THE Provincial Library of Misamis Oriental, in partnership with the Provincial Government and the Friends of the Library, will be having an outreach program for the inmates in the Misamis Oriental Provincial Jail and Rehabilitation (MOPJ) on March 9 as part of the observance of the Public Library Day.
Richel Pajara, Misamis Oriental Provincial librarian, said they will give to all the MOPJ inmates some personal hygiene kits, which include laundry soap, bath soap, shampoo, face towel, sanitary napkins (for girl) and free haircut, among others.
A feeding program will also be conducted during the activity, Pajara added.
"We are also a community builder, so lumalabas din kami sa library (we are also going out of the library). And we found out that yung mga (those) people inside the provincial jail, those are the people na sometimes wala nang (losing) hope already because they are already inside the jail so we came up with this outreach program/spiritual nourishment to give them hope," Pajara said.
With its theme: "Limang K para maging OK sa Aklatan (Kultura, Kalusugan, Kabuhayan, Karunungan, Kalikasan)," the celebration of the Public Library Day will promote the effectiveness of books in different areas, such as culture, health, livelihood, knowledge, and the natural resources, Pajara said.
"This celebration will not only give us more books to read, more information to gain but this will also showcase the services that promotes humanity for everyone being behind bars or not," Pajara added.
The provincial librarian added that the observance of the Public Library Day is also "to fight ignorance and illiteracy among our people in order to promote their economic and social wellbeing and make them better members of the community."
Pajara also expressed her thanks to the Friends of the Library, as they are the ones who support and sponsor all the projects or programs of the Provincial Library.
"We cannot achieve this project without the Friends of the Library. Because of the Friends of the Library, na pursue po namin yung project namin, yung (we are able to pursue our project, the) outreach program and spiritual nourishment," Pajara said.