Johns Island library reaches out to Hispanic community

Diversity Task Force pursues ideas to better serve area minority groups JOHNS ISLAND--Librarians at the newly opened branch on this sea island, hoping to reach Hispanic children, planned a special story time last month. Lisa Schaffer, who manages the library's children's section, arranged for College of Charleston Spanish students to lead it. She distributed fliers in local Mexican restaurants, Hispanic markets and elsewhere to get the word out. In the end, just one Hispanic girl showed up. And she spoke English. "We had to improvise for that one," Schaffer says. "We used it as an opportunity to introduce some Spanish words to her." It also taught an early lesson to Schaffer and branch manager Darlene Jackson, who are at the forefront of the library system's effort to reach the Hispanic community, the county's fastest-growing segment. Because many Hispanics are new to the Charleston area, library officials acknowledge there's a lot of trial and error involved in figuring out how best to serve them. For instance, Jackson once saw a Hispanic woman approaching and welcomed her with a Spanish application for a new library card. The woman thanked her but asked for one in English instead. "You never assume anything," Jackson says. Jackson says she is visiting with groups in the Hispanic community to ensure the new branch doesn't duplicate their work and to discover what Hispanic residents would really like. "A library is a luxury in a lot of the countries where they're from. It's not been a part of their world," Jackson says. She has learned that creating awareness in the Hispanic community is only part of the job; many Hispanics have trouble finding a ride to get there. The networking already has begun. Schaffer says the library's next few Hispanic story times will be held at the nearby Our Lady of Mercy Outreach center on Brownswood Road, and they will be geared to entertain children while their parents take classes in English. The new Johns Island branch has about 1,500 books, movies and DVDs in Spanish -- about 4 percent of its overall collection -- but English versions were relatively more popular during November, the first full month the branch was open. Jackson says she will continue to monitor what's being checked out when deciding how much more Hispanic material to add. "We want to grow it based on community input," Jackson says, adding that she isn't sure whether members of the Hispanic community prefer material in English, like the woman who asked for a library card application. The library's shelves are only about 35 percent full, so there's a lot of room to stock based on demand. "It's an ideal time to try new things out," Schaffer adds. "Every time we talk to someone, we learn something new." The branch library's efforts are the most visible initiative to emerge from the library's Diversity Task Force, which came up with a series of ideas and policies designed to reach new minority groups. Cynthia Bledsoe, manager of the main library and a member of the task force, says it created a thick volume, with information in Spanish, for all libraries about the library system and other government agencies. There's even a section where an English-speaking librarian can learn to say a few basic sentences in Spanish. "Even if you are uncomfortable with your pronunciation, at a minimum, they could pull it out and have just the basic phrases you would need to get by," Bledsoe says. The Johns Island library's efforts to make Hispanics feel at home extend beyond providing a diverse collection and sponsoring special events. A sign at the front door states the library's code of conduct in English. Next to it, a similar sign outlines the library's "Codigo De Conducta." The library has three computers dedicated for Spanish-speaking users, and there are handouts in Spanish about education, health and legal issues. Jackson says the library's overarching goal is to connect the island's diverse communities, which also include a growing white population and a longtime Gullah culture, and she is finding a lot of interest in all communities in doing just that. "Every group is saying, 'Hey, I want to know what's going on over there,' " she says. "That's the beauty of this library being in this community at this time.

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