If you look up the word “librarian” in the dictionary, you’ll find a picture of me. I’m quiet. I have a tendency to hang out in libraries. 

Every day finds me in sensible shoes and reading glasses.  Most tellingly, though, I love to read. My destiny as a librarian seemed preordained.

My close family were farmers, loggers, contractors, and teachers but in their-hearts, they were readers.  Dad loves Westerns and Mom enjoyed books about animals.  Grampy Smith was a music teacher but buried his nose in books about history. 

Grampy Swain was a farmer whom I vividly remember devouring the newspaper and working the daily crossword. Grammy Swain loved Laura Ingalls Wilder and Gene Stratton-Porter’s Freckles  and A Girl of the Limberlost.

The benefits of reading are numerous and well-documented, but was my becoming a librarian a result of nature or nurture?  Did I become obsessed with books because I inherited some strange Irish reading gene or because that’s what I saw my family doing?  Research indicates both probably played a role.  A search of Google Scholar (a search engine that narrows down the vastness of the Internet to more scholarly sources) reveals a lively reading research scene, delving deep into both aspects of reading development. 

Regardless of genetics, though, which is a crap shoot, environmental influences can be huge in breaching the gap to create competent readers.  Creating a reading-friendly environment takes a little effort, but the community’s libraries, schools and the United Way are working hard to make your lives a little easier in this regard.

Most folks are well aware that public and school libraries are their first stop if they want a book hook-up.

Libraries have taken this a step further and are bringing 24/7 library access right to your phone or tablet.

Two really great apps for ebooks and audiobooks are Libby and Hoopla, bringing you everything from heavy duty nonfiction to comics.  If you don’t already have a library card, get started with a temporary online card at https://fcls.ent.sirsi.net/custom/web/registration.

To begin the journey to reading on the laps of parents, the United Way of Mid Rural NY is leading the charge to bring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library to our region. 

The Imagination Library sends a book every month to enrolled children from birth to age five, encouraging parents to read with their littles and those littles to love books. 

Studies have shown that Imagination Library participants do better in school and are more successful throughout their lifespans.  While over one thousand children in Chenango County are enrolled, there are sadly over 80 children on the waiting list due to a lack of funding. 

To contribute, give to the United Way at https://uwmrny.org/Donate.  Specify that you want your donation to go to the Imagination Library effort under donor notes.

Regardless of how you feel about librarians, the gift of reading is one of the most important things you can give your children.

Readers are more successful in school more likely to have good careers.  While genetics has a role in determining your child’s reading ability, being read to from an early age and seeing their family reading are also very important.  Support the United Way of Mid Rural New York, sign your littles up for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, and read in your free time.  The next generation will thank you for it.

- By Connie Dalrymple, Guernsey Memorial Library