5 Ways to Show Your Library Love This Month

February is Library Lovers’ Month, and since you are sitting here reading Book Riot, there is a good chance that you’re someone who loves their library. If you are invested in libraries, you likely know that the last few years haven’t been easy for librarians: censorship is a continuous issue, and resources are lacking.

Maybe this February, all you library lovers out there can take a moment to show appreciation to the staff at your local branch. If you’re interested in doing that, here are my librarian-approved suggestions that staff will find meaningful.

1) Write Letters to the Library Board

Board trustees are crucial to the running of a library, advocating on behalf of the organization to the local government and helping to develop policies. It can be very beneficial when patrons send supportive messages about how much the library means to them because it lets the trustees know what is working and what still needs championing.

2) Write Letters to Library Staff

Letters to staff can be just as important in terms of bolstering morale. We love knowing about how our efforts have positively impacted your life. Most of us are in this job because we want to help the community, so hearing from real people makes it feel worth it.

On my last day as a librarian at a specific branch, a regular I’d been helping for years left a card for me before he left for the night. Believe it or not, we don’t get much thanks, so I teared up as his message thanked me and explained that my computer support had helped him get a job.

As a children’s librarian, I have gotten to know many classes and families over the years, and one of my favourite possessions is a folder full of drawings done by kiddos over the years. There are so many wonderful items—thank you cards, drawings from regulars, and goodbye cards as children leave my storytime to move on to preschool. I treasure these. So, don’t underestimate how good it feels for staff when they receive letters, art, or cards.

3) Get a Library Card and Attend Programs

Then there are the tangible measures that support our specific branches. We need good statistics, so show up for your library by attending our programs and getting a library card. Good attendance equals better stats equals more money to provide future programs and events. From experience, it feels amazing when you put a bunch of time into planning a program and the community actually shows up for it! And we always love someone signing up for a library card, especially since the world seems to actively attempt to make us feel obsolete.

4) Educate Yourself on Library Jobs

This is one I can’t emphasize enough. Learn what working in a library is like. Read up on our job—our tasks and responsibilities, our challenges. Too often, it feels like no one gets our job. Everyone thinks they know what librarians do, for instance, shushing people and chatting about books, but rarely do people know the specifics.

We are told how relaxing it must be, or treated like our desk time is just us chilling on a computer. When I’m sitting at the information desk and not actively assisting patrons, I’m working on programs, contacting community members, updating resources related to the job, organizing meetings, and dealing with collection maintenance.

Whenever a patron has an actual understanding of what a day is like for a librarian, I am overjoyed. I am euphoric. I feel seen. If you learn what we do, you don’t even need to mention it to us; it will be clear in how you treat us.

5) Voice Positive Feedback

My final suggestion is to tell us that you appreciate library workers and services. The truth is that we hear a lot of disgruntled feedback from patrons—the library is too loud, not enough seats, the printing is hard to figure out, and on and on—but less often do we hear from people who appreciate what we do. Next time you visit your local branch, let your library staff know that you see how hard we’re working and that you appreciate our services. Kind words from people are huge for us, and they make a big difference in our day.

This Library Lovers’ Month, I hope these ideas inspire you to show up for your library staff.