October 20-26 26 marks National Friends of Libraries Week 2024. This annual celebration (est. 2005) is coordinated through United for Libraries, the library Friends and trustees arm of the national American Library Association. BIG NEWS: MALF is pleased to share that the Governor’s Office has also - for the first time - officially designated October 20-26 as Friends of Libraries Week in Minnesota!

Congratulations to the Friends of the Pelican Rapids Library, newly announced as winners of the 2024 Evy Nordley Award for Best Project. Synopsis – Even as adults, we've all dreamed of stepping into rich worlds from…

Are you attending the Minnesota Library Association conference on October 24-25? If you have some flex time while in Rochester, the MLA conference team would greatly appreciate if you could spare it for one or more volunteer shifts. Needs run a wide gamut: silent auction help, wayfinding assistance, room hosts, registration support, and set-up and tear-down support. Most shifts require only 50-60 minutes. Remember: Many hands make light work!

Thanks to the more than 100 of you who turned out (or for a virtual event, perhaps we should instead say tuned in) for MALF’s fall conference, Saturday Splash. We fit a remarkable amount of content into two hours and hope that you enjoyed hearing and learning from Friends colleagues – as well as from our tremendous keynote presenter, Kao Kalia Yang.

What do you call it when a Friends program creates a brand-new revenue stream, draws residents into the library for their first time, and costs the organizers $0 to implement? In the case of the Austin Friends of the Library and their 2023 fundraiser “Puttin’ in the Stacks,” it feels all-too-appropriate to term that rare achievement a true "hole in one."

In an average year, more than 6,000 people descend on Falcon Heights for this one-day celebration of the book, which is coordinated by Rain Taxi. It’s no wonder why. More than 70 presenting authors and nearly 100 exhibitors will offer a jam-packed day of booths, panels, and other programming geared towards readers (and aspiring writers) of all kinds.

We've all dreamed of stepping into rich worlds from children's literature: timeless environments like those found in Where the Wild Things Are, Harry Potter, and classic European fairy tales. Last August, library lovers in Otter Tail County enjoyed a rare chance to do exactly that – courtesy of the Friends of the Pelican Rapids Library and their aptly named ‘Once Upon a Time’ Tablescapes Luncheon & Silent Auction.

The Detroit Lakes Chamber of Commerce proudly boasts: "It's not just Mother Nature that puts on a show around here." That tagline is a reference both to Becker County’s natural amenities and to the area’s robust arts and culture scene. In addition to the “usual suspects” – like theaters and artist coalitions – Detroit Lakes owes its curb appeal to the equally creative volunteers behind the Detroit Lakes Public Library Foundation (DLPLF). Their latest venture is more than decorative and takes an unexpected form: a new, much-needed, and fantastically adorned drive-through book return.

Minnesota is a hotbed for creative, effective and replicable Friends of the Library activities. Several of MALF’s keynote programs are dedicated to showcasing exactly that. Happily, we are not entirely alone in this regard. United for Libraries, the Friends and trustees arm of the national American Library Association, is currently welcoming applications for its new United for Libraries Awards for Innovation.

Author Elizabeth Andrew is credited with saying: “Volunteers do not necessarily have the time – they have the heart.” That’s a truism if ever we heard one. Friends of the Library who do the most for their groups aren’t necessarily the members with the freest or most flexible schedules. That just makes the invaluable contributions of Friends all the more impressive.

United for Libraries Virtual is slated for July 30 - August 1. Full conference registration is just $149. If you cannot attend all three days, single day pass tickets cost $65/per. (Further discounts are available for ALA members.) Panel topics will run a wide gamut!

Who decides a library’s budget? How does interlibrary loan work? What is a library advisory board? These are among the many questions about public library governance and operations that MALF fields every month. Even stalwart, lifelong Friends of the Library may be confused about critical aspects of how their library functions...