Libraries Build Communities

Photograph c. ALA 2007

Don Wood, Program Officer Chapter Relations with ALA, sent 2008 Libraries Build Communities volunteers this photograph yesterday along with his thanks (you are welcome),a project evaluation form (I completed and returned it), and a request for photographs from individual sites (coming soon). This is the same picture featured in ALA Cognotes, Saturday, June 28 at ALA in Anaheim.

More than 100 conference attendees await their assignments before the kick of of Friday's "Libraries Build Communities" community service event. Volunteers were dispatched to 13 project sites in the Anaheim area to illustrte the importancer and influence local libraries can have on their communitries. Projects included helping a high school archive 115 years of its history, create a puppet show for grades K-4 (8-25 students) at a library serving a chilren's shelter and update another library's 20-year-old collection. "Libraries do help build communities," said Michael Dowling, director of ALA Chapter Relations Office. "We're excited to support the community and libraries in Anaheim and surrounding areas while we network to improve4 library services to millions of Americans across the country." - ALA Cognotes, Issue
1, 6/28/08

I selected Morse Elementary School from the listing of available locations. Upon arrival on Friday, I learned our task was to be cataloging! It's been years (eight or nine at least) since I have done any cataloging so I quickly volunteered for tech duties adding spine labels, reading levels, stamps, and library markings to cataloged titles. Team captain Rhonda Marker from Rutgers University, who contacted me via Facebook before ALA, led the way and our small group successfully cataloged eight boxes of Scholastic Book Fair titles for the library.

This is the second time I have been able to participate in the Libraries Build Communities effort, the first was in New Orleans; I highly recommend the volunteer experience. I hope to have a Picassa web album to share soon.

And yes, that is me in the front row holding my camera.