Last year Amy, our Teen Librarian, handed me a sheet of paper and said, “We’ve got to do this!” That sheet of paper was a flier for the Louisville Free Public Library‘s annal How-To Festival. Internally, I gritted my teeth. Having worked for another library that hosts one too, I knew how much it takes to organize it. And both libraries have more staff, bigger communities, and larger facilities.
Also, I’ve never organized a WHOLE FESTIVAL.
But externally I said to her, “This looks like a lot of work, but I think we can do it!” I tacked the flier to my cubicle wall and told her, “Let’s aim for next spring.”
Reader, we did it.
On Saturday, May 10, the Basehor Community Library hosted our first ever How-To Festival. And it was a success! An estimated 150 people from our small community showed up to learn new skills and hobbies through twelve break-out sessions and over ten different drop-in booths. We had everything from “How to do make buttons” to “How to do Tai Chi” and couldn’t have been happier with the turnout.
How It Came Together
Around the end of February, Amy and I realized that spring was approaching fast, and needed to start the planning process. We envisioned 45-minute sessions and all day drop-in demonstrations taking place in the library, under a tent on the library’s lawn, and on the newly built Civic Campus next door.
We developed a presenter application that we sent out through the library’s Mailchimp account, the website, and social media. We also created a questionnaire for session ideas from patrons who’d be interested in attending but not presenting.
We received a decent response from the application, but not quite enough to fill our targeted time frame. From there, we coordinated with interested volunteers and reached out to people we knew who might be willing to present, but didn’t see the application. Amy also corralled volunteers from her Teen Advisory Group to help manage the event and offer sessions.
For an extra draw, we wanted food trucks available for patrons to purchase lunch. We hoped for local options, but every one we reach out to was already booked. Another staff member suggested joining an area Facebook food truck group where you could post your event, and we received several responses after we did so.
Once we had a list of “How to’s” scheduled, we printed fliers, added the schedule to our website, and filmed a couple of silly promo videos for social media. We also reached out to the local school district, the City, and other organizations to help promote it.
The Taco of Success
The day honestly started out slow. Only a few people attended our 10 a.m. sessions and the tent was looking desolate. I was getting disappointed, but I kept thinking of Dani from Netflix’s Love on the Spectrum who told her date, “The taco of success drips with the salsa of failure.” It was a learning opportunity!
As the day progressed, though, more and more people started appearing. There were crowds at “How to paint with water colors” and “How to make balloon animals,” and people were excited about the schedule of offerings. I was worried about the food trucks, but they had lines too!
Our most popular sessions were “How to decorate a cupcake” and “How to prevent plumbing nightmares.” “How to Paint with Water Colors,” “How to Make Coin Rings and Bracelets,” and the Basehor-Linwood Kiwanis’s “How to Fit a Bike Helmet” were popular drop-in booths. And we heard many great comments!
We had some setbacks (one of our food trucks didn’t show), and learned that probably should have started the sessions a bit later to give people a chance to arrive, but overall, we couldn’t have been more pleased with the day.
The success of the festival wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our teen volunteers, library staff who helped at the event, the Friends of the Basehor Library, the Basehor-Linwood Kiwanis, the Basehor Parks and Recreation Department, the Fairmount Township Fire Department, and all our presenters!
I’m so glad, and thankful, that Amy suggested this idea. It was well worth the time and energy with both put into it. I should also credit the Louisville Public Library and the Lawrence Public Library for inspiring us to host our own version. Thanks for the ideas!
William the Librarian 