CHAMPAIGN —Founded in 1876, the Champaign Public Library celebrates its 150th anniversary this year. The library had a humble beginning as a single reading room and a collection of less than 300 books. Today, the library has two branches and is home to over half a million books.
Celebrations will take place all year long, with National Library Week being one of the biggest, from April 19 through April 25, said Salem Gebil, marketing manager at Champaign Public Library.
“We’ll also have the actual birthday for the library,” she said, on July 21 at Champaign Public Library’s main building at 4 p.m.
The birthday celebration will be complete with “different giveaways and different fun anniversary-themed crafts and activities honoring that day,” Gebil said.
Growing to meet the community’s needs
Since the digital age, the library has expanded well past its physical media collection, according to Gebil.
She said the library offers audiobooks through apps like Libby and Hooplah, as well as movie streaming through Kanopy.
“Growing that collection for a growing community is so important because it first and foremost really starts with access to information and access to resources,” Gebil said.
A good library fills holes within the community and creates a welcoming space, she said. In recent years, many entrepreneurs have needed information to help start their businesses, and the library responded.
“We now have business services for folks who want to start from scratch,” Gebil said. “We have a business librarian who meets with people one-on-one.”
Gebil said these programs and resources are funded by both Champaign property taxes and community donations through the Champaign Public Library Foundation.
She said, “We have a very generous community that does like to support and if they choose to support their library, they can choose what that support goes into.”
Mara Thacker, a librarian and associate professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, said public libraries should aim to serve their community’s specific needs.
“It’s not just about the books, it’s about the spaces they provide, the events, the programming,” they said. “Everything from very high-register, serious topics to help people be successful in their careers, to things that are just meant to help people be creative, to connect with each other.”
Helping the community feel more connected
The Champaign Public Library averages over 100 programs a month, for kids, teens and adults.
The library has two locations: The main library at 200 W. Green St. and the Douglass branch at 504 E. Grove St.
Thacker said the library’s creative workshops are good examples of programming that help adults meet new people, feel more connected to their community and learn new skills. They said libraries are one of the last living examples of third spaces, which are spaces for community that exist outside of work and home.
“Everything feels so heavy nowadays,” they said. “I feel like a space for fun, discovery and delight are so important for being able to just be a whole person in this world and approach everything else you do with your whole self.”
Gebil said the library provides a third space that’s safe, reliable and welcoming, especially to teens. Everyday 80 to 100 kids come to the library’s after-school Teen Lounge program.
“Teen Lounge is basically a safe environment for teens after school to come and socialize with their friends, or partake in a new project,” she said. “We have different things in the studio, like they can sew, they can hop on a gaming station.”
Both the main library and Douglass branch have creative spaces with recording booths, sticker making machines, 3D printers, laser cutters and more.
“For those who need a little bit more help [with tools or machines], we do have what we call ‘Book-A-Librarian’ sessions,” Gebil said. “We want our librarians to be considered a resource too.”
She said one of the library’s essential aims is to not only make these resources available but accessible.
“It can be sometimes a little daunting to come into a space you’ve never been, but we want to kind of eliminate that discomfort or eliminate that fear, because we really are here to help,” she said.