Susie Anderson
Staff writer
Across Chautauqua today, readers of all ages will proudly wear circular stickers identifying the title of their favorite book. A daunting superlative for some and a conversation starter for many, the tradition falls under the Smith Memorial Library’s annual celebration of Library Day.
From 8:30 to 10:30 am today, Chautauquans can gather outside the Smith to play word games, eat sweet treats and talk about books in a celebration of the cherished community spaces of public libraries.
What was once a formal tradition involving lecturers and a brass band has since evolved into a community gathering that encourages discussion, play and celebration, according to Smith Memorial Library Director Scott Ekstrom.
“People love just looking at each other’s stickers and talking about that. So that was probably harder to do if you had a speaker or a brass band playing at the same time,” Ekstrom said.
In the process of adopting a more casual format, the event has also become a more successful fundraiser for Friends of the Smith Memorial Library, an organization that helps fund special projects such as the furniture on the library patio and an accessible book drop-off at the side of the building. Visitors are encouraged, but not required, to donate to the Friends fund.
“If you join — if you give us a gift of any size — you’re a Friend,” Ekstrom said.
For gifts of $100 or more, Friends will have their selection of free book gifts. For donations of $150 or more in celebration of the recent sesquicentennial of Chautauqua Institution, donors will receive a bookplate in a Smith Memorial Library book.
One of 38 libraries in the Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Library System, the Smith welcomes local librarians to share in its celebration today. At a time in which federal cuts threaten funding of libraries, Ekstrom emphasizes the importance of Chautauqua and supporting libraries as beacons of democracy.
“It is such a luxury for us to be in this community of fair-minded readers, and people understand that a good library has a little something in it to offend everyone,” Ekstrom said.
Rather than promote particular ideas, libraries open the door to exploration and discourse.
“Libraries don’t have any political opinions, except for that everyone has the right to read what they want,” Ekstrom said.
The Smith offers the opportunity to read, learn and explore to around 57,000 visitors in a single season.
“We average 90 people coming into the library every hour, or someone every 40 seconds,” Ekstrom said.
Of those visitors, a third come to check out books, a third come to work or use technology and a third come to enjoy the community space. With a no-shushing policy, the Smith offers visitors the chance to read and interact, capturing the magic of discourse and curiosity in true Chautauqua fashion.
“This small-town library experience — that’s very busy and has an excellent collection — is a non-digital engagement of humans,” Ekstrom said.
