Volunteering in the library
is worth doing. I began my library volunteer life after I retired from work as,
you guessed it, a librarian. I was barely out the door after my retirement
party at the Edgerton library when I walked into the Meadowridge library near
my home and asked them to give me something to do. They said to come in on
Mondays. They gave me the pick list. What’s that?
In case you are wondering
how those books, videos and other items show up for you to take home from your
library when they aren’t in its collection, here is the answer. The magic of
automation and a real person get together to find them and send them to your
home library, thanks to the pick list. Your job is to interact with your
library’s catalog, find the book or other item, place a hold on it if it isn’t
on the shelf where you are, and then wait. If you are catalog challenged, you
ask a person who works in the library. You can place holds from home, too. Your
library will notify you when that terrific novel arrives, so you can pick it
up. How good is that?
The library’s automated
system produces the request list daily. Someone, such as me or a library
employee, finds the items. The staff people then pack them up and send them to
the appropriate libraries to check out there. If you have asked for the latest novel by
Janet Evanovich, and it has five hundred people ahead of you on the list, you
must wait your turn. That novel has many copies owned by various libraries, but
just like your children, you must wait your turn.
Thomas Jefferson invented
a system for organizing his many books, which became the beginning of The
Library of Congress. Organizing materials is an old idea. Public libraries
mostly use the Dewey Decimal System. They are cataloged and shelved according
to call numbers on the spines of the books. Who determines the call numbers?
Librarians, of course. Call numbers tell shelvers where to put those items and
people like you and me where to find them. Those DVDs, books and other things
don’t just jump into my little basket like a puppy. I must find them with the
help of those call numbers on the printed pick list.
Of course we have some
challenges. The books on the shelf may not be in good order. The music CDs are
never in perfect order. Browsers often don’t think about the Dewey Decimal
System when they stuff materials back on the shelves. Sometimes we are unable
to find items on the pick list. Kids often leave books on the floor. I hate to
say this, but sometimes library users are impolite even though it’s a good
thing for them to be comfortable in the library. Silence is old school.
Many libraries use
volunteers in addition to the people who work there. Before I retired I worked
with volunteers in several libraries, including teenagers and people with
disabilities. Typical volunteer jobs have included the pick list and shelving. Sometimes
volunteers presented children’s storytimes in libraries where I worked.
The pick list has
broadened opportunities for people who once had to travel to other libraries to
access their collections. I’m glad it’s there.
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