Oak Park’s Kwanzaa celebration drew almost 200 people to the Main Library on Monday, December 30, and was a resounding success. With music, dance, crafts, artwork, food, and ceremony, the Black American harvest celebration “truly captured the spirit of community and cultural richness that Kwanzaa represents,” said Manager of Community Engagement Chibuike Enyia. Seven principles … Read more
Announcing our newest pop-up library location: Styles 4 Kidz, 235 Harrison St., Oak Park, IL 60304. Pop-up libraries allow community members to use the library when they’re out and about, no library card or checkouts needed. Styles 4 Kidz is our third pop-up library location, adding to ones installed earlier this year at the Community … Read more
Every Wednesday after school, middle schoolers gather at the Main Library for tea and snacks with their friends and a couple of trusted adults. It’s called Tea Talk, and it’s a time for everyone to talk about mental health and emotions. This mentoring group, now in its second year, draws about 10-15 kids each week, … Read more
When our Library of Things collection made its debut last September, Nicole Brown and her family were ready for it. On previous visits to the Main Library, they’d seen staff assembling the wall in the lobby (pictured above) that showcases items in the collection. Things like an electric drill, a pair of tennis rackets, a … Read more
Nothing lasts forever, and that includes your old VHS tapes. Even if you still have a VCR to play them, the tape quality can degrade as the years go by. The solution? Digitize those tapes. And you can do it for free in the Main Library Creative Studio! That’s why library patron Alex Yu has … Read more
Pop-up libraries are collections you can access outside library buildings, in spaces where people already congregate. Our first one was installed this spring at the Park District of Oak Park’s Community Recreation Center, and we’re thrilled to add a second location! Kids and families can find it at Wonder Works Children’s Museum, 6445 West North … Read more
August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, and we want to make our community aware that the Main Library offers life-saving resources just inside the front entrance. Since March 2023, overdose kits containing naloxone nasal spray (also known by the brand name Narcan) have been freely available to anyone in the Main Library vestibule, in … Read more
To meet our community’s growing needs, we partnered with Triton College this spring to offer an eight-week conversational Spanish course for 12 library staff members at the Main Library. The course was designed to help staff provide more responsive customer service and build relationships with Spanish-speaking community members who frequent the library. Rashmi Swain, Adult … Read more
American teens are in a mental health crisis, according to the Office of the Surgeon General and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—and it began even before the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s why, since 2019, assistant professor and researcher Ashley Knapp (pictured above, left), who studies teens, technology, and mental health at Northwestern University’s Feinberg … Read more
This latest issue of the library’s magazine (pdf) highlights summer reading programs for kids, teens, and adults, plus: We love to see how you use your public library If you have an idea or story to share with us for a future issue, please contact us at communications@oppl.org. You can also share stories, photos, and more through … Read more
In our continued quest to be a library for everyone, we strive to offer the widest possible access with the fewest barriers as possible. So we’re thrilled to offer a new way for community members to use the library and read library books when they’re out and about in the community: pop-up libraries! Pop-up libraries … Read more
We’re celebrating the first anniversary of the Creative Studio! Since the digital makerspace officially opened last April on the Main Library’s third floor, it’s been a fantastic year of learning, expanding offerings, and, of course, lots of creativity. “The Creative Studio provides access to technology and tools that help patrons realize their personal, professional, and … Read more
Our library strives to be a library for everyone, one that prioritizes: Evaluating our impact To report on the impact of work in these areas, the library shares monthly public updates at its Board of Library Trustees meetings, and creates annual, year-in-review impact reports. These reports showcase library work that shared the information, services, and … Read more
Did you know your library can be a great business partner? “I don’t think a lot of small business owners or entrepreneurs even know what an amazing resource the library can be,” said Anne Pezalla, co-owner of Oak Park store Lively Athletics. Here are five ways the library supports existing and aspiring business owners. 1. … Read more
Across the United States, a movement has been growing to censor books in schools and public libraries, especially books by and about people of color and members of LGBTQ+ communities. As your public library, we will continue to make challenged and endangered books accessible to everyone, and to educate our community on the history and … Read more
A few years ago, Sharon Eckhoff inherited a Mac laptop from her son. She loves pretty much everything about it, including the sensory feel of typing on it. “It’s a pleasure to work with the darn thing,” she told us. However, she realized earlier this year that, to keep up with her online courses in … Read more
When Robert Kelly (pictured above with his grandsons) was working in the software industry, he subscribed widely to magazines and newspapers from around the country. “I like to be able to read a lot,” he told us. “Because there’s so much going on in the world, I like to have a variety of opinions.” After … Read more
When Children’s Librarian Shelley Harris was gearing up for Disability Pride Month celebrations at the library earlier this year, she kept thinking to herself: “I really want to go big. I want to go so big.” Harris spoke recently with WBEZ Chicago’s Reset about the library’s third year celebrating Disability Pride Month, which marks the … Read more
By Joslyn Bowling Dixon, Executive Director More than halfway through my first year as Oak Park Public Library’s executive director, I’m pleased to report back on what we’ve accomplished so far. As I said I would do in my initial job interview, I took ample time and great care to watch, review, observe, and listen … Read more
All across the United States, there is an unprecedented campaign to censor books in school and public libraries. In March, the American Library Association (ALA) reported that 2022 saw the highest number of attempted book bans in 20 years, nearly double the number in 2021. “Overwhelmingly, we’re seeing these challenges come from organized censorship groups … Read more
