Leann Beckwith is the Library Director at Hillsdale Community Library. Starting April 1, the library will participate in a nationwide campaign called “Geek the Library,” which will run through October. Sponsored by the Online Computer Library Center and the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, the program is intended to promote libraries across the country.
How did this program get started?
Geek the Library is a community awareness campaign that’s simple and bold—and lots of fun. It gets noticed and gets people talking about libraries. Geek the Library was created by OCLC, a nonprofit library cooperative, and Leo Burnett USA in June 2009 with a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Where did the name come from?
The campaign has changed the word “geek” to a verb. It means to love, to enjoy, to have an intense passion for, to express interest in, to possess a large amount of knowledge in, to promote. Everyone has something that they are passionate about—something they geek. Maybe you geek football or hip hop. Maybe you geek organic gardening or volunteering. Or maybe you just geek the weather. Whatever you geek, fun or serious, the library supports you. We want people to share what they geek.
What do you hope this will do for the community?
We wanted to include the downtown businesses in this campaign because we want to let people know what Hillsdale has to offer. Not just at the library, but the downtown area. To get people’s interest piqued about what Hillsdale can do for them.
What will the kickoff look like?
Local business representatives will come to show what they have to offer. They’re not selling anything, they’re just letting people know “Hey, we’re downtown and this is what we can do for you.” It is not limited strictly to businesses, we are also having a craft vendor, a yoga instructor and the Friends of the Mitchell Research Center will be available to discuss what they have to offer for genealogy research. We also hope to have the high school jazz band and orchestra come and play for a while.
What parts of these events are you most excited about?
Really, the whole thing. It’s not just one thing in particular. It’s the whole campaign because it’s different and unexpected, the logo is catchy, the visual is catchy. It’s a nationwide campaign that highlights the vital role of public libraries, educates the community and provides opportunities for people to engage with the campaign and share their stories.
-Compiled by Daniel Slonim