Snapshot Day Is April 13
April 06, 2011
When you come to the library on Wednesday, April 13, you may be asked to fill out a questionnaire, or someone may take your photograph. After all, it is Snapshot: One Day in the Life of Illinois Libraries.
Did you know that every day 300,000 Americans get job-seeking help at their public 
library? Did you know that every month 2.8 million business owners and employees use resources at public libraries to support their small businesses? Were you aware that every day, 14,700 people attend free library computer classes—a retail value of $2.2 million? That’s $629 million worth of computer classes annually (based on 286 business days per year). Public libraries circulate as many items every day as FedEx ships packages worldwide. Library users enjoy $82 million of value every day from the materials checked out at libraries. These represent just a few of the many programs and services enjoyed by our APL users.
We think public libraries are among the best bargains around. If you know and appreciate the value of your public library, we hope you’ll help get the word out. We want all the citizens of Illinois and, particularly, our Illinois lawmakers to see what a typical day is like for an Illinois library. Lawmakers have reduced state funding that is vital to help libraries like ours maintain current programs and services much less provide new programs and services, purchase new materials, and support the delivery of materials from other libraries.
We’ll be joining libraries across the state in participating in Snapshot: One Day in the Life of Illinois Libraries to show how important academic, public, school, and special libraries and library systems are to the state of Illinois. On this day we will compile statistics, customer comments, photographs, and other data chronicling a typical library day. These results will be added to those of other libraries across Illinois to show how libraries provide invaluable services to Illinois citizens.
Results will be shared with community leaders and legislators, and we hope this "snapshot" drives home the point to lawmakers that their constituents—you, our patrons—rely on us for critical services, and we can’t afford any more cuts in funding to libraries.
Please visit the library on April 13th and show your support for libraries.
(Statistical data in this post is from the OCLC Report How Libraries Stack Up)