Senior Citizen Outreach at Huntsville-Madison County Public Library

Huntsville-Madison County Public Library Sets a High Standard for Senior Outreach

Rodney C. Lawley; Information Submitted by Mandy Pinyan

With Alabama’s senior citizen population expected to increase by 82.4% between 2010 and 2040 (ADPH, 2021), the demand for library services from senior citizens is sure to increase. Meeting this need will require innovative strategies from public libraries like the one initiated by the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library (HMCPL). Their proactive outreach services offer a helpful blueprint for addressing this issue.

HMCPL librarians recognized long ago that senior citizens do not stop learning when they retire. For this reason, the library developed a “Senior Services” program that provides intellectual and social stimulation for elderly residents who are unable to visit the library.

HMCPL works with over 40 nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and senior living communities, to serve immobile seniors, and the number of these facilities needing assistance is expected to increase.

According to Mandy Pinyan, HMCPL Outreach Services Manager, librarians contact residential staff prior to their visits to evaluate the needs of senior residents. In this process, they often discover necessities that extend beyond simple access to library materials and demand interactive programming for emotional and social support.

Senior Services Coordinator, Ms. Elaine Leffel, reminds residents of upcoming visits, records their book requests, and works to brighten the day of senior citizens who sometimes lack needed support networks or receive infrequent visits.

Pinyan describes Leffel’s work with admiration and respect, emphasizing her importance as a library ambassador to the groups.

Another important part of the HMCPL outreach is “Senior Storytime.” Requests for this service are increasing according toPinyan, and she believes the readings help “trigger memories withpictures, music, movement, and sensory recall.”

During the pandemic, HMCPL librarians were not allowed to visitnursing homes. Knowing elderly patrons needed their help morethan ever during this time, librarians maintained contact throughphone calls and began curbside delivery of books and movies.Pinyan stressed the emotional and physical challenges librariansfaced while providing services during this ordeal, commenting, “Wedo the best we can in a landscape that is still changing.”

Large print books for seniors are expensive and present a challengeto outreach efforts. HMCPL mitigates some of these costs throughthe reallocation of discarded large print books from their branches.They also pursue grant funding, and Pinyon expressed her gratitudefor a recent grant provided by an employee giving fund.

The Extension and Outreach Department of the HMCPL producedimpressive circulation numbers in 2021. They provided 5,544 largeprint books, 1,117 DVDs, 305 books on CD, 143 music CDs, and12,029 regular-print books to their patrons.

Exemplary Leadership:

The staff of HMCPL have set an exemplary standard for outreachservice to elderly senior citizens that can—and should be—emulatedby other libraries in the state of Alabama.

Please visit the HMCPL website for further information on their exceptionalprogramming: https://www.hmcpl.org/.

Reference:

Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH). (2021). Website. Health Rankings: Geriatrics. https://www. Alabamapubli chealth.gov/healthrankings/geriatrics.html