July 17, 2008 - library answers planning questions

First, my thanks to the literally thousands of people who have responded to recent library mailings about our consideration of a proposal to add additional library space and materials around the county. I appreciate it.

Second, some of our citizens have asked pointed questions. I'd like to answer them.

Question: in Parker, why don't we just buy and renovate the vacant King Soopers, as we did with the old Safeway in Castle Rock?

Answer: the building isn't for sale. The owners have other plans for the property. We can't buy what isn't on the market.

Question: "are you idiots aware that there's a recession?"

Answer: we have got to do something about the quality of public discourse in this county.

No, we're not idiots. Yes, we are aware that some of us are spending up to $30 more a week to fill up our gas tanks -- for which we receive absolutely NO increase in value.

Here's another choice: for about $30 more per YEAR (based on the average home's value of $300,000), our community can build three new libraries, and add tens of thousands of new materials every year. Borrow just one of those books back from us, and you've recovered that investment. Borrow two, and you're ahead of the curve. When times are tight, libraries are an even better value.

There is some urgency to a 2008 question: for two of our libraries (Parker and Lone Tree) we have been offered free land. If we fail to seize that opportunity by the end of the year, the free land goes away in Lone Tree. Future library expansion will be even more expensive.

Question: don't libraries undercut bookstores, video and music stores?

Answer: libraries don't steal business from the private sector. On the contrary: we grow it. Bookstores near libraries do better than those farther away. The same is true for movie and music stores. We don't compete with one another; we build markets together.

And we WANT the business community to thrive. Every year, we help hundreds of patrons find new jobs. We help hundreds of entrepreneurs do the research necessary to launch new home-based businesses -- the fastest growing sector of our economy. Through our "economic gardening" initiative (in combination with the county and local economic development and chambers of commerce) we provide the data to take those businesses out of the basement, and get them into offices on Main Street.

Question: what's the evidence for the need for new library facilities?

Answer: I can cite lots of statistics (a well-tested standard of half-a-square-foot-per-capita served, where it's clear the population greatly outstrips our square footage; a statistic of checkouts-per-person-per-year of 20, some three to four times greater than the rest of the nation; a use of children's materials greater than any library in the state; a growth in demand, year to year, of 18-33% depending on location).

But it really comes down to this: if you use the library, you know the need is real. If you don't, take a trip to one of our branches and see for yourself, assuming you can find a parking space. (Incidentally, 4 out of 5 households in Douglas County use the library pretty regularly.)

So does all that add up to "need?" Or is it just an opportunity to invest in a kind of community -- one that demonstrably values lifelong learning -- where you actually want to live?

I'll continue to address recurrent questions in this space for the next few weeks. Also, please note our public meetings at:

* Highlands Ranch Library (9292 Ridgeline Blvd.
Saturday, July 12 from 4 to 5 p.m.
* Neighborhood Library at Lone Tree (8827 Lone Tree Pkwy)
Saturday, July 19 from 4 to 5 p.m.
* Parker Library (10851 South Crossroads Dr)
Friday, July 25 from 6 to 7 p.m.
* Philip S. Miller Library (100 S. Wilcox St., Castle Rock)
Monday, July 28 from 6 to 7 p.m.

July 10, 2008 - Libraries- Necessity or Luxury?

by Sharon Nemechek, Manager, Lone Tree Library

[I was having a conversation with the manager of our Lone Tree Libraryrecently. The topic was "what do people need?" This literate andengaging essay is Sharon's eloquent answer.] - Jamie LaRue

Can you identify the necessities in your life? Stop and think….are youable to distinguish the necessities from the conveniences and theluxuries? Most of us would agree that our basic needs include air,food, water and shelter. But, what about books?

In "Man’s Search for Meaning," Viktor Frankl, who was imprisoned infour different concentration camps during WWII, observed that it wasnot necessarily the strong, fit laborers who survived the starvation,torture and hard physical labor in the camps, but those prisoners whohad travelled and read books. For the few hours they were idle theyescaped the daily horrors of the camp and in their minds visited theplaces they had seen in life or in literature. That mental escape wasessential to their survival.

