely understand the plight of libraries. In their eyes it is nice to have a library in the community but not a necessity. Library advocates know that this is a "myth" that has to be broken. This current economic downturn is a blessing in disguise for libraries. It's not a surprise to librarians that services are in demand. People in every community are suffering and looking for resources to find aid, jobs and entertainment on a dime. Libraries fill those needs and more. Which brings back to the topic of inviting public officials to get lost. When politicians campaign the promise the moon and then some. Not to get too political but do the hollow promises of hope and change come to mind. When it comes to libraries, every politician will claim they love their libraries. In their words they sing high praises for libraries and what they do for the community. In their actions, many times they vote against the very same institutions they claim to love. This is where librarians and library advocates must become vocal to educate local officials. In classic scavenger hunt fashion invite local officials to look for clues and materials that help patrons everyday at the library. Remind the participants not to worry if they get lost in the library. A helpful librarian will gladly help them find the path they need. The goal ultimately is to demonstrate to officials and library naysayers that the library has much more to offer beyond books. In many respects the local officials who choose to come will be amazed by the wealth of resources libraries provide on limited budgets. Getting lost in a library is easy. There are patrons who walk into the library everyday to enjoy getting lost between the stacks, surfing on the computer or with their noses in the newspapers. It's time that politicians and decision makers find that same joy. Then they will understand that the joy of getting lost in the library is as necessary as the air we breath. Don't be shy in telling a few local leaders to get lost ..... in the library. It may be the best invitation they receive all year.

The Public Relations Magic in March: : St. Patty's Day, March Madness, Women's History and Reading

March is a wonderful time of year. Everyone is waiting anxiously for spring to arrive. The first signs of "green" come on St. Patty's day, everyone either wears green, drinks and eats green things and look for little leprechauns. On the other hand, there are die hard sports fans who track college basketball for March Madness. Don't forget Women's history month to add to the Spring festivities. In the midst of all this celebrating, libraries have tons of programs which celebrate reading. This may make one librarian wondering what could possibly come in April to top all these reasons to celebrate. Oh, Yeah National Library Week. (Ideas on that will be shared at another time.) Suffice it to say, as scattered as all these topics seem to be, they do have something in common. Besides the fact that they are all in March, these celebrations are the perfect time for libraries to promote themselves to local officials and state legislators. Curious on how to get a jump start on advocating for libraries before April? Read on.

All politicians claim to be "Irish" on St. Patrick's Day. Even President O'bama claimed Irish decent when traveling through Ireland. Why not? It's a wonderful heritage, there is good food, good dancing and lots of fun wearing the green. Plus, they are always talking about the Luck of the Irish. Ah, libraries could use a wee bit luck. To tap into our own little bit of luck, librarians could distribute postcards to their patrons, that are ready to be mailed to the local officials, asking the patrons to support the library by simply signing the postcard which will be sent to the Representatives. The cards could say, "The library is our city's LUCKY charm. Please support our library" It's a great little reminder that the library adds value to every community.

March Madness provides a wonderful opportunity to bring sports into the library. Most sports fans figure libraries don't have anything for a sports fans. Not true. Books about team history, statistics and biographies about famous players are just a few items up for grab. Years ago, an energetic school librarian set out to prove that bringing in basketball fun into the school library would not only benefit the students but also the library as well. On the library doors, a sign was posted "March Madness in Progress. Enter if you DARE" Once the students took the "dare" they were directed to the reference desk where the librarian had a huge basketball bracket on display for all to see her picks. If the students, school board member or faculty cared to fill out a bracket, they had to first write on the bracket sheet why they were "mad" about the library. Then they could post their brackets. The amount of traffic through the library was amazing due to the number of students who wanted to see whose brackets came closest to being spot on. As for the librarian, well the "mad about the Library" comments helped demonstrate the important functions that the school library performed for the students. Plus, her bracket picks were pretty off the mark which made for interesting remarks from students. One student offered to help the librarian to find out more about statistics so next year she could make better choices in her picks.

Women's history month proves to be a great way to remind female legislators and officials about the impact that women have had on history. In their own way, these leaders have made an impact on their own community. For libraries who are facing budget cuts and concerns, there is a way to invite these leaders into the library to "celebrate" Women's history month. One inventive (and could be profitable also) way is to have a women Tea party. Inviting key women leaders to come to the Tea to support the library is great PR for the officials as well as the library.

Of course promoting reading is always a good thing for libraries. After all, when thinking about libraries the first thing to come to most minds are books. t is the trademark of libraries. However, it doesn't hurt to do something different to add spice to PR and advocacy. Library events like those mentioned above will lend itself to patrons coming in to check out books to read throughout the month of March. More importantly, it will get elected officials to open their eyes and minds aobut what libraries do and what they offer the community.