I’m glad that you are here. You are welcome and invited and wanted here at Big Wheel, a blog for youth services librarians, which is sponsored by the South Central Library System and moderated by Shawn Brommer, Youth Services and Outreach Consultant.
In this very first blog post, I encourage you to reflect on the places we hold in the lives and hearts of the community members we serve. Over the years I have spoken with countless community members who tell me, time and time again, that they **love** their children’s librarians. They trust their children’s librarians and they know that the information, services, and programs that we provide are high-quality, thoughtful, accurate, and inclusive. We are viewed as community leaders and, at times, as heroes.
I’ve been thinking a lot about Mister Rogers and his famous quote from his mother reminding him to “Look for the helpers” when he saw scary things as a young boy. I first heard this quote in the days after September 11, 2001, when I was glued to the television, repeatedly viewing scenes from the attacks in New York, Washington DC, and Pennsylvania. For years, I associated these helpers with firefighters, first responders, police officers, EMTs, and other emergency personnel. And I still do… and… as our communities evolve and our profession transforms to support community culture and life, I recognize that public librarians are identified as key community helpers and heroes. We connect community members with essential information, resources, and organizations that provide emergency housing and nutrition. Our organizations step in and become employment resource centers when local job centers are permanently closed. Public libraries provide spaces for community members to come together to read and discuss books that celebrate individuals and families. We provide safe spaces for vulnerable youth and homeless families and, in communities such as Ferguson, MO and Baltimore, MD, public libraries keep their doors open to welcome all and to provide shelter and respite during traumatic times.
We are the helpers that Mrs. Rogers described to her son. We are community heroes who model compassion and dignified service. We help community members explore ideas and connect with one another. We help parents and caregivers talk to their children about images and ideas that are frightening, disturbing, and, destructive. These are difficult roles to play and often are ones for which we did not audition. And here we are… helpers… heroes. And we’re doing it. We’re rising to the challenge and we’re thoughtfully and fiercely taking on these roles with integrity.
We have the resources and the experience. We have the well-earned trust of our community members. And we have each other. We have the strength of our shared knowledge, skills, and wisdom. We are connected to colleagues and organizations who have identified resources that help children and the adults in their lives cope with scary images and difficult questions and ideas. Please consider visiting these organizations' websites to view the resources they recommend. Read and share the recommended books and articles. Display them. Purchase them. Recommend them. Let’s talk about them with each other and with the community members we serve.
Anti-Defamation League:
Books Matter: Children’s Literature that instills empathy, affirms children’s sense of self, teaches about others, transports to new places, and inspres actions on behalf of social justice.
Association for Library Service to Children:
Comforting Reads for Difficult Times
Cooperative Children’s Book Center, Selected Resources:
50 Books About Family (Babies, Toddlers, Preschoolers)
Images of Community: Selected Books for Children and Young Adults
KidCitizen Engagement: Selected Books for K – 5 about Community, Conflict Resolution and Voting
Reading & Resilience: Selected Books for Children and Teens About the Trauma in the Lives of Youth
Thick-skinned, Thin-skinned, The Skin I’m In: Books about Bullying, Teasing, Relational Aggression and School Violence
Welcoming Schools
Answering Challenging Questions
Diverse Books for Your School
Teaching Tolerance resources:
Race and Ethnicity
Religion
Ability
Class
Immigration
Gender & Sexual Identity
Bullying & Bias
Rights & Activism