Category: Senior Services Resources

How to provide library service to seniors, the most vulnerable population affected during COVID-19, has been the question raised by outreach librarians across the United States. According to the Central for Disease Control (CDC), 8 out of 10 deaths related to COVID-19 are individuals aged 65 years and older. While we might not be able to visit our seniors or facilities in-person for the foreseeable future, libraries can reach this population while we shelter in place. During this webinar, please find tips and tricks that David J. Kelsey of the St. Charles (IL) Public Library District (SCPLD) and Glenna Godinsky of the Gail Borden (IL) Public Library District recommend in serving the senior demographic during COVID-19.

Presenters

David J. Kelsey has been the Outreach Services Librarian at the St. Charles Public Library in St. Charles, IL since 2015, where he coordinates the department’s services and programs. David is the President-Elect for the National Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services and has spearheaded outreach interest networking groups for the Reaching Across Illinois Library System, System-Wide Automated Network, and Library Integrated Network Consortium. He was a 2017 ALA Emerging Leader and is the recipient of the Illinois Library Association’s 2018 Alexander J. Skrzypek Award. His team is the recipient of the national 2018 ASGCLA Exceptional Service Award, administered by the Association of Specialized, Government, and Cooperative Library Agencies, a division of ALA. For his contributions to the outreach field, David received the 2019 John Philip Excellence in Outreach Award from the Association of Bookmobile and Outreach Services, an affiliate of ALA. David has been published in the March/April 2017 and July/August 2018 editions of Public Libraries magazine and was featured in the March/April 2018 edition of American Libraries magazine. David received his Master of Library and Information Studies from the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Library and Information Studies and is the recipient of the 2019 Alumni of the Year Award.

Glenna Godinsky Life Enrichment Liaison at Gail Borden Public Library District in Elgin, IL and a 2020 Library Journal Mover and Shaker – Community Builder, is a certified dementia practitioner with a background in special education, having run a non-profit organization for at-risk students for over a decade. With her team of 12 volunteers, Glenna designs and implements monthly programming for 24 senior/developmental care communities. A co-founder of the Elgin Memory Cafe’ and bilingual Cafe’ de los Recuerdos, Glenna also led her city to earn the national recognition of Dementia Friendly Elgin, joined the Metropolitan Mayors’ Caucus: Age-friendly Communities Committee and TRIAD, a first-responder group for seniors and community organizations.

For more information and to register:https://nnlm.gov/class/providing-library-senior-services-covid-19-world/25401