The American Library Association offers good information and advice on gaining support in rural communities.  There’s a free online publication called “The small but powerful guide to winning big support for your rural library,” which outlines some basic steps that can help you gain community support.

The ALA lists 9 basic steps to successful advocacy:

1. Don’t wait for a crisis–make yourself essential

2. Build your team

3. Have a clear, memorable message

4. Target your audiences

5. Identify strategies

6. Practice word-of-mouth marketing

7. Have an enthusiastic, articulate spokesperson

8. Evaluate constantly

9. Don’t stop

In addition to these basic steps, the publication offers many suggestions for increasing visibility of your library in your community:

Go where the people are–post notices of your events in post offices, grocery stores, schools; in short, anywhere people go.  Instead of limiting your posters and notices to your own building, get out into the community with your message.

Win friends and influence decision-makers–this means go to meetings, get your supporters to attend meetings and speak to local dignitaries and leaders.  Invite these people to your library, too–make them aware of your work and the important role you play in the community.  Become a regular at town meetings and legislative sessions–don’t just show up at budget time.

Speak successfully–you don’t have to be a dynamic speaker, you just need to be convincing.  If you don’t feel you can speak in public, or are hesitant to meet with local leaders, find someone who can represent your library.  Talk talk talk about the library everywhere you go, and go plenty of places.  People always like to hear stories about what goes on in libraries.

Make the most of the media–don’t overlook the free advertising that comes with news stories.  Don’t wait for a special occasion to make friends with local newspaper, radio and television people.

Build powerful partnerships–we all know there’s strength in numbers, so get on board with community groups and organizations that have similar goals.  And don’t forget to thank them for their support

What tools are important in getting your message across?

A public library’s annual report is not only required in New York State, but it’s a great opportunity to brag.  From basic information to statistics, create an attractive, effective brochure to use as campaign literature.

Business cards are important and often over-looked public relations tools.

A simple fact sheet can be different from your annual report–just the basics, like hours and services you provide can be effective when distributed throughout the community.

Use your website, and maybe develop a blog for a handy, easy way to communicate your message online.

Don’t forget press releases–you never know what story the media will pick up, and you want to be at the top of their human interest stories.

These are just a few ways you can help your library become a high-profile community asset.

Pictured here is Bob with Mrs. Beatrice Hathaway, age 97, of Owl’s Head.  Mrs. Hathaway taught in a one room  schoolhouse  “just down the road” from the stop.  She brought her classes to the bookmobile in 1956 and has been a regular patron ever since.

We are continuing to match bookmobile patrons with their closest CEFLS member library.  Our project for January is to determine alternative cost effective ways to provide library services to geographically isolated and senior patrons for whom access to a local library is difficult.

More than half of America’s population has a library card–wouldn’t it be great if we could increase that?

Libraries are the number one access point for free Internet service, providing access to databases, encyclopedias, news articles, test preparation materials, job seeking assistance and much, much more.  Today 96% of school districts nationwide require that students use the Internet to complete their homework, making libraries even more dispensable.

Public libraries are important parts of our communities, providing programs, books, DVD’s, audiobooks and offering a great gathering place for people of all ages.  It’s important to support your local library by using it–and bring a friend or relative with you when you come in, making sure everyone has a library card this month.

At this time the library has no space to store donations of books or materials, but there is a fund for monetary donations.

For those who want to make donations to assist Wells Memorial Library,
please send checks to PO Box 57, Upper Jay, NY 12987. These donations
are tax deductible and thank you notes with tax cards will be sent out
as soon as we are up and running. Funds will be used for repairs, mold
abatement, clean-up and replacement of books, furniture and computers.

Many thanks to the legions of volunteers who have been helping clean out damaged items and clean up the building.  We’re hoping things will be better than ever in the not-too-distant future.

The Association of American Publishers felt it equally important to celebrate the joy adults find in reading, so named May the official Get Caught Reading month.  Though emphasis is on reading as a family activity, we should all join in and READ.

Celebrating these two important events, bookstores, libraries, schools and families are encouraged to celebrate the importance and joy of reading.   We all know reading can be as much fun as it is instructive, and this is a great opportunity to spread the word.  The importance of reading to children can’t be understated.  The benefits of reading as a family activity were noted in a recent study that found that children who were read to by a family member were nearly twice as likely to score in the top 25 percent in reading than other children.

What are some ways to celebrate?  As libraries we have plenty of great opportunities to “catch” people reading.  Take pictures of children and adults reading in the library and use them as effective public relations tools.  Set up a Get Caught Reading book discussion club for kids that might meet after school or on weekends.  Make it a family affair by having parents/friends read with children—set up a club where children and adults read and discuss the same book.

Libraries are the perfect places to host activities and events to remind people of the value of reading.  Read anything: newspapers, books, magazines, ebooks—take your pick, but be sure to encourage everyone you see to celebrate National Get Caught Reading Month.

  April is Autism Awareness Month!  With support from the Maternal and Child Health Bureau at the US Department of Health and Human Services, the New York State Department of Health Bureau of Early Intervention is working to provide community libraries in our area with free autism awareness materials. 

