For me personally, all this was compounded by my work on our newest and most exciting (well alright I'm probably biased) project, MPI-Ecuador's public lending library (otherwise known as la biblioteca activa y virtual). Such a library is still a new concept in many developing nations, Ecuador included. While public libraries do exist in large cities like Quito, they rarely check-out books and almost never had a children's section. Our library, the first of its kind in Quito county, would do both. Since the end of 2008, we've collected donations (the financial, hardback and paperback varieties) from NGOs, MPI campus chapters, individuals, businesses, and other organizations in the US and Ecuador.
Beginning in January, I started figuring out logistics for the library. I scoured used book stores, met with Ecuadorian publishers, found furniture, bookcases, and other library materials. Working closely with Seth and Mark, I also helped devise rules and administrative procedures for the project and in crafting the new teen center adjacent to the library. The whole time, we worked hand-in-hand with local community leaders, asking for their advice and guidance at weekly meetings, and utilizing their help in selecting books, advertising, and making connections with local business and individuals.
The day of the inauguration was an exciting one. We had spent the previous week alongside the enormously helpful Duke University spring break group painting the space, organizing books, and situating furniture to make sure everything was in place for the big day. As the festivities began that afternoon with the concert that Seth tirelessly organized, we started to get a bit worried about the paltry attendance. However, we soon realized cultural issues were to blame as locals started pouring in for the concert and subsequently up to the library (only 1.5 hours after the show began, actually pretty prompt by Ecuadorian standards!).
Locals relaxing at the concert and watching from library space (3rd floor)Teens and adults alike starting teeming through the library stacks, asking for help looking for books on Neruda poetry, self-help guides, Harry Potter, and American history. The history buff, in fact, ran back up to me a few minutes later asking if I could help him blow up the book's picture of his idol Sitting Bull. Meanwhile, toddlers were piecing together puzzles with their young parent s as the older children paged through Dr. Seuss (Juevos verdes con jamón, no me gustan Juan Ramón!), Aesop's Fables, Where the Wild Things Are (o sea Donde viven los monstruos), and other less famous kids' favorites.
Puzzles, books, and computers, oh my!One of the other highlights of the afternoon was the new friends and acquaintances we made. I talked with the VP of a nearby neighborhood, where we've never worked, about potentially forming a partnership while our summer volunteers are in town. Similarly, I spoke with a teacher from a small village 100 KM away who had some sound advice and plenty of encouraging words. The only trouble came when our our friend Lance, an American-born doctor, stopped by, and I switched to give the library tour in English, forgetting how to say "rompecabeza" in my native tongue (turns out it means puzzle, oops).
Library Stacks
At 6 PM, as I looked around the library space, I was stunned to see over 50 people reading, playing puzzles, relaxing in the teen center, or just standing on the balcony to watch the concert. An hour later, we finally descended from the library to enjoy the end of the concert with the rest of the community. Upon seeing over several hundred people down below, we suddenly realized what a success the day had been.
As Americans who have grown up with lending libraries readily available in our communities and schools, it can be hard to make the transition to the Ecuadorian mentality and realize how lucky we've all been. While the best Ecuadorian private schools certainly lend books from the extensive libraries, it is a completely different story in most communities around the country. On the one hand, its eye-opening for us to think about how to make this model fit in a place where its so uncommon. From brainstorming about how to placate concerns from community leaders that books will to be stolen (a problem we have yet to run into almost a month after opening) to emphasizing that of course, children are not only welcome, but encouraged to come in, there are a multitude of differences. I think nine-year old Dennis summed it up nicely when he stopped by on his bike one day before the opening. As I explained the library's structure he exclaimed, "You mean I can check out a book and take it home with me?!".
Dennis
Thanks again to all our library donors!
Books For Life International
Campus Chapters at Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, and Vanderbilt
Claudia Diaz
Lance Evans
The Geller Family
Alejandra Gomez
The Hand Family
HealtheChildren and Jens Haerter
Highland Park United Methodist Church
MoneyGram International
The Robertson Program at Duke and UNC-Chapel Hill
Linda Smith
The United States Embassy to Ecuador
The Ward Family
Jordan Wolf
If you would like to make a donation to the library project, please click here!
And to see our Amazon wishlist, click here.
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