Greetings from Puerto Rico!
The power has finally been restored in practically all of Puerto Rico! On July of this year the electric power company were working on families in the mountain and the areas from the energy sources in towns like Utuado, Adjuntas, Jayuya, Aibonito, Barranquitas, Humacao and Yabucoa. Also, there are still traffic lights without power. But I can say that we are seen progress in our island and our people are working hard and hopeful in moving the country forward.
Regarding our library, we announce that the American Library Association will also be helping us with funds to begin the process of recovering the infrastructure and special collections. Unfortunately, we still continue with awnings covering our shelves. That's why the library needs urgent funds to fix the roof of the library, since the hurricane season began and this could threaten to damage or affect our collections. We have not been able to replace the resources that were damaged by the hurricane because we do not have the economic resources yet.
However, we are happy to communicate that we have electricity, internet (although not very stable in Old San Juan since the hurricane passed over the island) and we can provide practically all services to our community. Precisely, we have a lecture on the artist Luisa Géigel that will be on September 13 addressed to our students and the community of Old San Juan. I am very grateful for the efforts and interest shown in our case ... That is precisely what has personally given me the strength to continue fighting, because when Hurricane Maria passed through PR I only had one employee working in the library. That was one of the big obstacles I had to face because nobody is prepared to deal with such a dark and discouraging scene after an atmospheric event. I had a lot to do and did not have staff to work with since the economic situation of the School of Plastic Arts and Design of Puerto Rico was very fragile when Hurricane Maria passed. At first I felt very helpless to have to deal with my family situation, not having gas to go to work because of the chaos that occurred at the beginning and also, knowing that the hurricane had destroyed a wall of my library that I loved so much damaging part of our general collection of PR. In the middle of this the whole process of recovery, I also lost my dad. It was really hard and while I’m writing these lines, I remember how sometimes a person feels paralyzed after a traumatizing event. I think that's why it cost me so much to sit down to write ... Definitely, the post Maria chaos was one of the most difficult situations I've had to go through. Being honest, it's hard for me to remember.
Now I can say that I have 3 people working fulltime since July and they are being very helpful in this process. Finally, we can continue with our daily tasks such as cataloging and reference services. We have finally been able to acquire several tools to offer technology assistance for the disabled thanks to funds that the Department of Education gave us last year. We have started giving group orientations and we plan to do reading activities for children from the community of Old San Juan. We are motivated and eager to share our resources with all those who love art as we do. We have received the personal library of the artist José A. Martinó who after his death had left in his will the desire that this collection becomes part of our library. His easel has also been donated to us and we plan to find the funds to make a room with the name of the artist so our users could enjoy and appreciate his collection.
On the other hand, one of our graduate students developed an interesting project for the tourists. Tony Rodríguez and the photographer and editor Mariángel González devised "LOCAL". It is a cultural city guide in English, focused on art and local gastronomy. Rodríguez had a book exchange activity for the public on September 5 of this year to help our library. For every art book - in good condition - that is taken, a free guide was offered. The texts that are received will be donated to our library.
As for the community of San Juan, I can tell you that also the writer Tere Marichal has devised an initiative to promote reading among children called "Lotebiblio". It is a mobile library on the beach and emerges after the closure of many libraries on our island. She uses the traditional lottery binder case as a shelf because she understands that it is a symbol that a child has won the lottery by having a beautiful book in his hands.
As you can see, our people want to move forward because the Puerto Ricans are optimistics and fighters. I can say that this unusual event has made us all look at life differently and treasure all those resources that are examples of our culture and demonstrate our local art. This has made us stronger and wiser and professionally I can say that it has given me more tools to face other tragic events. But above all, I have been able to realize that there are professionals interested in learning about other libraries and that they are willing to collaborate. We are lifelong learners, I hope that this link with Iowa is a beginning of future collaborative projects from which we obtain a great source of learning.
Estrella del R. Vázquez Domínguez, MA, MIS
Francisco Oller Library director
Escuela de Artes Plásticas y Diseño de Puerto Rico
0 Comments.