Say Thanks to a Page!

February 07, 2011

When you come into the library and browse the shelves for a book, magazine, or newspaper, do you ever wonder how those items get to be on the shelf and ready for you to use?

You might assume that the clerks that greet you at the door, handle your reference questions, or check out your items are the ones that put the books back on the shelf, but this is not the case!

We actually have special staff members that specifically handle that task, which is one of the most important in the library. 

Our library pages are the frontline staff that organize and shelve the thousands of materials that circulate through the branch each day.  They are the folks that you see out in the stacks with carts full of materials, carefully placing each item in its appropriate place so that it can be easily found the next time it is needed.  You might also see them shelving the materials you have requested from another library on the holds shelf or "reading" the shelves in a particular section to make sure items are placed appropriately. 

I bet you may have even asked one of these knowledgeable people where to find something you needed, or how to use the online library catalog.

Trust me when I say that your visit to the library could be quite different if we did not have pages to do this important work.  It is easy to take for granted that the items you need will be right where they should be, but that only happens because of the hard work and dedication of the paging staff.

So next time you see a page out in the stacks, tell them thanks.  They deserve it!

Robin H.
Blue Springs South Branch