The following post was written by library student assistants America Negrete, Ally Scarpa, and Kaylee Tokumi.
On Tuesday, October 2, 2019, the William H. Hannon Library held its second annual Open House. The event also celebrated the library’s 10th anniversary and the 106th birthday of its namesake, William H. Hannon. In this spirit, the Open House was hosted as a carnival! Students completed a wide array of activities which were led by the friendly and helpful library staff.
Our goal was to teach new students and regular visitors of the library how to better utilize the resources available to them, and to help everyone become more comfortable in the library. We achieved this by setting up various carnival-themed activities and lessons. Five engaging experiences were set up across the first and second floors of the library, each hosted by a different department. After completing each task, visitors were rewarded with a zine page that featured eye-catching illustrations and collages alongside helpful information about the library. (Note: A zine is a magazine about a certain subject, not written by a professional, which is fun to assemble and read.) Once all five activities were completed and all five zine pages were collected, the pages could be combined to make a perfect guide for the library’s resources. As an added bonus, guests were rewarded with a library shirt upon completion of the zine. This year’s shirt design was dazzling red with an elegant illustration of Hannon Library drawn in white.
Beginning on the first floor, the Library Essentials station featured a game of tic-tac-toe in which guests flipped cups onto a board decorated with upcoming Pub Night speakers. Pub Night is a monthly event during which an LMU professor speaks to the community about his/her latest publication or project. If you would like to learn more about Pub Night, please visit the library website for more information.
The “Check Us Out” station was led by Circulation staff. Visitors tried their hands at throwing ping pong balls into small bowls. The activity was a challenging test of skill and dexterity that encouraged players with candy and gift card prizes.
Then, guests visited the Information Desk to play a game of ring toss and learn from the Research and Information team. Upon completing the activity, visitors spoke with a student worker about different ways to receive research support.
The next activities awaited upstairs. However, visitors may have encountered Iggy the Lion before reaching the next station. It’s always great to see and take pictures with our energetic school mascot. Of course, no birthday party is complete without cake! Guests were also able to enjoy a decadent piece of chocolate or lemon cake that featured a stunning photo of the library.
At the ITS Service Desk, visitors learned about the library catalog from the Collections team. After navigating the online catalog, guests were treated to a fun Lion King inspired video which featured Dean of the Library Kristine Brancolini and an adorable Iggy the Lion plush.
The last activity which rewarded guests with a zine page was the “Extra” Special Collections station. Visitors were able to take pictures with props such as oversized postcards.
Once all the zine pages were collected, guests sat at our zine station. Here, visitors were able to customize their zine with markers, gel pens, fun cutouts, and more. Coloring pages and activities such as word searches filled the pages alongside helpful library information. The zines served as a fun activity for Open House patrons to complete, but also as a useful guide to the library. Students poured over the word searches and collaborated with each other to find the trickier words. Some students patiently sat around the art supplies and decorated their zines with fun colors and illustrations.
As the fun-filled night was wrapping up, guests had the opportunity to enter a raffle and win Iggy bobbleheads, LMU blankets, and more. Overall, the Open House was a success with over 250 attendees! Guests enjoyed the fun activities, delicious cake, red t-shirts, and customizable zine. If you missed this year’s Open House or if you loved it, be sure to come back next fall for the third annual Open House!
For information on future events such as this one, sign up for the library’s monthly newsletter or follow us on your social media platform of choice @LMULibrary.
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