Clearinghouse of Professional Information

Friends of the Library Resources

This section includes links to websites about and by Friends groups.

SOLS supports the library boards and library staff who need advice and resources about Friends groups. For further information, SOLS Helpdesk also provides a single access point to our services. SOLS also provides tools for libraries such as Small Library Kits entitled Initiating a Friends of the Library Group (#10) and Amalgamating Friends of the Library Groups (#12).  These are available free of charge to public libraries in Ontario, on request. Contact the Toronto Office, 1-800-387-5765, ext. 5111 or  e-mail our .   Kits are available in English and French.

OLS-North assists library boards and library staff seeking information and resources regarding Friends Groups. Marjatta Asu, Library Development Advisor, Promotion and Community Development can be reached by phone or by e-mail at

Topics include

General Resources | Advocacy | Constitution and Bylaws | Friends Groups examples | How to start |  Incorporation | Newsletters | Policies | Strategic Planning| Volunteer Management

	indicates an item written by SOLS staff		indicates an item written by OLS-North staff
Clicking on certain topics will open a new window, if the link is to a topic included in an other Clearinghouse page

General Resources

• Cultivating Your Friends. (.pdf) SOLS Trustee Tip #16.
• Libdex: The Library Index: Friends of Library. Friends of Libraries (FOL) exist to assist libraries in fulfilling their mandates by fundraising, promotion, and support. Libdex compiles a geographic index of FOL pages. It also provides access to some national FOL sites.
• Friends of Canadian Libraries (FOCAL)
• Friends of Libraries Australia
• Friends of Libraries U.S.A. (FOLUSA) This website offers a wealth of information. The Network News section provides information on various conferences, current events and awards, community outreach activities including volunteers, advocacy and fund raising. Instructions are provided on how to join a new listserv, the FOLUSA-L listserv. The site also provides access to useful fact sheets on numerous topics such as organizing a friends group, fundraising, program planning, keeping accounts, friends and trustees, advocacy, board development strategy, planning a book and author event, holding a readathon, etc.

Advocacy

• Advocacy Center for California Libraries. FRIENDS & FOUNDATIONS of California Libraries. Letters, articles and papers of interest articles in online newsletter, FOLIO online links to advocacy sites.  
• Library Advocacy Now!   (CAPL Canadian Library Association) Sponsored by the Canadian Association of Public Libraries

Constitution/ By-Laws

• Friends of the Library. Constitution (Esposus, N.Y.)

Friends Groups Examples

• Friends of the Ottawa Public Library
• Friends of the Vancouver Public Library

How to Start a Friends' Group

• How to Orgazine a Friends' Group  (FOLUSA) Fact Sheet 1
• Libraries Need Friends: A Toolkit to Create Friends Groups or to Revitalize the One You Have. This special toolkit will help with the establishment of Friends groups of all types. The first half of the toolkit is for libraries that already have a Friends group and are interested in increasing its membership and/or its level of activity. The second half of this toolkit will address the revitalization of existing Friends groups. By Sally G. Reed and FOLUSA
• Should our library form a "Friends of the Library Group"? SOLS Trustee Tips # 8.
• Starting a Friends' Group (.ppt)     Rob Lavery, SOLS Consultant

Incorporation

• Business registration on Ontario (About.com)

Newsletters and blogs

• Friends of the Brockville Public Library -  Among Friends

Policies  

• Annapolis Valley Regional Library Board.  Policy on Friends of the Library (NS)
• Chatham-Kent Public Library Policy - Friends of the Library (.pdf)
• Volunteers and Friends from "Sample Library Policies for the Small Public Library ". Compiled by the Small Library Committee of the Wisconsin Association of Public Librarians, 2nd Edition, Revised by David L. Polodna, 1999.

Strategic Planning

• "Friends of the Future: Strategic Planning for Friends Group"    (.ppt) Presentation  by SOLS at the 2003 Ontario Library Association Superconference.
• Summary of Strengths/Threats and Visioning Discussions  (.htm)
• Survey  Library Friends Groups in Ontario    November 2002.(pdf) For additional documentation about the Friends' Survey see Observations and Responses.