A most successful Nassau Library Tour 2023

Among the summer’s most productive activities for the Uniondale Public Library was the Nassau Library Tour 2023.

The tour period ran from June 12 through August 12. The ultimate goal was for library patrons to visit all 54 public libraries and their branches, totaling 58 public library locations in the Nassau Library System.

At the Uniondale Public Library, the tour alone generated 1,654 visits. Uniondale librarian Amanda Borgia undertook the tour, as did 82-year-old Uniondale resident York Roberson

“Congratulations, Mr. Roberson!” posted the Uniondale Public Library on July 18, nearly a month before the tour period ended. “Our treasured patron completed the Nassau Library Tour! He visited all 58 libraries.”

The Nassau Library System is the headquarters for the libraries in Nassau County, located at 900 Jerusalem Ave. in Uniondale. Its first Nassau Library Tour was in 2019. This year’s tour is the second.

“The Nassau Library Tour is a summer event where we encourage everyone to visit as many of the Nassau Public Library facilities as possible,” said associate director Nicole Scherer. “It encourages people to explore the whole county, go to other neighborhoods, enjoy the libraries, try new parks and restaurants, and see the wonderful things there are to explore in Nassau County.”

Judging by posts on Facebook and Instagram, the tour accomplished its goal quite successfully.

“We got to know places that we didn't know existed,” posted PariSarah on Instagram. “It was such an interesting experience for all of us.”

“What a great summer activity,” posted Polly_Esther, accompanying the post with a row of red hearts. “Huge thanks to everyone that made it possible.”

The “tourists” who plunged into the project, and the libraries they visited, applied their own inventiveness to documenting their journey.

Many proud “tourists” posted photographs of themselves with the tour map, which was available at all the library locations.

Some of the libraries created their own cardboard frames using the tour logo so that patrons could get a photograph of themselves in the frames.

The logo creator, Kelly Fernández, is a graphic novelist and cartoonist who is also a librarian at Floral Park Public Library. Her colorful cartoon images of two cats riding merrily in a minivan along a country road evoked the adventure of learning to read, and the fun of returning to favorite books while discovering new ones.

“The logo was created in collaboration with my contacts from the Nassau Library System: Caroline Ashby, Lisa Zuena, Nicole Scherer, and Renee McGrath,” Fernández said. “They gave me examples of what they were looking for (such as 1970s album covers, typography, and posters). They knew they wanted something bright, colorful, and groovy.”

Upon seeing the creative responses to her designs, Fernández said, “It’s been amazing! I’ve enjoyed seeing everyone’s different takes on the theme and seeing what they were able to come up with!”

The tour was sweetened by prizes offered by the Nassau Library System: a temporary tattoo at visit 5, a magnet and a sticker for visit 15, a tumbler for visit 30, a choice of an enamel pin, plush tiger doll, or hat for visit 50.

“Some libraries had scavenger hunts where they gave you things to look for in the building,” Scherer said. “All our libraries are filled with such creative, enthusiastic staff. … Social media was a big booster to this. A lot of that is the work of Lisa Zuena, our communications and marketing specialist.”

“I posted on Facebook and Instagram, and some on X (formerly Twitter), pretty much every day,” said Zuena. “Libraries posted patrons with their backdrops, with their maps, or with their prizes when they had a milestone visit. It was really special.”

The numbers that emerged from tracking the visits to all the libraries were encouraging, to say the least

“There were 62,736 library visits drawn by the tour itself,” said Scherer. “And 563 people made it to all 58 locations. We were flabbergasted. It is nearly triple the number who participated in 2019. Everybody is asking, when is the next tour? We’re not even thinking about that right now. We need to catch our breath.”