Repair and upcycling program wins award for Florida Public Library

Helping Our Community Through Repair & Upcycling program at the Florida Public Library was announced as the winner of the 2022 RCLS Member Library Adult Program of the Year at the Ramapo Catskill Library System’s Annual Meeting on September 16 . The library’s winning program was part of the American Library Association (ALA) Libraries’ Transforming Communities: Focus on Small and Rural Libraries initiative that helps library workers better serve their small and rural communities.

The library used this initiative to converse with the community about repairing and upcycling broken household items to keep them out of landfills and help preserve the local environment. Representatives from the library’s Board of Trustees, the Warwick Repair Café, Sustainable Warwick and other community organizations joined the conversations. The discussions led to the purchase of a variety of new items for FPL’s Library of Things that can be used for repairs, such as a portable sewing machine, electric knife sharpener and portable work table.

The Library also hosted three programs to help people learn how to make certain repairs on their own, taught by members of the Repair Café, who donated their time.

“The community was supportive of this project and the new items in our Library of Things. We also gained a valuable community partner with the Warwick Repair Café who continue to borrow items from our Library of Things,” said Library Director Meg Sgombick.

Following the Awards Presentation, Diane Arcieri, FPL board member was re-elected to the RCLS Board of Trustees as one of their Orange County representatives. She is a longtime local resident, a retired human resources consultant and an active member of Friends of Florida Public Library.