The Library of Congress (LC) has awarded the Washtenaw County Library for the Blind and Physically Disabled (LBPD) the first annual Network Subregional Library of the Year Award. Congratulations to librarians Margaret Wolfe and Mary Udoji!

LC’s National Library Service Director Frank Kurt Cylke said that the library has “demonstrated excellence as regional and subregional libraries respectively. They have raised the bar for providing community outreach and dependable service, and we celebrate their accomplishment.”

LC’s press release notes, “The LBPD in Ann Arbor was recognized for providing excellent service. The facility also seeks to sustain the social, emotional and intellectual health of people who are blind or live with low vision. For example, the library’s 10-year-old Book Lovers Club is a bimonthly forum allowing patrons to develop commonality and strengthen friendships. The library presents an open workshop, Braille Instruction and Blind Awareness, for people interested in learning Braille and about the lives of visually impaired people. In cooperation with University of Michigan students, the library developed the Many Ways of Seeing Workshop to help blind and visually impaired individuals create works of art. In addition the LBPD exhibition “Visions: What’s New in Technology for the Blind and Visually Impaired” has been a focal point for vendors, consumers and volunteers.”

This award is not the first for Washtenaw LPBD. In October 2006, the LPBD won the Michigan State Librarian’s Award of Excellence and in 2004, Margaret Wolfe won a librarian of the year award from the New York Times.

It is great to see a Michigan library honored with these well-deserved awards!