Every time I hear someone say we don’t need libraries anymore, my blood boils. I was a librarian for 20 years and absolutely loved my job. I know just how many services libraries, and librarians, provide.

As a college professor, I always find myself with my students in the library at least once a week. Our college’s librarian is wonderful at providing assistance, but with so many students and only one librarian, I never mind helping out. I love showing them how to use one of the library’s databases, search for the perfect article, or even use the copier.

Teaching online I didn’t expect to do as much library work, but I was very pleasantly surprised at the reality. Online classes have many students and many of them are hesitant to contact the college’s librarian. Of course, I always encourage them to make use of the many amazing services the wonderful college librarians provide. And I am always amazed at just how quickly the librarians respond to my emails or chat messages.

I love creating fun videos to show my students how to access the library’s databases and find the perfect sources for their research papers. And I never mind working one-on-one with them either, as we meet in the class zoom room and peruse the library’s databases together.

As a professor, I have access to my college’s databases and amazing librarians. But I still use my local public library for many things. I love checking out actual physical books as well as eBooks. But I also make use of their databases and online streaming services, as well as the reference services they still provide in person, online and even by phone.

Whenever I visit the public library, I’m always pleasantly surprised to see how busy it is. There are children listening intently to story hour, pages shelving, clerks checking items out, reference librarians answering questions, avid readers perusing the stacks, and countless people making use of the computer terminals to search for jobs, take courses, or conduct research.

So, the next time you hear someone say we don’t need libraries or librarians, remind them we all do.