Over the past 16 months, COVID-19 has forced public libraries to consider how to contribute to their patrons’ health and well-being. Anythink Libraries in Adams County, CO, has developed Renew, a new initiative designed to offer its participants both helpful programs and an online method of tracking their progress developing a lifestyle that is healthy physically, mentally, and emotionally.

Erica Grossman, Anythink’s former Innovations Manager, explained the motivation for the initiative. “A key strategic focus of Anythink is cultivating a community that is happy, healthy and safe. Like many other libraries, Anythink had to adapt and reimagine its services throughout the pandemic. That kind of creative thinking led us to wonder: What new ways might we be able to support the health and wellness of our community?”

Anythink’s administrators already had experience offering such programs to its staff. “Every year, we host a staff wellness program designed to build camaraderie while also promoting health and wellbeing,” added Grossman. “By extending this program to include our community, it seemed like an ideal opportunity to support an environment of healing at a time when it is most needed.”

Renew, available October 12 through November 12, allows patrons aged 18 years or over to create online profiles, develop goals, and log their activities to measure their success at achieving those goals using either the Renew app or the online platform. The website’s welcome page tells participants, “Renew offers strategies for all aspects of well-being—physical, mental, social, and emotional. You can personalize your experience, focusing on the Renew activities most relevant and inspiring to you. Repeat activities that work best for you or mix it up.” As of October 20, 63 staff members and 125 community members had registered for Renew.

Anythink has been offering various programs on subjects ranging from young children and mothers’ sleep habits to the KonMari method of organization to mindfulness. During one such program at Anythink’s Wright Farms branch, sound healer Anjila Shrestha demonstrated Himalayan singing bowl meditation. Shrestha used mallets to strike bowls from Nepal. According to Shrestha, “There has been scientific research on how the sound helps with relaxation, meditation, by slowing down your brainwaves and that is when healing can happen. I use a particular type of guided meditation that was taught by my Yoga Guru in Nepal. This particular meditation focuses on different energy lines that are in the body (commonly known as seven chakras). This is one of the ways I introduce a softer version of sound with different frequencies.”

The participants gave Shrestha diverse feedback. “A couple of ladies told me that they could feel the vibrations and the sound vibrations helped them relax their mind. It gave them a feeling of being lighthearted, some felt refreshed, and some felt rejuvenated after the session,” she told LJ. I had several people say that the guided meditation was very intuitive and it helped them be much more intentional with their chakras. I had one lady, who was late to the class, tell me that she could not get relaxed immediately. However, she shared at the end of the session that she wanted to move, like walking and dancing.”

Ricardo Cárdenas, the branch manager/experience expert at Anythink’s Commerce City Branch, mentioned instances of collaborating with the community to help participants meet their wellness goals. The branch worked with Colorado State University Extension for a program about how to eat healthy on a budget. Another partnership, with Denver Botanic Gardens, featured a presenter on the gardens’ bonsais. Cárdenas recalled, “He taught about the ancient practice of cultivating bonsai trees, and he also shared some tips for starting and caring for your own bonsai trees. It was very informative, and at the end, patrons were entered into a drawing to win their own bonsai starter tree to take home with them and begin caring for. The program was very well received and attended. Much of the information was helpful and applicable not only to caring for bonsai trees, but many other types of plants as well.”

Cárdenas explained to LJ, “Our Renew wellness initiative is meant to support all aspects of well-being—including happiness, calm, focus, purpose, and energy. So the complementary programing that we offered, including our Bonsai program, set out to touch on one or more of these areas. Specifically, the caring for bonsai trees is actually an ancient practice that supports several of these elements of wellness. It is related to the practice of feng shui, which promotes healthy, balanced energy in living spaces. Bonsai care also connects well to practices of mindfulness and is meant to promote general happiness and calm in the life of those who practice keeping bonsai plants.”

The various branches’ Renew programs all relate to the theme of well-being but are otherwise diverse. On November 6, Kwame Onwuachi, an award-winning chef, author of Notes from a Young Black Chef, and former competitor on the reality show Top Chef, gave a cooking demonstration and shared culinary stories. Two days later, Steve Wilder led an improv comedy class that demonstrated skills that the participants can use in their everyday lives. Although the primary targets of Renew are adults, some programming was organized with families in mind such as Healthy Sleep for Littles and Yoga for Littles. Programs are listed at https://www.anythinklibraries.org/renew-community-wellness-experience.

According to Grossman, Anything pays for the Renew initiative. “Anythink annually budgets for its employee wellness program. This year…[w]e were able to expand upon this program by using the funds already budgeted for in the library's operating plan.”

Although the initiative extends only until November 12, its benefits and applications may last longer. Grossman stated, “We hope that this program inspires participants to take the skills they learn and apply them year-round. Because Renew empowers individuals to create their own personalized goals, there is an opportunity for participants to discover the practices that work best for them. As always, the library will be here to support community members with materials, resources and programs.”

Cárdenas spoke highly of Renew. “Overall, this initiative has been a lot of fun here at Commerce City. As a district, we are always looking for new and creative ways to engage our community and connect them to resources that help them to be happy, healthy, and safe, and I think overall this initiative has helped facilitate reaching that goal in a fresh way.”