Last week, I had an incredible opportunity to hear Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress, speak two days in a row. Both days, her talk was focused on Collections of treasures, and how we can use them to learn about ourselves and our heritage. Both days, she mentioned the importance of sharing them. Both days, she gave speeches that I have made myself over the years. It was very validating! And, I may have to confess to a few tears of joy in hearing her talking about the purpose of libraries and how they are even more important now than ever before.
It had the same effect on me as an experience in 2011 when I was a participant in the Salzburg Global Seminar on The Future of Libraries and Museums in an Era of Participatory Culture.
The description of this session states: “Accepting the notion of democratic access, placing a major emphasis on public value and impact, and embracing lifelong learning were key overarching messages that emerged from deliberations at the recent seminar Libraries and Museums in an Era of Participatory Culture which was convened by the Salzburg Global Seminar in collaboration with the Washington-based Institute of Museum and Library Services. The session plunged fifty-eight library, museum, and cultural heritage leaders from thirty-one countries around the world into discussion, debate, and the development of a series of practical recommendations for ensuring maximum access to and engagement in museums and libraries, as they examined the meaning of “participatory culture” writ large.” Wow! Talk about a mountain top experience.
Life Purpose
A few years ago, I saw a TED Talk by Adam Leipzig which was titled How to Know Your Life Purpose in 5 Minutes. Even though this was false advertising about how long it was (actually 10:33) it was a very effective talk. I just watched it again, and I still highly recommend it! By the end of it, I had written my Manifesto (Public Statement of Purpose). Others call it a Mission Statement or an Elevator Pitch, but I think that the word Manifesto sounds a bit stronger. I decided to write one. Much of what I based this on, I learned here at the Annie Merner Pfeiffer Library as a student, staff member, and director.
The Purpose of the Library
“The library is operated by a group of people who are curious about everything, and have a deep desire to be helpful. We provide Information, Inspiration, and Entertainment to Faculty, Staff, and Students and the raw materials and tools to do their work. We help them to discover richer, more enjoyable, and more meaningful lives.” ~Paula McGrew, April 2016
So – now for Paula’s Library Manifesto (a word which means public statement of purpose)
What Libraries Do: Collect-Organize-Preserve-Share
What Libraries Are: Collections-Place-Service
What Libraries Provide: Information-Inspiration-Entertainment
Why We Do It: To make sure that faculty and students have the raw materials that they need in order to fulfill THEIR purposes.
But what about my own personal manifesto for my retirement years?
“As a graduate of the WVWC Class of 1978, and as a person who has had a long line of family members who are graduates also, I bring my research skills, genealogy tools, and interest in the college to the work of Collecting-Organizing-Preserving-and Sharing stories of those who have studied and worked here since the founding of the school. I do this to ensure that past generations will have a place to share their memories and present and future generations will have a place to learn about their heritage, to be inspired by it, and to enjoy knowing about those who have come before them in The Orange Line.” ~Paula McGrew, March 2018
- Who am I? I am a graduate of the WVWC Class of 1978 and a Librarian who has spent her life learning to Collect-Organize-Preserve-and Share items to provide the raw materials for faculty and students to do their work.
- What I do: Bring my research skills, interest in genealogy, knowledge of both WVWC and the West Virginia Conference of the United Methodist Church to the work of collecting the stories and putting them together on https://DreamersAndGiants.com.
- Why do I do this? Because stories are being lost, and along with them a great deal of our institutional memory and heritage. Social media is great for getting word out quickly, but these things are fleeting. There are no longer any yearbooks. The newspaper stories are different from those in former times, and do not always convey the same types of information. I do this to honor those who have come before and to inspire those who are here now and who will be coming in the future.
- What do these people need and want? A perspective beyond that of their own time and a sense of the legacy they have been given.
- How are these people changed as a result of this work? They come to see themselves as a continuation of a larger purpose. Rather than just flitting from meeting to meeting, class to class, assignment to assignment, crisis to crisis, they are able to know about the situations that have been part of the history along the way. They can see how others have approached them. They truly become part of what we call The Orange Line.
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