The Suffield Observer (https://thesuffieldobserver.com/category/library/directors-corner/)
Warmer weather is a welcome change after the dreary and isolating winter, and Kent Memorial Library staff couldn’t be happier than seeing our patrons browsing our collection, using our computers, and picking up kits and crafts to take home.
In February, the Kent Memorial Library welcomed our newest hire, Wafaa Razeq, to fill our Reference Librarian position, which was vacant since March 2020.
I hope that by now you will have attended, or at least heard about, a number of events in the Town of Suffield’s Inclusivity Speaker Series which began earlier this month. Engaging in conversations like these help remind me that in today’s socially distant world, there’s a lot we don’t know we don’t know.
In November, the Library was decorated for Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, and as we were setting up the finishing touches, the staff discussed what it must be like to celebrate this time of year in different areas of the world.
I hope that by the time you read this article, you will have heard that the Library has cracked open its doors a bit more. We have made deliberate steps forward in expanding our services since March’s lockdown.
Recently I’ve been inspired by the voices of our youth. I think it’s easy to dismiss what young people have to say because they must not know as much as the rest of us.
Each month I find us inching towards a new normal. Our Curbside Pick Up Service has been running for a while now, and with some adjustments to our hours, we’re starting to see more patrons participating.
Community is important. If it were not for my community of staff within the Library, I may not have taken the plunge into the pool of candidates for Library Director.
As we have done in preparing to offer our Curbside Service, KML staff is similarly working on developing plans for a phased reopening of the Library in the future. We are in communication with other libraries in our area and across the state gathering best practices and information to more fully inform our decisions.
Since we closed our physical building in response to COVID-19, staff at the Kent Memorial Library has grappled with working remotely from home, attending webinars and Zoom meetings, expanding networks and becoming part of a broader conversation of what libraries can do during a global pandemic.