We’ve asked libraries across Colorado to submit program they’ve run in the last year that they’re proud of and they want the rest of us to see and celebrate. Sharing stories in books is great… but what about our stories? The stories of the ways our libraries bring the community together, enrich the lives of our neighbors, and serve the people who live and work in our cities and towns.
Nadia Rendon, Spanish Services Coordinator, answered our call and we’re excited to let them tell you about Club de Lectura de Cuentos Cortos (Short Stories Book Club) at the Rodolfo “Corky” Gonzales branch of Denver Public Library in their own words.
Library Name: Denver Public Library
City/ Town: Denver, CO
Program Name: Club de Lectura de Cuentos Cortos (Short Stories Book Club)
Date/ Date Range of Program: Monthly, Ongoing
Intended Audience: Spanish speaking adults (18+)
Description:
The shorts stories book club in Spanish is a weekly 1.5 hr. session where participants don’t needs to read anything in advance. They get a copy of the story of the day and each of the participants take turns reading and all together discuss the story.
How did you come up with the idea for this program?
Many public libraries and organizations offer remedial programs such as ESL or citizenship classes and I wanted to offer something more equitable such a book club in Spanish for people to come read in their native language. Eventually people with advance English skills joined the group until it became a mix of native speakers, second generation Spanish speakers who may have lost much of their language through the years, and English speakers with advance Spanish skills.
What partners (if any) did you work with in developing or implementing this program?
No partners needed for the actual program but the group has become very tight and we have been able to do field trip to 3 museums and lunch all together. Museo de las Americas, History Colorado, and Denver Art Museum. We also had the opportunity to have a guest reader during Spanish Heritage Month, who translated classic short stories to colloquial Spanish and came to read and discuss the stories with us. (Editor’s note: Find these translated short stories at A Leér Más Cuentos.)
What about this program did you find successful? How did you measure the success of this program?
Attendance to the program has been very consistent and participants always stay afterwards to socialize.
Final Thoughts:
Many of the participants are older adults and this is a place where they can come and feel welcome and socialize while they are doing something they love. I would love to see more programs of this type around Colorado.
Nadia has permitted us to share their contact information so that anyone interested in reaching out to them about their program can do so. It is an incredibly generous offer of which you are invited to avail yourself if you’re inspired by their work and want to celebrate them or if you have questions about ways you can follow their lead.
To reach Nadia, email them at nrendon@denverlibrary.org
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Colorado State Library (and the readers of this point as well, no doubt) understands how time consuming, emotionally draining, costly (in so many ways), and challenging it can be to run a program or project. Sometimes they fail gloriously… sometimes they fail with barely a whisper. It can be hard to recover from that. You’ve worked so hard!… and it just didn’t work out. Be gentle with yourself. Self-reflect. Pick up the pieces. And then get to the next thing. It’ll be worth it.
For all those other times, be sure to celebrate. Brag about it! Feel good about yourself, the team that collaborated on your work, and the community members who participated with it. Celebrate your hard work and the value that you contribute to your community.
Tell us the story of your program just like this library did here. Submit your library’s program for a Program Spotlight featured here and shared as far as Colorado State Library news reaches.
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