   Each library in the CEFLS System will soon have the following materials: 

•  “Learn the Signs” brochures and posters 
•  Bookmarks for the NYS online autism resource
•  Information Cards with Child Developmental Milestones from CDC
•  Information on “Libraries and Autism: We’re Connected” – a free        customizable autism programming resource for libraries of any size
•  Flyers with Internet address so supplies can be ordered and made available throughout the year
•  Information about local early intervention programs (see below) 

Municipal/County Contacts for the Early Intervention Program 

The Early Intervention Program provides an array of evaluation, therapeutic and supportive services to infants and toddlers with developmental delays from birth to age three years and their families.  Services may include family training, counseling, home visits and parent support groups; special instruction, speech pathology and audiology, occupational therapy, physical therapy, psychological services, nursing services, nutrition services, social work series, vision services, and assistive technology devices and services. 

Referrals to the Early Intervention Program: A municipal Early Intervention Official (EIO) designated by the chief elected official of the municipality/county administers the Early Intervention Program locally.  Contact your EIO for information about your local program or to refer a program.  For information about the statewide program, contact the NYS Department of Health, Bureau of Early Intervention at (518) 473-7016 or e-mail bei@health.state.ny.us. 

Local County Early Intervention Contact Information: 

Clinton County Health Department

133 Margaret Street

Plattsburgh, New York  12901

Telephone: (518) 565-4798

FAX: (518) 565-4509

 Essex County Public Health Nursing Service

PO Box 217
132 Water Street
Elizabethtown, New York 12932-0217
Main: 518-873-3522
Fax: 518-873-3539

Franklin County Public Health Nursing Service

355 West Main Street
Malone, New York 12953
Main: 518-481-1709
Fax: 518-483-9378

Anyone interested in books and reading should pay attention to this.  There are small and large implications for libraries. One of the small ones is that you can provide instant access for patrons who need to read all or part of a classic work that’s old enough to be out of copyright.

The best way to understand it is to go to openlibrary.org and look up an older title – something likely to be out of copyright.  When you do, you’ll see that you can read just about any classic you can think of – either on your computer or an e-book reader – or you could have it read aloud to you. It has special importance for people with print disabilities, providing greater access to formats they can use.

Then, look up a newer book.  You’ll see that you can find out where to borrow the book from a library, or where to buy it.  OpenLibrary links to OCLC’s Worldcat to show library holdings, and to Amazon, Alibris, AbeBooks and Powell’s for purchasing choices. The general public is adding data, and large libraries are contributing scanned titles.

Here’s how Open Library creators describe it:

“We have well over 20 million edition records online, provide access to 1.7 million scanned versions of books, and link to external sources like WorldCat and Amazon when we can. The secondary goal is to get you as close to the actual document you’re looking for as we can, whether that is a scanned version courtesy of the Internet Archive, or a link to Powell’s where you can purchase your own copy.”

This is a good resource for people searching for e-books to read on their new e-book readers. What the larger implications of this are, and how it relates to Google Books, for example, is something to think about.

All libraries are celebrating Library Lovers’ Month, a time to recognize the value of libraries and to work hard to make sure that our libraries can continue to offer services.

For more information and ideas, log in to http://www.librarysupport.net/librarylovers/, where you’ll find suggestions for how to celebrate the month, ideas for patrons to show their love, as well as plenty of free promotional materials to use.

How can your patrons show their love of their libraries?

There are plenty of activities, including:

• Volunteer
• Donate books
• Buy your library a subscription to a magazine
• Help with book sales
• Organize fundraising events
• Support your library at election time
• Write, write, write to legislators letting them know how important funding is to libraries
• Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper
• Speak up for libraries every chance you get (to the media, at Rotary and other service organizations, organizations like the League of Women Voters)
• Invite your librarian to speak or make a presentation at meetings of community groups

The list goes on and on, and your patrons will be sure to think of other ways to show their appreciation.  Take advantage of this great opportunity!  Publicize, and most of all CELEBRATE the month.

Even before the digital age, library policies addressed confidentiality of patron records.  Gone are the days of book cards, signed by each patron, to reveal who checked out the book.  Automated systems have addressed this issue by deleting circulation transactions, but is this information really protected?  How much of the personal information recorded when patrons register is protected?

This year the American Library Association is promoting the first “Choose Privacy Week,” set for May 2-May 8.  As librarians we can involve our patrons and community members in a “national conversation” about our right to privacy.

How can a library become involved?  By studying policies and practices, by understanding the implications of library transactions, by educating staff and patrons.  The American Library Association is offering free resources for librarians’ use in reaching out to their communities.  Some suggested activities for the week are creating a display, adding a banner to your website (images are free on the website listed below), hosting a program or workshop, or moderating a panel of community members with a particular interest in or knowledge of  privacy issues.

Available for free downloading are discussion guides for moderators and participants in a library-sponsored activity.  You can find these guides (written by ALA staffers) at http://www.privacyrevolution.org.  Here you can also register for a free online workshop “How to Moderate a Deliberative Forum on Privacy,” to be held on Tuesday, April 13th from 1:00-3:00 p.m.  Don’t let the title intimidate you–the workshop and documents are meant to guide, inform, and educate librarians.  The workshop covers guidelines for program participants, strategies you can use to encourage people to participate, how to come up with good questions for discussion, and a universally useful guide on how to work with people who don’t speak up, or maybe “speak up too much.”

Take advantage of these free resources, work with your community and patrons to think about, to discuss, to inform, to share thoughts about privacy.