MAKING CONNECTIONS THAT COUNT Manitoba Libraries Conference, 2016 I strongly believe every library should have a Friends group. Throughout Canada and the United States, Friends groups are generally formed out of a desire on the part of library supporters to do something positive and productive to help our libraries. Why Friends Groups Form There have been instances where a Friends group was formed specifically to advocate for increased municipal or township funding. Haliburton, ON Friends were formed out of a desire to improve the local government funding base and they utilized provincial benchmarks to plead their case. They were successful and have since become just as successful at fundraising for their library branches. http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conference%2 0Archives/Advocacy/Fay-Playing-Politics.pdf Friends groups may be formed, on the recommendation of the library CEO and/or Library Board, to help out with a capital campaign. The North Grenville Friends of the Library in Ontario, were formed, with the encouragement of the Library's CEO, to help raise funds for a new library, which became a reality. https://ngpl.ca/about-north-grenville-public- library/support-the- library/friends-of-ngpl/ The River John Public Library in Nova Scotia became a reality when a Friends group was formed to raise funds to cover the mortgage of a new building. http://www.parl.ns.ca/locations/riverjohn.php The idea of forming a Friends group may be initiated by a librarian, Library Director or CEO, a Library Trustee, or a library user. A public meeting is arranged, usually held in the library, with a key organizer who ensures the meeting runs smoothly and covers what is necessary to begin the process of forming a Friends group. American Friends groups have excellent materials on the United for Libraries website, but many of them are quite specific to American regulations on charitable
organizations. In 2007/2008, Jami van Haaften and I wrote a FOCAL manual to assist libraries, Library Boards and volunteers with critical information on how to get a Friends group off the ground. Manual on "How to Form Your Friends of the Library Group" o Order from FOCAL http://www.accessola.org/web/FOCAL/Resources/Friends_manual/FOC AL/Resources/Friends_Manual.aspx?hkey=0587bc24-0adb-4c7a-bbd0- b063277aa134 SlideShare PowerPoint o http://www.slideshare.net/jvanhaaften/how-to-start-a-friends-of-the- library-group Checklist on Starting a Friends of the Library Group o http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conferen ce%20Archives/Friends%20Groups/Checklist-2016-final.pdf Friends groups can be an informal and fairly simple group or a more organized one, depending on the volunteers who are doing the initial planning, the time commitment they are willing to give, and/or the kinds of activities they want to do. Friends Volunteers All Friends groups, whether large or small, have a dedicated core group of volunteers. Many groups have only 10 to 20 active volunteers. Library consumers, and in some cases, interested library book club members, often form the basis of a successful Friends organization. In one community (Lindsay, ON), members of the genealogy club make up the majority of the Friends. There are many ways to recruit and retain volunteers. It's important to have Volunteer Application Forms readily available where the Friends sell books or at Friends events, as well as on the Friends or the Library's website. If someone can't find the Volunteer Form easily, they may give up and volunteer elsewhere. Many Friends groups ensure the volunteers know how much funds are raised, either through the Friends Board minutes, a newsletter, the library's or Friends' website or
web page, or by a note left where the Friends sort. This way, the Friends are aware of how their efforts help the library in a tangible way and they are more likely to remain with the Friends longer. Volunteer Recruitment and Retention Today Part I http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conference%2 0Archives/Volunteer%20Management/recruit-retain-part1.pdf Part II http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conference%2 0Archives/Volunteer%20Management/recruit-retain-part2.pdf Increasing Volunteer Involvement for Friends Groups and Libraries http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conference%2 0Archives/Volunteer%20Management/615- increasing%20Volunteer%20Involvement-HPL.pdf http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conference%2 0Archives/Volunteer%20Management/615- Increasing%20Volunteer%20Involvement.pdf Community Outreach and Public Awareness Once a Friends group is established, though it may be small or just starting out, the core group of people involved can represent the Friends and the Library in your community. The Friends form a network which reaches out into the community in a variety of ways. If the Friends hold an event, such as a book sale, a silent auction, a pie social, or a bake sale, they are garnering media attention and public awareness from those who attend, their friends and family and the broader public. When Friends solicit donations from the public for book sales, they increase awareness of the library and bring people into the library.
Friends groups have the opportunity to build wonderful community relationships and develop a reputation of commitment, reliability, trust and respect with the library staff, Library Trustees, and the broader community. Because Friends of the Library groups are very much grassroots organizations, they not only have the actual Friends volunteers, but also have friends and family connected to those Friends. This broader outreach into the community comes in handy when the Friends need additional help with a specific fundraiser (e.g. young people to help move boxes of books - our own children and their friends), help connecting with media, a venue for an event, or help spreading the word about advocacy efforts. It never fails to surprise me the number of people with whom I speak at Friends events who have never been to the public library. These kinds of opportunities give Friends volunteers a great opening to speak to these people about what the library has to offer. In the case of Sault Ste. Marie, the Friends also operate a used bookstore in the main branch of the library (which the Friends promote at every event), and sometimes, this is the way we can get new people into the library. Even the smaller Friends group I am with has a shelf unit of books and other materials for sale in the library and we let people know they can also purchase books there through the Township's monthly newsletter. Because the Friends who receive book donations and sort the books for sale are in the library on a regular basis, they can chat with customers. I've done this for many years. It is an informal way of sharing our love of books, sometimes sharing information about a library program, helping someone find a book they've been looking for and making people aware of what the Friends do. Some of them also become volunteers because the work of the Friends is highly visible and they become aware of how this helps out their library. They also see that we have fun and socialize as we work. You never know when the media will be interested in what the Friends are doing. In Sault Ste. Marie, we had a reporter for the local paper who was a regular bookstore shopper. He made sure there was a picture in the paper every year about the book sales we did in the mall. With the Prince Township Friends, we are fortunate to have a district reporter on our Friends Board and she submits an article about some interesting item relating to the Friends she thinks the paper might be interested in. For example, they did a feature article about the Prince Township Friends selling books online to raise additional funds for the Friends and the library. Brochures http://www.accessola.org/web/Documents/FOCAL/Resources/Conference%2 0Archives/Friends%20Groups/lindsay-brochure.pdf
Recommend
More recommend
