Libraries as Social Hubs - Riley Apon

Hi everyone,

In this post I'm going to write down my thoughts about how libraries serve as social hubs for their communities.

I've looked into a few articles about this subject using Palomar College's databases and I will be referring to an article titled Public Libraries: The Hub of Our Communities" by Wayne Senville for this post. To briefly sum up this article, Senville emphasizes how important it is for a community to have a library, especially ones located in a city's center. Senville goes over some of the benefits of having a downtown library like how "libraries can generate increased business for local merchants".  Also, Susan McMahon, a city planner for Windham County, Vermont, had stated in the article, a that libraries serve as a place "where you can see your neighbors"

Senville also discusses how libraries have become welcoming centers for immigrants and mentions a story of how a Dominican Republic man has taken conversational classes at the library to better his English but has also taken the opportunity to make new friends with people from a lot of different countries.

I think the library has become more than just a place to read and check out books. When I first started working at one, I was surprised at just how much we do in terms of our programs and services, like our yoga classes for example. I was also surprised at just how popular the library was to just be at.

As a person who works at a public library, I get to see firsthand new relationships forming when programs wrap up and attendants gather around to talk among themselves. I've seen new parents talking to each other about different the ways of raising their kids or where other popular places might be to spend time with their newborn child. I've also witnessed new friendships form from out teen volunteer's advisory group where this small group of high school kids work together to put on programs for the smaller children. Lastly, I myself have made new bonds between regular library goers, getting to know them a little better as I work with them and it feels good to have that sort of connection. I've seen kids ask each other what they're names are when they work together to put on a puppet show in our children's area. The library really is a place where you can make friends.

To conclude, I never really thought too much of the library growing up. But after having worked for one for over a year now, I can see how important my library is for people to gather and to get to know each other better.

Senville, Wayne. "Public Libraries: The Hub Of Our Communities." Aplis 22.3 (2009): 97-103. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Apr. 2015.