The gang together for a group photo after the parade: (l-r) Michael,
Teri,
Mary, Amy, Bonita, and Jill. Photo by Rachael
Bohn |
The following
is a work in progress, a portfolio write-up I did for the leadership
section of my portfolio. I am including it here, slightly modified,
because of its human interest angle.
Shortly before
I started library school, I had a conversation with one of my mentors
at Seattle Public Library. Because of a string of unfortunate circumstances,
SPL had not participated in the Seattle Gay Pride festivities for two
years, missing -- based on my previous involvement -- a satisfying and
valuable outreach experience. I mentioned to my mentor, Bonita Corliss,
that in the absence of our previous organizer, somebody in the system
should pick up the torch. Bonita looked at me and said, "Why don't
you do it, Michael? It's never too early to begin your first outreach
project as a librarian."
So I did!
I began working
with another librarian, Mary Douglass, who was involved in Pride during
previous years, in January, shortly after assuming my Student Librarian
position at SPL. Every detail had to be worked out to make this project
successful, so we had to begin months ahead of time, employing both
persistence and patience in dealing with both SPL's internal structure
and with the Pride Committee (staffed exclusively by volunteers).While
the majority of my time was spent raising interest among the SPL community
in participating in the parade and in staffing the library's booth in
Volunteer Park, Mary spent much of her time burrowing through the layers
of internal bureaucracy: Requisitions through the business office to
pay for SPL's participation, internal permission-seeking from various
managers, etc.
I felt that in
previous years, SPL had gone about its participation in Pride in a disturbingly
silent manner. Now, taking the lead, I was just beginning to learn that
participation in most outreach activities is often extracurricular,
motivated by staff's personal interest rather than by core service protocol,
as in the case with literacy programs. I attempted to bring fresh energy
and motivation to this project, making my primary role one of internal
promotion. I sent out periodic system-wide emails, visited staff meetings,
and asked the administration to print news of our participation in SPL
literature both before and after the event. I made it clear that I intended
to make the library not only a participant in Pride, but a presence
as well. I accomplished this, in part, by successfully recruiting City
Librarian Deborah Jacobs and Central Library Manager Jill Jean to march
in the parade alongside the library's bookmobile. Both jumped at the
chance join in the fun.
Other key players
in the library system soon followed, such as David Wright in the library's
Fiction Department, who I asked for help in developing a reading list
featuring recent gay and lesbian materials owned by SPL. He threw himself
into the reading list with all the excitement and enthusiasm that I
had been putting into the rest of this outreach project. David immediately
organized a meeting with several staff members to help choose materials
to include and write 35-word-or-less annotations. David handled the
overall management of the list, taking on the tasks of editing and preparing
it for publication. We completed this excellent resource in less than
two months, producing SPL's first group-generated book list in a short
amount of time. And while the entire Pride project was successful, this
one activity involved more regular staff than the Pride Day events themselves.
The big day, Sunday,
June 30, was fabulous. SPL was a hit on all counts. Parade- and festival-goers
welcomed the library with support, appreciation, and enthusiasm. Over
the course of the day (both in the parade and the park), we gave away
more than 300 copies of the new reading list, and hundreds of SPL magnets,
bookmarks, and post-it pads, as well as other SPL literature and a few
limited edition Seattle Public Library beach balls (a veritable hit
with the kids, both young and young at heart). We also issued several
new library cards, and engaged in dozens of verbal interactions with
people about the library and its services.
Deborah, Jill,
Bonita, and Amy Walter (another SPL librarian) marched in the parade
while Mary and I, along with three other student librarians (yes, we
really ARE taking over the world) -- Amanda Hirst, Rachael Bohn, and
Teri Tada -- tended to the booth in the park. We had a blast interacting
with visitors and passers-by. But, of course, not content to wait for
others to come to us, we took our reading lists and souvenirs with us,
promoting the library as we took turns visiting the other booths.
The success of
this outreach project has inspired more SPL employees to volunteer their
help in creating, as Jill Jean put it, "more of a wilder presence
next year" for Pride 2003. I received two dozen email messages
from staff asking to participate next year, some offering ideas and
suggestions, including a book truck brigade for next year's parade.
I also received several inquiries from staff organizing other outreach
projects soliciting techniques and advice for making their projects
successful.
I learned more
from this wonderful experience than I am able to assimilate. This project's
success is a testament to the power of persistence and enthusiasm. I
believe that SPL's participation in Pride should not be quiet and discreet;
our involvement with the gay community and other populations we serve
should be loud and proud. Even so, our participation in this event came
about by staff motivating the institution rather than the other way
around. With all of the internal promotion I did, the booth was staffed
by only one regular employee (Mary) in addition to the four student
librarians. And while we were all smiles at the booth and in the parade,
getting there in the first place took a lot of work and jumping through
hoops on Mary's part. This, in my opinion, emphasizes the importance
of staff that are passionate enough to make outreach activities part
of their personal service mission. Clearly the profession needs people
with initiative and drive.
I look forward
to Pride 2003, even though the extent of our participation remains unsure
with drastic budget cuts requiring the library to reduce its programs,
which are needed most in times of flailing economies. Libraries today
are slowly moving uphill, undoing damage done by library culture that
historically has been less than user friendly. Now more than ever, we
are finding a need to go out into our communities to make our presence
known and promote our services while we reinvent ourselves. But we often
have to be as aggressive in promoting and fighting for our service opportunities
internally as well. I am sad to say that while this profession attracts
some wonderful people, others would prefer to sit back and do nothing
while they coast silently into retirement. We cannot afford to be silent
and passive as a profession; we must be proactive and reach out to people.
In order to do this, we need librarians who are passionate about their
dedication to serving humanity. As evidenced by this experience, communities
will respond positively to those of us who show an interest. I would
also dare to say that when one leads from the heart as well as the head,
great things result.