As a librarian I find this fascinating. I know that books help usunderstand our universe, but is it possible that they satisfy somebasic human need, that without them we might not survive? And if so,what does that say about the place of the library in our lives?

Psychologist Abraham Maslow and economist Manfred Max-Neef each workedto define a system of human needs. While Maslow believed that needs arehierarchical, Max-Neef proposed that human needs are constant acrosscultures and time periods and that true needs are few. Both agree thatbasic physical needs include air, food, water, shelter, and protectionfrom danger. What I find interesting, though, is they both suggest thatwe also have some basic emotional needs that must be satisfied,including the need for affection/intimacy, a sense of belonging,respect, understanding, recreation, creation, identity and freedom.

Is it possible that these basic emotional needs that Frankl, Maslow andMax-Neef observed can be satisfied with a visit to your local library?Well, let’s take a look…..

Affection/intimacy. Although this one has been attempted at thelibrary, I wouldn’t recommend it. But, you can find resources on how tobe a better partner or parent. And, some libraries have singles nights.

A sense of belonging. The library has been described as a "thirdplace," a place in addition to your home and workplace that’sintegrated into your daily life. In one study libraries equaledStarbucks and grocery stores for number of repeat visits by patrons perweek. In Douglas County 80% of households have at least one librarycard. The library has truly become our community "living room."

Respect. Library staff respect the reading preferences, interests andinformation needs of all patrons. This is one of the guiding principlesof our profession.

Recreation. Reading or listening to a good book is not only greatentertainment, but it often provides a much needed escape. During mydivorce, a stressful and emotional time, I devoured all the "escapist"fare I could find. Immersed in a fast-paced story I found respite frommy almost constant worries.

Understanding, Identity. We gain a deeper understanding of ourselvesnot only from Wayne Dyer and Dr. Phil, but also through the beautifullytold stories of Willa Cather, Ha Jin, Wallace Stegner, Jhumpa Lahiri,Cormac McCarthy and many, many others.

Creation. Do you want to start a small business, build a robot out ofLegos, plant an herb garden or turn some beads and wire into abracelet? The library has books, DVDs and classes to show you how to doall this and more. Recently my son checked out a DVD on how to build aquarter pipe. Now he's inspired to turn our garage into a mini skatepark.
 
Freedom. What greater freedom is there than access to any book you’llever want to read? What greater freedom than the journey into a greatstory?

Is the library necessary for survival? After air, after food, after shelter. Absolutely.

--

James LaRue, Director
Douglas County Libraries
100 S Wilcox Street
Castle Rock CO 80104
303.688.7656

"One of the advantages of being disorderly is that one is constantly making exciting discoveries." - A. A. Milne

July 3, 2008 - libraries energize entrepreneurs

[This week I wanted to highlight the business development work of the library and its partners. Our "reporter" is Rochelle Logan, my wonderful Associate Director of Research and Collections.]

I recently attended the National Economic Gardening Conference in Steamboat Springs where participants from twenty states, Japan and Australia came together to discuss ways to support small businesses in their communities. The concept of Economic Gardening started in Littleton, Colorado some twenty years ago. In addition to attracting new business from outside your city or county and keeping them, Economic Gardening (EG) helps local entrepreneurs thrive and grow which brings more resources to the community.

"Economic Gardening is a great opportunity for smaller businesses. It provides access to resource channels that they might not be aware of or otherwise be difficult to engage." Christian Eppers, Manager of Economic Gardening, Chamber of Commerce at Highlands Ranch.

EG programs offer tools to the small business that only larger corporations can afford. Types of services EG programs can provide include market research, competitive intelligence, industry trends, marketing lists, and Website optimization.

