Since 1966, the motto of the Lynchburg Public Library has been “a library for all citizens.” It’s one thing to repeat it for nearly 60 years, but how do you show it?
That was the question we asked ourselves last fall. I had just stepped into my role as the Public Engagement Coordinator, where my goal was to create deeper community partnerships. It was exciting for us as a staff. We had a list of people we immediately wanted to partner with. If you’ve ever started a new role that you’re passionate about, the feeling is probably familiar. Realistically, I knew I needed to start small to get my feet wet.
I reached out to Ryien Smith, the CEO and Founder of For The Deaf Girl, a local non-profit dedicated to creating a deeper community for women with hearing loss. I’ve known Ryien for nearly a decade and followed her health journey closely. She was diagnosed with hearing loss later in life after years of misdiagnosis. Now as an adult Ryien’s goal is to use her non-profit to connect women of all ages and lifestyles with resources designed to help them navigate the hearing world.
A Game of Charades
I asked her if she’d be interested in shooting an Instagram Reel with me at the library, highlighting deaf and hard-of-hearing authors as well as teaching our patrons some signs. It was an easy “yes” from her.
At the time we posted the Reel, it was one of our most engaged social media posts of all time. It also got the word out about the poetry slam, which was our highest-attended adult program of 2023. Many of our local college students came out to support it. The best part is that a game of silent charades broke out spontaneously. It was amazing to see people excited about such a special event.
In June, we were awarded an American Library Association PR Xchange Marketing Award for Best Materials Promoting Collections, Services, and Resources with our Deaf Awareness Month Reel. The award recognizes the best marketing materials produced by libraries all over the country. More than 334 entries in print and electronic formats were submitted from more than 100 institutions, including public, academic, school, state, and special libraries. Entries were evaluated by a jury of 25 virtual judges, and submissions were assessed based on the quality of content, format, design, creativity, and originality.
Awards are great but what it represents to our team is more important.
It marked the start of a new era of building partnerships with our community and continuing our mission. Since partnering with Ryien, we’ve gone on to connect with other amazing non-profits and businesses. We love nurturing these partnerships and growing our reach within our community truly making it “a library for all citizens.”
-Tobi Laukaitis, Public Engagement Coordinator – Lynchburg Public Library
