Libraries need champions.
Often, library champions are just regular folk like you and me. They are teachers who make a point of bringing their classes to the library at least once a year. They are volunteers who are proud to tell their family and friends about their work shelving books each week. They are grandparents who drive their grandkids and sometimes even their neighbours’ kids in for Summer Reading Club events.
Other library champions take on a more strategic role. They are business leaders who make sure that the library is included in community planning. They are politicians who advocate for adequate funding to ensure stability and support for new initiatives. They are writers, doctors, engineers and college instructors who publicly credit libraries for part of their success.
What unites all of these library champions is a strong belief in the public library as a critical component in the foundation of a healthy and vibrant community.
Edmonton Mayor Don Iveson, recent winner of a major North American leadership award for his work in support of Edmonton Public Library, is one such library champion. Besides committing his political support for a well-funded library system, Mr. Iveson offers his time and connections to help raise funds for library initiatives, produces a monthly video series for children called “Mayor Reads”, and is a self-proclaimed library lover and frequent visitor to EPL.
Mr. Iveson’s counterpart in Calgary is also a library champion extraordinaire. A graduate of Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, Naheed Nenshi proudly tells his constituents that the “signature moment of his childhood” was “convincing the local librarians to let him take out more books than the official limit”. As mayor, Mr. Nenshi spearheaded the city’s effort to construct a new $245-million central library, a project he calls his “long-held dream”.
Last month, Trail opened a spectacular new library/museum in the heart of its downtown. The $6.29 million project price tag was approved overwhelmingly in a 2014 referendum, thanks in large part to an army of library champions leading the way.
All across the country, we are seeing renewed investment in public libraries due to the efforts and support of library champions. They recognize the value of shared public spaces and of the library’s commitment to knowledge without barriers. They see the potential of the library in attracting young people to their communities, revitalizing their downtown cores, and contributing to economic development.
Rural, underfunded libraries such as ours face steep challenges in meeting these increased expectations. I am well aware of the financial limitations of working and living in Creston. But I believe that our biggest adversary is ambivalence.
In the coming months, our library is going to be calling on the support of library champions. It’s time to share and celebrate our passion and love for libraries, and to re-commit ourselves to a strong future for public library service in Creston.
I can’t wait to get started.
Happy reading!
Aaron Francis is the Chief Librarian at Creston Valley Public Library. He is currently reading Perfidia by James Ellroy.