From the Library to the Front Lines of COVID-19 Aid

From the Library to the Front Lines of COVID-19 Aid: Library Staff Helps With Relief Efforts

WHEN GOV. ROY COOPER issued a stay-at-home order to North Carolinians in March as a result of a surge of coronavirus cases, it left many people scrambling for information. They were scared about a new disease, confused about whether their workplaces were considered essential and fearful about such simple things as going to the grocery store, where they might be exposed to COVID-19.

“I relied on my professional training. I knew how to look for answers.”

— ANGELA BROWN, reference librarian

Like many such agencies across the country, the Forsyth County Department of Health deployed its staff to COVID relief efforts. They also sought help from what might seem like an unlikely source — the staff of the Forsyth County Public Library.

Within a few weeks 20 staff members were answering questions on a help line, doing contact tracing of people who tested positive for the virus and working with homeless people in quarantine.

“It felt like being thrown to the wolves,” said Angela Brown, a reference librarian, who led a group of staff who answered calls and emails about the governor’s stay-at-home order.

But Brown and her co-workers did what library staff have always done — answer questions, research information and bring a helpful, friendly presence to their tasks. And yes, they even reserved books and helped people apply for library cards, as people told them that such activities gave them a sense of normalcy when many of the places they regularly enjoyed visiting were shut down.

“I relied on my professional training,” Brown said. “I knew how to look for answers.”

Jose Perez, the library’s peer support specialist, worked with the Department of Social Services at the temporary shelter that had been set up for homeless people who were in quarantine.

Perez knew many of the people he worked with through their visits to the library. In addition to worrying about their health, some of the people he worked with needed comfort and reassurance.

“It’s our job to give them hope,” he said, “no matter what their journey.”

“At first I was trying to convey information. I learned I really needed to be quiet and listen and let people tell me what they needed.”

— CANDACE BRENNAN, reference librarian

The majority of the staff who worked on the effort became contact tracers. They were charged with calling people who had been exposed to COVID-19 and talking to them about the disease, its symptoms and recommended quarantine practices. They kept in touch with daily calls, texts and emails until their quarantine was past.

Contact tracers dealt with a range of reactions from the people they called. Some were angry. Some were frightened. Some were in denial.

“Some people would say, ‘I think you’ve got the wrong number.’ I had people say, ‘You’ve got us mixed up with someone else,’” said Candace Brennan, a reference librarian. “I had other people who would be really frightened, upset and a little panicked.”

Brennan helped people find services, such as grocery delivery, that would help them quarantine successfully. She talked some people through the use of their home computers for research.

“At first I was trying to convey information,” Brennan said. “I learned I really needed to be quiet and listen and let people tell me what they needed.”

For Jessica Hassler, a library supervisor, the work of contact tracing was personal.

“It felt good and a little sad at the same time. I’d already had COVID,” she said, “so I knew how scared they were. Once or twice, I did tell them ‘I’ve been there. I know how scary this is. I’m going to call you every day.’”

Most of the library staff said that learning new technology and procedures that changed regularly during the first few weeks was stressful. It was also difficult for librarians, who pride themselves on finding the right answers, to be confronted with questions they couldn’t always answer. Eventually, though, most of the staff found their footing and said they were proud to make a small contribution in fighting the pandemic.

“Librarians want to help people,” Hassler said. “We don’t get into this line of work for the money or glory. We’re there to help. When COVID was coming for us, we said, ‘How can we help? We can help slow the spread.’” I| S

— Mary Giunca, public information officer