Why would librarians be interested in Economic Gardening and helping small businesses in our communities? One of our goals at Douglas County Libraries (DCL) is to reach out to answer the community reference question. It’s a natural fit to partner with local economic development entities such as the Highlands Ranch / Douglas County EG program. I was asked to serve on their steering committee made up of representatives from Team Highlands Ranch. I enjoyed the excitement and resolve this group generated while planning the EG launch. More information about that program is available at www.highlandsranchchamber.org/

"We are extremely excited about the partnership we have with the Douglas County Library System and the Chamber's Economic Gardening program. Douglas County is very fortunate to have the Douglas County Library System as a resource. They continue to stay on the cutting edge." Steve Dyer, President Chamber of Commerce at Highlands Ranch

We also collaborate with Castle Rock Economic Development (CREDCO). They plan to launch their EG program shortly.

In addition to working with community EG offices, DCL started looking for resources that our librarians and local EG offices could use. As a result, we added new business databases to our inventory that can be accessed from the new www.douglascountylibraries.org. Click on Research Databases to access Reference USA, Small Business Resource Center, Demographics Now and much more.

To be successful, entrepreneurs need good information and help with business research. Trained professionals at our libraries know how to find resources to answer specific questions as well as offer programs to train small business owners on how to find the information for themselves. The new small business service at DCL is designed to work with business startups and other entrepreneurs who need help in building their business. To contact a business librarian send an email to bizlibs@dclibraries.org or call 303-791-READ.

Douglas County Libraries are well located in our communities and offer meeting space and study rooms that are heavily used by small businesses as a place to work quietly, talk to librarians and access our outstanding reference collections, both in print and online.

Clearly we have an opportunity to leverage the knowledge and build DCL’s role to support economic development initiatives. From what I learned at the National Economic Gardening Conference, DCL is once again on the cutting edge in offering this type of service and fostering partnerships with community business organizations.

June 26, 2008 - "Why do I not know about this?"

A few weeks ago, I put out a call for stories about how the library changed lives. I'd like to give you a taste of some of the wonderful responses we've gotten.

This one is from Hannah Fenstermacher:

"I grew up with the library having a consistent presence in my life. My mom was a library fan, and I remember going to our small town library each week to pick out new books. I continued to enjoy libraries as I went on to college - and then when I moved to Castle Rock - the library was one of the first places on my list to visit. While I have always enjoyed libraries - and always been an avid reader - I am not sure it was necessarily life changing until I had a baby last August.

"I believe new mothers generally have a couple things in common - they're pinching pennies, they're malnourished of adult interaction, and they're wondering how the heck they entertain this new little person ALL DAY LONG without going crazy. I fell into all three of those categories - particularly because previous to having our daughter, Freya, I was always on the go and surrounded by adults all day long, whether through school or work. I decided to begin working part-time from home when Freya was 4 months old and began interviewing babysitters to watch her a couple hours a week. One of these daycare providers mentioned 'baby storytime' to me, and asked me if I had ever been. I said no, and thought to myself, why do I not know about this??

"I began attending baby lapsit storytime on Tuesdays at the Castle Rock library with Geri in November 2007 when Freya was nearly 5 months old. We were hooked! It has now been about 6 months . . . and we never miss a Tuesday .... Nowhere else can you come into a safe environment, where your child can shake rattles, listen to stories and interact with other children where there is no cost involved. Nowhere else does Geri say every single time, 'You are wonderful people - if no one yet has told you how wonderful you are today, I am telling you now.' No where else can you interact with other parents, who are also there because they care about their child's development and want to have other parent interaction.

"A 30 minute period once a week may not seem 'life changing' to most people .... But, I truly believe that when I leave storytime, I am a better mother. Not only because I have exposed my child to reading and everything wonderful that goes with it - but because I have had a break in my day where there is guaranteed fun, happiness and support."

Over the past months, we've been taking advantage of recent research on brain development to better establish something called "early literacy." If you read to your child, you probably already follow these simple steps -- but you may not know it.

By taking the time to understand those steps, like those followed by such warm and loving staff as Geri, you can be a far more effective teacher for your child.

For more information about this wise investment in the development of your child's brain, see our website at http://www.douglascountylibraries.org/AboutUs/Literacy. Look for "early literacy."

Douglas County Libraries -- keeping moms sane and making kids smarter. It's the right thing to do.

June 19, 2008 - library launches new website (DouglasCountyLibraries.org)

I've learned a few things over the years.

