Library Outreach to Underserved Populations
Services to Older Adults
Column
Kathy Mayo, Manager of Community Access Services, Lee County (FL) Library System
The Public Library as Programming Resource for the Senior Community
No. 2, Apr. 2004
Eds. Note: Here is one library’s efforts to improve the quality of programs available to some of its oldest residents. What’s happening in your community? How do you encourage activity directors and senior groups to utilize the library for program materials that engage the mind and promote discussion? Please contact me at kmayo@leegov.com to share your thoughts for a future column.
Activity directors for senior residential and day care programs spend a big part of their day planning and delivering programs. Most faith-based organizations have a heavy investment in activities for their older adult members. In spite of these responsibilities, few of them utilize the programming resources available from their local public library. For the last decade, my library system has made a concerted effort to inform the people responsible for senior programming about library materials and services that can help them produce high quality activities.
We’ve done this through purchasing programming kits, networking with persons providing services to seniors, and offering training opportunities that cover the specifics of planning and implementing programs.
Pre-packaged program kits
In 1976 when Kathryn Leide and Lynne Martin Erickson developed Bi-Folkal Productions, they made a major contribution to programming for older adults. Their Bi-Folkal kits are a staple in libraries, senior centers, and residential facilities around the country. As a grateful librarian who has used the kits since the late l970s, I am still amazed at how effective they are in generating memories and discussions with their audiences.
For the uninitiated, a Bi-Folkal kit is a thematic, multi-sensory kit for use with a group of older adults or an intergenerational audience. Designed for a reminiscence experience, the kits provide all the elements that you need to conduct one program or a month’s worth of programs. They contain an audiovisual presentation – in slide/tape or video format; audiocassettes with music accompaniment for sing-along songs; large print audience booklets filled with poems, songs, and discussion starters; jokes or skits with the props to carry them out; and things to touch and sniff. The leader manuals walk you through the program and offer different ideas for using the kits and adapting them to local needs.
The Bi-Folkal people describe their kits this way: “Remembering any time or topic is easier when you can see pictures of your memories, or touch or hear or smell them. When memories are shared in a group, each person’s experiences can add to a deeper understanding of our past – and perhaps our future.” For complete information on the kits and to view their outstanding newsletters that are filled with program ideas, check out www.bifolkal.org.
The Lee County Library System started purchasing kits in 1993 as part of an outreach project for older adults in residential facilities and daycare programs. We bought two copies of each kit and one copy of each mini-kit – and ordered replacement pieces annually. They were an immediate hit with activity directors who saw their potential and grabbed them up. We limited circulation to residential facilities and daycare programs. In addition, the library purchased several slide projectors that could be loaned.
The coordinator for Senior Outreach works closely with activity directors and is an active member of their multi-county organization. When introducing new directors to library services, he demonstrates the kits with a group of their older adults and helps them to plan a series of programs.
In a community like southwest Florida with 25% of the population over 65, we knew there were plenty of groups and individuals that would enjoy using the kits. So, in 2003, we expanded our kit circulation to the general public. We customized the sample flyer on the Bi-Folkal web site and printed thousands for use in libraries and community presentations. A mailing to 400+ faith-based organizations ignited a new interest in the kits. Circulating kits filled with different pieces is not fool-proof, so we wrote new procedures and trained library staff to adapt.
This ten-year experience with Bi-Folkal kits has been wonderful for our community. Even the nicest residential facilities can’t afford to purchase their own kits, so the library is providing a valuable resource for older adults in residential facilities, daycare programs, and faith-based organizations.
Training opportunities for Activity Directors
To introduce activity directors to the concept of using the library for programming materials, we offered training where they could share ideas and learn from experienced programmers. Generally, training included sample Bi-Folkal kit presentations, tips for maximizing kit themes and adapting them to local situations, an overview of the range of programming materials available from the library, and a sharing of ideas and experiences. We offered CEUs at a small cost through the local community college.
With their full schedules, it was not easy for activity directors to leave their facilities for even a few hours. They needed plenty of advance notice for our half-day workshops in addition to the promise of program content that related directly to their responsibilities. It didn’t hurt that we offered the enticement of CEUs, refreshments, and door prizes.
Each workshop involved presentations from library staff as well as experienced activity directors. Library staff introduced them to the vast range of resources at their disposal. New activity directors needed the modeling of their peers to reinforce the message that the library was a valuable resource for programming materials and ideas.
We filled the room with sample materials to showcase the range of available library resources and the ways they could be pieced together to create a thematic program. It wasn’t long before people were discussing possible materials to use for their own program topics.
- Some of the printed formats that we highlighted were our Florida collection (gardening, history, animals), poetry, juvenile materials (with their great illustrations), cook books, songs, crafts, oversized books, newspapers, and magazines. We reminded them of the deposit collections of large print books that they could borrow every two months.
- Few in the audience knew about our extensive collections of descriptive and closed caption videos, video documentaries, travelogues, and biographies – in addition to feature films; music of every type; sound recordings of radio shows, speeches, and nature sounds; and a loaner collection of assistive devices.
- We covered Bi-Folkal kits by giving each participant a kit to examine along with printed tips on setting up and presenting programs. This was followed by short presentations by experienced programmers using several different kits. The resulting discussion produced fresh ideas for using and expanding each kit with different audiences.
- In addition, this was an opportunity to promote the assistance available from library staff, the Telephone Reference service, and in-library programs that groups can attend. Staff encouraged activity directors to schedule regular library trips so residents could continue to use the library, attend programs, and check out new materials.
When they are first hired, few activity directors have much experience with programming. Many come to their jobs thinking that they will be doing lots of crafts, games, and singing. While that may be part of the job, the library has helped them to appreciate the importance of engaging the minds and memories of their audience as well.