How To Start A Friends Of The Library Group

Dorothy Macnaughton Vice-President, Friends of Canadian Libraries President, Friends of the Sault Ste Marie Public Library OLA Conference, February 2, 2008 Copyright © 2008 Friends of Canadian Libraries  What Friends Do  Role of the Friends  First meeting  Organizing your Friends group  Volunteers  Events  Your Friends       Advocate Increase public awareness of the library and its services Raise funds, over and above the library’s operating budget Sponsor programming Provide support for library programs or special events Establish a good volunteer base    When the Friends consider their role, their objectives and how they will accomplish them, they need to consider how the Friends organization fits in with the library’s mandate and strategic plan Friends partner with the library, undertaking complementary activities The Friends can pursue opportunities for advocacy activities and fundraising that the library can’t    The Steering Committee and, later, the Friends President, should communicate regularly with the Library Director/CEO or staff liaison The Friends are an independent organization, with their own Board, Constitution and By Laws The Friends Board is not a governance Board    The Library Board is a governance Board, responsible for monitoring the library’s budget, staffing, policies and strategic plan A good relationship should be established between the Friends Board and the Library Board Many Friends organizations have a Library Board member (Ex officio) on their Board   While the Steering Committee is setting up a Friends group, the Library Board representative will keep their Board informed Library Trustees and staff should be welcoming and appreciative of Friends’ volunteers, as they are not only giving a great deal of time, they are also promoting the library in the community Friends of Libraries U.S.A Fact Sheets (under Resources) (on FOLUSA web site – www.folusa.org)  Role of the Friends Board  Role of the Library Trustees  Board Development Southern Ontario Library Service – Initiating a Friends of the Library Group  FOCAL’s forming a Friends Group Manual First Meeting  Promotion  Planning ◦ sample agenda    Do some research and find out who the media contacts are for PSAs and advertise your event at least two weeks ahead of time to ensure your event is well promoted Holding a fundraiser that garners media attention will assist your group in becoming known in the community If you are holding a book sale or a yard sale, for example, it should be held in a location where many people will see it  Research how other Friends groups organize their book sales  Determine the needs of the library and the volunteer labour you have available  Find a key volunteer to be in charge of the Book Sale  Find a second key volunteer to schedule volunteers  If you have only a few volunteers, find out if some local high school students (who need their 40 volunteer hours) can help out  Schedule lots of time to set up and take down If you are attempting to lobby the municipal government to avoid library closures, for example, request a simple one page information sheet from the Library Board explaining what the main issues are and why the library branches shouldn’t be closed  Emphasize the personal stories and how much the library means to people in the community   Once members of your group have the library’s information sheet, ask them to write letters to the editor of the local papers (in a coordinated manner) and/or phone their City Councilors FOLUSA Fact Sheet on Advocacy      Characteristics Job descriptions Recruiting volunteers Membership Success!    During Steering Committee discussions, the kinds of activities you would like to plan, key volunteers required, and how often you need to meet should be determined These decisions can be changed as your group matures If there are enough volunteers, you may want to have a Fundraising Chair or a Book Sale Coordinator and it would be a good idea to include all key positions in your Constitution and By Laws, even if you might not have people to fill them immediately Simple job descriptions for key positions will help the volunteer understand the time commitment involved and the nature of their responsibilities     Promote your group at every opportunity and communicate how you will be supporting the library Speak about specific tasks the potential volunteer could help out with Contact those interested in volunteering quickly before they end up volunteering for another organization Put posters in specific locations where potential volunteers congregate – all library branches, Seniors’ Centres, etc Generate media coverage of your event/activities    Understand that recruiting volunteers today requires updated and effective strategies Check out “Recruiting and Retaining Volunteers”, an OLA conference session, 2007 by Reva Cooper on the FOCAL web site (www.friendsoflibraries.ca) under Conferences, Archives Refer to the FOCAL sheet, “Ten Tips for Recruiting Volunteers”     Develop a simple one page handout explaining that you are a group of people who love their library and are forming a Friends of the Library group Later on, you can hopefully find a volunteer with the skills necessary to develop a Friends brochure Hand these out at every event or activity Be specific about skills desired for certain tasks and how much time the volunteer will have to commit Whenever you are speaking to someone, be enthusiastic about your involvement and encourage others to join the group to help out    It is beneficial to have paid annual memberships to ensure you have a good base of active volunteers and, especially in the early stages, some funds coming in from membership dues If you offer reasonable dues, with a patron membership, which is a larger amount, those people who don’t want to be actively involved can still offer financial support Develop a membership brochure      Great support from your Library Board and staff Patience Enthusiasm Good organization A feeling of accomplishment, even from one initial event      Visibility in the community Excellent media contacts A good volunteer base Being willing to learn from what other Friends groups have done A good recruitment plan for additional volunteers and Friends members  Manual: “How to Form Your Friends of the Library Group”, FOCAL 2007  Available from the OLA Store and from FOCAL  FOCAL Website - www.friendsoflibraries.ca FOLUSA (Friends of Libraries U.S.A.) web site - www.folusa.org  Contact: Dorothy Macnaughton Vice-President Friends of Canadian Libraries 67 Amber St Sault Ste Marie, ON P6A 6N6 (705) 759-0733 focal@accessola.com