Chapter 2: La Biblioteca gets its first review

After a half-hour drive from the airport, we arrived at the gate of Santiago Christian Academy. After being let in by the guard and parking, we were greeted by Doug Kreeger and Doug Amundsen, Crystal Salsman, and all these people (maybe others?) helped us get our luggage up to the efficiency apartment that we three would share. We have two bedrooms (Bev Monroe and I share one bedroom, Ginger Kirk has the other), one kitchenette with microwave, coffeemaker, toaster and electric teakettle. We have hot water in the shower and the kitchen--so that's a blessing. We need to be careful about the timing of showers (versus other apartment dwellers and when laundry is done down below), but all very manageable.

Only local tv channels, but that's okay--none of us are big tv fiends, and at least I caught a couple seconds of "El Chavo" this afternoon.

Ann Garcia and Crystal Salsman

Early Readers' section at SCA, Chile

So after unpacking and snacking and chatting (with Heather Admundsen and others), we three librarians jaunted over to see the library at Santiago Christian Academy (located on the same campus that we are staying). Kids scurried busily around us, but we headed straight for the library where we met with the current care-takers of the sacred site: Ann Garcia and Crystal Salsman. We took a lot of time with them and with Bob Patten deciding on how we would set up the computers and what books needed what action--culling, cataloging, organizing, alphabetizing, boxing, fixing, rearranging, and so forth.

And remember, that this library recently was shaken up by an earthquake. All the books were all over the floor, and everyone pitched in to get it all back on the shelves. The tomes are actually in very good shape (for having gone through an 8.something shuffle plus being quite old some of them), so that's a good thing. But one wall-long shelf was broken, and so a new shelf has been built and freshly painted.

So the first steps of our project included:

• Deciding on a program
• Installing it on the necessary computers
• Discussing with the care-takers where the book sections should be placed (early readers, Junior Fiction, non-fiction, reference, etc.)
• Dusting some shelves
• Moving some books to have space where we need to move other books to
• Sorting out donations between sections (fiction, non-fiction, etc.)
• Planning spine label formats
• Getting bugs out of the program 

Sojourn Academy Library, Costa Rica

Once that kind of planning is done, we are on to data entry, and a LOT of it. So that means a lot of exploring and discovering through the Library of Congress where each book should sit on the shelf.

I know that may not sound exciting to you, but we three library magi love this business. 

Behind our work will follow young readers and researchers able to delve into the words and worlds meant just for them!