Why Libraries
I recently returned from a convening with 60+ library leaders from across the country. Today, I write to share some reflections from this experience and why I am more committed than ever to our work supporting libraries.
Hosted annually by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, we come together to learn and grow through our experiences leading libraries and library support organizations in Boston, Chicago, Charlotte, Philadelphia, Miami, Los Angeles, Cleveland, and yes, Saint Paul.
This year, we reflected on and recommitted to our work in the context of today’s environment. Here are a few takeaways I want to share with you as a fellow library supporter.
“Shared spaces show us a path to a shared future.”
Knight Foundation CEO Maribel Perez Wadsworth made this remark during her keynote address. I find myself coming back to this idea in my daily work. Libraries are about our future, and they are also very much about our past and present.
Libraries hold our history. They help us understand where we come from and who we are. From the artifacts in our local archive at George Latimer Central Library to the newest bestseller on the shelves at Highland Park to today’s daily newspaper at Rondo, libraries are keepers of our stories and our memories, providers of free access to current events, and keys to an equitable future. A well-curated library is a treasured and trusted resource.
A public library provides every person with access to in-person, physical and digital experiences that can fulfill our desire to learn, engage, escape, inspire, inform, evolve, and more. Another conference speaker noted, “people with access to information don’t just know more, they do more.”
We all engage with the Library in ways unique to us—and that’s the beauty of it.
Libraries are one of the last truly public spaces where every person (every person!) is not just permitted, but welcome. What that means for each of us will be different, but collectively it means that Saint Paul Public Library is a place to:
- drop in to check email on a computer
- attend a performance
- access immigration resources and information
- get help with homework
- participate in a Storytime program (in the language we speak in our home)
- interview for a job from a private, tech-equipped study room
- check out a book (or movie or vinyl album or jigsaw puzzle)
- sit quietly and read a book
- work in the maker spaces
- fax forms required to apply for county services
- register to vote
- and more!
In 2024, more than 1.2 million people walked through the doors of our libraries. Right now, the Library’s Director, Maureen Hartman, is encouraging her staff to continue to focus their energies on the core work of being a library: open the doors every day, welcome people into our spaces, and engage in radical hospitality and responsiveness.
This leads to a final and more personal reflection from this convening.
Regardless of the topic we were discussing, I found myself returning to four powerful themes:
- Work locally.
- Prioritize the power of relationships.
- Don’t underestimate the asset of trust.
- Focus on purpose.
This is the work of libraries. At The Friends, we remain committed to our purpose of support for Saint Paul Public Library and its people. We rely on and are grateful for the many, many relationships across Saint Paul that make this possible, and we commit to earning and maintaining your trust in all that we do.
As Perez Wadsworth noted, “Power grows where trust remains.” Thank you for your belief in the power of public libraries.
Beth Burns, President
The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library