“I want you to live your best life so you can affect the lives of the people you work with and for,” said Satia Orange, retired director of ALA’s Office for Literacy and Outreach Services and opening keynote speaker at the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services 2011 Annual Conference, October 13–15, in Cleveland, Ohio.
Orange set the tone for the conference, which, for many conference attendees, is an opportunity to meet, reflect, and exchange ideas with a focus on empowering professionals to better serve their communities. Programming at the 2011 ABOS Conference is diverse, including advocacy, management, marketing and customer service, technology, and funding. The conference also provides opportunities for building technical expertise, with moderated discussions on bookmobile shelving, generators, bidding a bookmobile, books by mail, and more.
Jody Olivieri, outreach services manager with the Homer Township (Ill.) Public Library, demonstrated many inexpensive and easy programming ideas for children during her session “Portable Programs with Pizzazz!” Attendees found their inner child as they colored, made Shrinky Dinks and bracelets, and assembled Thanksgiving turkey abacuses. Olivieri showed photos from previous programs hosted by her bookmobile and shared the programming wiki she developed, which contained even more ideas to engage young patrons. “These projects are portable, age-appropriate, and quick,” said Olivieri. “When the imagination is stimulated, it will spark renewed or rejuvenated interest for reading and books.”
In her program, “Library Time While Doing Time: Reaching Out to At-Risk Teens,” Laura Kauffman of the Library System of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, discussed her experiences volunteering at the local Youth Incarceration Center (YIC). “Why get involved?” Kauffman asked rhetorically. “Because this population is underserved. We can provide positive role models and a safe place for these kids to go, cut back on learning loss, and help them assimilate and adjust to society.” Kauffman explained the many challenges and limitations of providing library services to incarcerated teens, including constant monitoring, limitations on what materials can be brought inside, and the strict environment incarcerated teens live in during their stay in the YIC. Despite these and several other limiting factors, she encouraged attendees to consider outreach to incarcerated youth in their own communities, and shared programming ideas, reading lists, and professional resources to enhance services.
Margie Salentiny, bookmobile administrator for the Plum Creek (Minn.) Library System, explored a powerful method for professionals in the field to better connect with their communities and provide a welcoming and healthy environment. Her session highlighted the Wakanheza Project, a service philosophy originally developed by the Saint Paul–Ramsey County Public Health agency (SPRCPH) in 2002 and subsequently adopted by over 100 organizations across the country. “The Wakanheza Project; is a very powerful tool that allows people to respect each other and empowers us to connect with all of our patrons in a meaningful way,” said Salentiny. “It is an umbrella of power that shows us how we should treat each other.” Named for the Dakota word for child and sacred being, the Wakanheza philosophy asks service providers to acknowledge their own judgments and then put them aside, open themselves to all cultures, understand that many or most acts of violence come from a sense of powerlessness, embrace their ability to show understanding, and genuinely offer to help.
Library outreach professionals also often face stumbling blocks in advocating for their services to decision makers in their communities. In a session titled “You Know Your Bookmobile Service is Worth It: Make Them Believe It Too,” Jimmie Epling, Patti Stevic, and Paul Ward of the Wayne County (Ohio) Public Library demonstrated ways to develop an effective cost-benefit analysis and document positive return on investment (ROI), and offered tips on communicating value to library boards through sound bites, press releases, fact sheets, and presentations. “Warm and fuzzy stories aren’t enough,” said Epling. “You need to put it all together with the numbers and make it really sing to your board.”
As part of the conference, the Cleveland Public Library made available a tour of its new state-of-the-art bookmobile service facility. A bookmobile open house featured Columbus Library, Medina County District Library, Wayne County Public Library, and a demonstration vehicle from conference sponsor OBS Specialty Vehicles, Inc.
This year’s Author Luncheon featured 2011 National Bookmobile Day Honorary Chair Audrey Niffenegger, author of The Time Traveler’s Wife and The Night Bookmobile, who discussed her processes of writing and illustrating the latter. Following the luncheon, Niffenegger posed for photos with attendees and signed books.
An affiliate of ALA, ABOS supports and encourages government officials, library administrators, trustees, and staff in the provision of quality bookmobile and outreach services to meet diverse community information and programming needs. To learn more about ABOS, please visit www.abos-outreach.org.
JOHN AMUNDSEN is communications specialist for ALA’s Office for Literacy and Outreach Services.