CHICAGO – This weekend, libraries across the country will play an important role in celebrating the cause of reading during Make It Matter Day, sponsored by Reader’s Digest magazine.

On Saturday, Oct. 3, more than 100 events will be held on this national volunteer day of reading, writing and learning in support of literacy and education. Libraries will join schools, Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCAs in taking part in the inaugural event.

Events will include author read-alouds, storybook scavenger hunts, Pictionary and Scrabble tournaments, as well as creative writing, crossword puzzles, riddles, hangman and sentence work, all to support the love of reading and learning.

The American Library Association (ALA) has signed on as a sponsor of Make It Matter Day, with ALA’s Campaign for America’s Libraries providing promotional support “The ALA supports Reader’s Digest in its commitment to literacy and education, which matter to the librarians who help foster the literacy skills Americans need to participate fully in a global information society,” said ALA President Camila Alire.

Earlier this year, the editors at Reader’s Digest asked its community of 37 million Americans to identify the cause that mattered most to them. The pre-selected causes were hunger, literacy & education, environment, supporting military families, human rights, violence, rebuilding New Orleans, health & wellness, and children & youth. The winning cause was literacy and education. For more information go to http://www.readersdigest.com/makeitmatterday.

“Literacy is at the core of our country’s success,” said Peggy Northrop, Editor-in-Chief of Reader’s Digest. “We are excited to be rallying people to support such an important cause and in the coming years we will focus on other causes that matter to our community.”

Through its Web site, Reader’s Digest offers a number of resources, including a literacy directory that highlights key literacy issues, a book-club resource that provides valuable advice on running a book club, reading resources, online book clubs, and reading group guides.

Reader’s Digest magazine, (http://www.readersdigest.com), the world’s most widely read magazine, is published in 21 languages and reaches 70 million readers worldwide.

To learn more, listen to the following podcast.

<BGSOUND src="http://pio.ala.org/visibility/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/make-it-matter-day1.mp3">

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There was something unexpected at this year’s Farm Progress Show in Decatur, Ill.: libraries.

The Decatur-based Rolling Prairie Library System designed its Farm Progress Show booth with the theme “Think outside the barn @ your library” to promote the value of librarians, libraries and their services to the residents of agricultural communities.

Rolling Prairie originally created “Think outside the barn @ your library,” which uses the Campaign for America’s Libraries’ “@ your library” brand, for the 2007 Farm Progress Show. The “Think our side the barn” logo has appeared on banners, yard signs, coffee mugs, post-it notes and the staff’s polo shirts.

Check out photos from the show on ALA’s Flicker page.

“The theme catches people’s eye,” said Bev Obert, executive director of the Rolling Prairie Library System, who is seen here in a recent video. “We use it as an opportunity to get people talking about their libraries, how they use their libraries.”

Catching people’s eye is the key. The Farm Progress Show is the nation’s largest agricultural show, with an annual attendance of 300,000 people from 20 states and 10 countries. For the Rolling Prairie staff and its volunteers, it’s the perfect time to talk about the importance of rural and small libraries.

The booth offered visitors the opportunity select a book to take home with them from the literal ton of books that were donated from Rolling Prairie’s member libraries. Each book was emblazoned with the message, “A gift form your Illinois library.”

“We wanted it to be generic,” said Obert. “We wanted to get people thinking about not just Rolling Prairie, but their library, and what their library means to them.”

While people browsed the stack, Obert and her staff talked with people, reminding them about what the library has to offer them. The booth proved so popular in previous years that visitors specifically looked for it this year.

Rolling Prairie has participated in five Farm Progress Shows with the goal of raising awareness for rural and small libraries across the country and helping those libraries do the same. Obert and her staff have taken the show on the road, leading “Think outside the barn” presentations at last year’s Illinois Library Association’s Annual Conference in Chicago and at last week’s Association for Rural and Small Libraries conference in Gatlinburg, Tenn. Rolling Prairie has also lent its signage to area libraries during Agricultural Week, Future Farmers of America (FFA) Week and for local fairs.

“The campaign has remained fresh,” says Obert. “We plan on using it for many years to come.”

Contributed by Megan McFarlane, Campaign for America’s Libraries

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The American Library Association’s (ALA) Public Information Office (PIO) is gearing up to work with the Office of Intellectual Freedom (OIF) on the 28th annual Banned Books Week, held Sept. 26 – Oct. 3.

Observed since 1982, Banned Books Week is an annual event sponsored by ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom (OIF). It celebrates the freedom to read and reminds Americans not to take this precious democratic freedom for granted.

This year’s celebration will kick off on Sept. 26 with a “Read-Out!” event at historic Bughouse Square on Chicago’s North Side. Authors will perform readings from their banned or “challenged” books and will sign copies of their works.

Online resources are available to help local libraries publicize Banned Books Week activities. Free downloads, display ideas, activity ideas, PSA scripts, a letter to the editor and a proclamation are available at www.ala.org/bbooks. Posters, bookmarks, buttons and a BBW resource guide are available for purchase.

For more information on Banned Books Week or the Read-Out! event, please visit this site or contact Jennifer Petersen at (312) 280-5043, jpetersen@ala.org.

Contributed by Jennifer Petersen, Public Relations Coordinator, ALA Public Information Office

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