Marian the Librarian

Marian the Librarian
By Rebekah Husted

I am a librarian.

Every summer for the four years I've been in college, I have gone home to Prague, Okla. The first summer I went back, I needed a job. I asked around, and finally the city manager called and offered me a sweet deal: I could work 20 hours a week at city hall and 20 hours across the street at the library. Since I spent a good deal of my childhood at the library, I was thrilled to have a chance to work there.

That half-time job that summer became a full-time job the next three summers. The second year, I took over most of the event planning, and the last two years I handled all of the public relations work for the library.

I loved it. I loved planning events for the kids, chatting with the newspaper owner when she came to check out books, putting together a book signing for a local author, convincing my boss that I am a "technology guru," setting up the library's Web site and blog.

During these summers spent at the library, I've learned a lot. Some of that knowledge is unrelated to public relations (for example, never get "Cowboy," one of our favorite patrons, started on women and guns), but some of it will be very helpful in my career.

First, I learned that public relations includes a lot more than writing press releases and organizing events. Yes, I wrote a lot while I was there, and yes, I organized several events. But every time I spoke to a patron, every time I helped make it easier for them to find what they were looking for, I was doing what is at the heart of PR: I was building relationships with the public.

Second, I learned not to let failure disappoint me. Prague is a small town. Not all of the events the library held had a big turnout; sometimes we had seventy-five children at a program and sometimes it was just the kids from the daycare next door. I had to learn to accept that and to concentrate on making the experience great for those who did come.

Finally, I learned to have fun no matter what. Sure, some things - dressing up as a clown or a cowgirl for a kids' program - were more fun than others. But one of my favorite moments from last summer came from something that could have been very frustrating. Learning to see even bad experiences as "PR experience" helped me find the good in some otherwise bad situations.


And, of course, I learned how to clown around a little bit.

Photo credits: Carol Hunter, Rebekah Husted