LETTER: Libraries are essential to their communities
As National Library Week came to an end last week, it reminded me of what public libraries have meant to me in the years before I ever even thought about working in a library.
From my earliest school years, when I was taken to the Carnegie Free Library in Connellsville, all I could say when I saw all the books in the children’s section was “Wow.” This was a “candy store for the brain” and I was the kid lucky enough to be in it. As I read as much as I could, especially the “Dr. Doolittle” books by Hugh Lofting, I became increasingly impatient that I had to wait until I reached the fourth grade before I could move to the bigger collection.
Throughout the years, no matter where I was, in high school, colleges, working at the post office in Washington D.C., or serving in the military in Fort Jackson, S.C., I always looked for the public library as a source for recreation and education, allowing me to “study up” on almost any topic that piqued my interest. Many days, it was a welcome place to spend time when my paycheck ran out before the next payday
It would be a mistake to think that libraries are not useful for everyday life or work or school assignments. They store or retrieve information necessary for many purposes. Librarians are trained to assist with understanding Internet searches as well as the use of the library’s resources.
Libraries are also essential to helping individuals improve literacy skills. Lack of basic literacy has long been found in those who become incarcerated. Reading disability and incarceration are intertwined. One study showed that of 2,000 inmates in Texas prisons, 80% were functionally illiterate. I was told about this by literacy workers with whom my libraries were associated in two different states.
This brings me to the final thought, and Andrew Carnegie expressed it this way: “A library outranks any one thing that a community can do to benefit its people.” He knew the benefit of access to information in the development of the mind and how it could help individuals improve their status in life. That is why he built so many libraries and required that the communities fund them. Unfortunately, this sometimes means that the library is the last item on the community’s budget and the first to be subject to cuts. The people of Monessen and Uniontown are fortunate that officials realize the importance of their libraries and the benefit they provide to their residents.
S. Fred Natale
Monessen
Natalie is the former administrator for the Monessen District Center and the Westmoreland and Fayette library systems. Natale is also a former trustee and current president of the Friends of the Monessen Public Library.