Christine Gonzalez Blazes a New Path to Bring OASIS to the Library What do you get when you mix a group of older adults, a public library and a chocolate tasting class?
What you get, says head librarian Christine Gonzalez, is a thriving community center that welcomes outside-of-the-box thinking.
"Point Loma Library is no longer just a library," says Gonzalez. "With OASIS, it really has evolved into something far greater. It's a hub."
Gonzalez knew something about OASIS from older patrons of the library when a new community room was added to the facility. She also knew that many of the area's older adults were finding it difficult to navigate the busy traffic to get to the OASIS classes offered elsewhere in San Diego.
"I figured, 'Why not approach OASIS?'” recalls Gonzalez, who was able to coordinate efforts of the Friends of the Library and OASIS staff to create a partnership that was just crazy enough to work. They started out with a few trial classes and soon discovered an enthusiastic response. The relationship between OASIS and Point Loma Library has been so successful that other area libraries are eager to model the unique dynamic for themselves.
"It has become THE thing for the San Diego Public Library," says Gonzalez. "Already, we have two or three other branches that are ready to come on board with OASIS programming this semester."
Not only has the traffic increased at the Point Loma branch, but so has the level of interest in just what the OASIS participants are up to. Gonzalez says she and the rest of the staff have really enjoyed getting to know the older patrons better.
"Now I have all of these interesting adults in my life," she says. "Libraries have generally been pretty good about providing activities and resources for children, but that adult component always seemed to be lacking."
With OASIS on board at Point Loma, that's just no longer the case. There are waiting lists for most of the classes, which cover everything from lecture-style programs on Gershwin and Broadway, to hands-on courses like "Artfully Asia" and a chocolate-tasting class.
"When I went into library work, I never imagined I'd be helping coordinate something like this," she says. "But it's working. I'm so glad we asked ourselves, 'Why not?'"