1. Almost everything important requires teamwork.

2. Significant achievement should be celebrated.

3. Nothing is ever finished.

In light of these three principles, I'd like to take a moment to acknowledge a big moment: a new library website.

In accordance with the first principle, I'd like to thank Moira Ash (Web Administrator), Bob Pasicznyuk (Associate Director of Virtual Services), the Contact Center staff (Sabrina Speight, Don Dickenson, Lois Karbach, Carey Lambert, Jacque Moore, Janet Nelson, Carol Parry, Tanna Crowley, Kayla Hickman), Laurie Van Court, Hutch Tibbetts, Linda Sturgeon, our Community Relations staff, Roy Johnston, and the many others who helped us hone the user profiles, assemble databases and tools, and generally assist in rolling out a 21st century web presence.

Our website is a kind of library branch -- open 24/7, boasting a host of services, and staffed by real people, even if you can't see them. Our technical and support staff are among the best in the world, and their work together is impressive.

The library was the first website ever to flower in Douglas County, back a dozen years ago now. Our latest website went live on June 10, 2008. This one is based on Drupal, a complex and powerful Open Source "content management system." It allows not only the creation of complex websites, but permits, and incorporates, user comments. This marks a change in how we add content to our site, distributing the work among many minds.

I hardly know how to describe the incredible richness of our site. It really is much like a visit to a library.

Front and center (the blank spot at the top of the home page) is our catalog -- the crowning achievement of America's public libraries. Or you can switch from "catalog" to "website" to do a search -- and pull in a host of other resources, including local community members. Just below that is a link to manage your account -- holds, what you've got checked out, renewals, and so on. Just these two options deserve a column of their own.

Also on that first page is a navigational tool (the "tabs" along the top of the screen), and some key links on the left pane (everything from contact information, to our program calendar, to our site about voter information).

The rest of the page is given over to highlights. It will be different every time you load it.

Right now, you'll see links to "eLearning2Go" -- online training, including everything from office software to college, career, and test preparation. The library website: a virtual classroom. How cool is that?

But here's that second point: celebration! The unveiling of this website reflects at least a year of preparation -- and more. Well done! Fireworks! Cakes and candles! Dancing in the street!

And now the third point: the library's website, it goes without saying, really isn't done. It never will be. Anything this infernally complex has incomplete parts, quite aside from the fact that the public keeps expecting new and better things from us. Bear with us as we fill in the outline, tweak the system, and generally respond to both public and staff scrutiny.

In weeks to come, expect to see our website continue to evolve, I hope toward greater simplicity. (And let's add another principle: 4. Simplicity isn't easy.)

But perfection is a fool's dream. Let's take a moment to breathe a big sigh, and say, "Wow."

DouglasCountyLibraries.org -- you're just a click away from one big neighborhood of knowledge.

June 10, 2008 - "discovery packs" prevent sibling torture

When I was a kid (one of five), my parents could afford only one vacation a year: a car trip from north of Chicago to my mother's folks in Ohio. It was usually in the hottest month of the year.

The interstate highway program was still under development back then. For years, the trip took 10-12 hours, as we stuttered, stoplight by stoplight, on the two lane roads through Chicago, then Gary, Indiana (whose sky was always red, even at night), and across Indiana.

Eventually, with I-94 and I-80, the trip got whittled down to six hours, allowing no more than two potty breaks.

Imagine five kids in the back of a Ford four-door. No seat belts. Six hours. Pre-air-conditioning. Parents who smoked more or less constantly, interrupted only by the usual threats: "Don't make me stop this car! Do I have to come back there and separate you two?"

It's a wonder any of us survived.

I brought comic books and science fiction novels, because it didn't bother me to read in the car. But we usually had to fall back on dumb Interstate games -- finding a license from the farthest away state, looking for words on billboards, extra points for being the first to spot a VW bug, and so on.

These days many cars have built-in DVD players, or parents bring portable ones. Or they have other electronic devices to distract the children from the excruciating mutual torture that so often attends confined sibling interaction.

