LIFTING THE COMMUNITY WITH A PASSION FOR LITERACY

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Donna Pohl. Read her story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.

Donna Pohl may be retired from her career as a librarian and a schoolteacher, but her role in promoting literacy is more important than ever. In 2012, Donna became a member of the board of the Friends of the Bryan and College Station Library System, an organization that works to promote the public library and encourages all citizens to use the diverse offerings provided by the system. She furthered her role in 2017 by becoming the manager of membership and book sales. Whether she’s encouraging community residents to sign up for their first library card or designing a comprehensive floor plan to ensure the library’s book sales run efficiently, Donna’s mission is always tied to encouraging community members to find a love for learning.

While Donna’s passion for reading is powerful, she also follows a mantra that “libraries are not a luxury, but a necessity.” In addition to providing the community with timely reading material, the Bryan and College Station Library System gives residents access to essential services and information, no matter their financial status. These services could include free access to daily newspapers to catch up on the news or the opportunity to attend or host events in community spaces that focus on learning and connection. Her work in getting the 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten program up and running is a particularly powerful initiative that will establish a love of reading in children before they ever step foot into the elementary school system.

Donna Pohl is a beacon that lights the way for literacy in the Bryan and College Station community. Her dedication to demonstrating how public libraries are essential components of any community is a strong example of how powerful volunteerism can be.

Tell us about your volunteer role with the Friends of the Bryan & College Station Library System.

My role started by just going to the book sales, and eventually, I joined the board of Friends of the Library. That has grown into my being in charge of the membership database, receiving those memberships, money and membership forms, and getting that in the database. The other part of my job is to get our floor plan ready for our sale. We have three sales a year, so I have a floor plan that I design according to the number of books that we have in each genre, and then I help other volunteers unpack those books and get them in the right order on the tables. I’m in charge of the book sale, and I have a co-person who helps me with that. And then, of course, all the other volunteers work the book sales as well.

What inspired you to get started with this initiative?

I’m a librarian and a schoolteacher. Literacy and books have always been a big part of my life. I’ve taught elementary and I’ve been a librarian from elementary up to college. I was an educator for 42 years, and I think that’s just something that you don’t turn off. There’s always that need inside to do something in that area. I retired. I didn’t quit, and that’s my avenue now for continuing to be active. I think it’s very important that when you retire, you don’t just quit. I had a friend who was a member of the board at that time, and she nudged me into it slowly, but once I get into something, I usually jump right in.

What’s been the most rewarding part of your work?

Just hard work. Doing three book sales a year is a lot of hard work, and many people help. It’s not just me, but I feel so finished after each book sale because so many people come. Our room is packed, and we make a nice sum of money with each book sale, which goes right back into the library system. That hard work pays off and that makes me feel good.

What have you learned through your experiences as a volunteer?

That there are many personalities involved, and we are all volunteers. Usually, when you’re a volunteer, you don’t do it because you have to. You want to be there. So that’s a whole other avenue of respect that comes with being a volunteer.

Tell us about future partnerships, programs or events that you are excited about.

Right now, we have a project called 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten that is up and running in a ringer library in College Station, but we haven’t been able to support it financially yet in Bryan. Overall, Bryan is a community of historically underserved people, and that need is there for those children. What we do is put 10 books in backpacks, and right now, I think there are about 50 backpacks. Those books have to be replenished. The families check those out, they read those 10 books and bring the backpack back to the library and check out another one. The goal is to read 1,000 books before kindergarten, and the board is very supportive of getting it up and going.

Why is it important for others to get involved with causes they care about?

I was brand new when I came here 15 years ago. Part of my reasoning was to get to know the community. Like I said, I’m involved in other activities with the community as well, but I think that it is so important to get to know different people in your community in different ways, as well as to support your community. So that was my main reason: the support of the community and to keep myself active.

Any advice for people who want to start volunteering?

We have had people at the book sale inquire about how they can help. Right away, we give them a job to do, and they can always come and help us sort books into the right genre because everything we get is donated. So that’s usually how we get people started. From there, if they want to know more, they will ask about the board, and we are certainly always willing to tell them.

What do you want people to learn from your story?

How important it is to recognize the needs of your community. Our goal is to always be mindful of what the needs are. With the funding that we have, we provide lots of different things to the community. We support all of the summer reading programs and we do things for all individuals in the libraries, like supporting the wireless printing. We buy the printers and computers, and we pay for the printers and the copiers in the library. It’s more than just literacy; it’s other activities that other members might come in and need to use in the library.

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Donna? Find local volunteer opportunities.