Allow me to offer another tool for those family drives. Jordana Vincent, one of our Collection Development Librarians, told me recently about one of our cooler new products. They're called "Discovery Packs."

You can find them in, and check them out from, the children's room at all of our libraries. You can recognize them by their fun and friendly logo (designed by Jake, one of our in-house graphic wizards).

Each Discovery Pack contains several picture books, a DVD, and a toy of some sort. Each pack has a theme. Right now, we have eight: Space, Dinosaurs, Fire Safety, Time, Horses, Pets, Fairies and "Move It!" "Move It!" is focused on exercise and healthy eating. In addition to the books, it includes activity mats, a Mousercise CD with workout music, and a Denise Austin Kid's workout video.

Of course, you probably won't have your children doing actual exercises while they're strapped in, but the point is that these packets are a convenient and entertaining way to not only divert your child from the boredom of the road, but also to insinuate a little learning.

We live, after all, in a multimedia world these days. This kind of thoughtful rounding up of items along a theme is another example of the added value of librarianship. You swing by, grab a discovery pack, and you have something that can keep a child (and parent) interested. When you're done, back into the bag, and hand it back to one of our friendly librarians.

And of course, Discovery Packs are good for home, too!

I'm always delighted to see the many creative solutions our staff come up with. So give this one a try with your preschoolers, and let us know how it works for you. Let us know, too, about any other ideas for themes your children might like to explore.

And remember, whether on the road or at home, the mind you save ... may be your own.

June 5, 2008 - how has the library changed your life?

Libraries change lives. They sure changed mine, and more than once.

For instance, back at the end of fourth grade I went to the downtown library. I saw Mrs. Johnson, the first librarian I had ever met (way back at the bookmobile, which was another life-changing experience). We got to talking, I don't remember what about, but I do remember that she gave me a book called "The Dialogues of Plato."

That might seem like an odd thing to give a 10-year-old. But there are at least two explanations.

First, I was an odd 10-year-old.

Second, Mrs. Johnson believed in the Great Books. "You can read?" she thought. "Then you should read about Socrates!"

She was right.

The first dialog I read posed a deceptively simple question: "What is wise?" Then followed the most amazing conversation. Everything the student said was questioned, and questioned again, and again.

Until then, I had no idea that thinking, that talking, could be so much fun.

The other kids in my class were interested in ... well, I'm not sure what they were interested in. TV? Sports, some of them. But I know what I was interested in.

The examined life.

It could be that that particular moment in history, at that particular place, was just the right place for me to be. Not far away was the University of Chicago, and the Great Books Foundation. Their premise was that people of all ages -- but particularly the young -- would be significantly improved not just by a passive exposure to classic literature, but by a lively and even aggressive engagement with it.

I don't know about improved, but I was definitely engaged.

And it changed my life. That book, and my response to it, defined my character. It made me hunger for real discussion, for exposure to challenging ideas, and the chance to debate them, learn something, grow.

I'm guessing this is true for some of you, too. Recent forums the library has sponsored (our "Great Discussions" facilitated community programs about a host of global political issues) have generated rave reviews.

It's not surprising. I know of lot of people lately who find commercial TV and radio news, with its reductionist sound bites, little more than annoying. The world is more complex, more nuanced, than lends itself to 5 second "coverage." Why not spent an evening exploring a tough topic with other thoughtful people? And where better than the library?

But all of this thinking about how just one book, introduced at the right time by a canny librarian, can capture your imagination, can shift the whole direction of your life, has made me curious about the rest of you.

Because I'm now a librarian myself, collecting stories is part of my job description. So I'm soliciting yours. Has the library transformed your life?

I'm not just looking for childhood stories, although I'm interested in those, too. I know we've helped people disgusted with their current jobs find, or create, better ones. I know we've provided medical information that just might have saved somebody's life. It's possible that someone met the love of their life here.

Let me know. Please email me at jlarue@dclibraries.org, or call 303-688-7656. I'll share the best of them, with your permission.

It just might be that these kinds of transformations are the whole point of living. And libraries.

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LaRue's views are his own.