Overcoming Obstacles Award

Overcoming Obstacles Nomination Form

Public libraries across the state have faced unprecedented challenges over the past few years. Never has this been more evident than the destruction experienced by the Knott, Letcher,
Perry, and Breathitt counties during the 2022 floods that devastated their communities… and in some instances, their library buildings as well. It is a desire to recognize the staffs of these
libraries that have led to us recommending the creation of this nonannual (as-needed) award.

Purpose

The purpose of the Resiliency Award is to recognize public libraries that have faced extreme hardship in the form of a natural disaster, act of violence, or any other mass tragedy event.

Criteria

This award is given to any public library system who has demonstrated resiliency and dedication to their profession during a time of extreme hardship.

Some examples of extreme hardship include:

• Communities that experience natural disasters, such as tornadoes, flooding, or earthquakes.
• Significant damage to the facility due to fire, flooding, vandalism, etc.
• Acts of violence against library staff or affecting library staff and patrons
• Any mass tragedy event that impacts the entire community in a way that affects the library and its services

Rules

• Recipients of this award will receive a $500 award to be used towards rebuilding or ongoing resiliency efforts.
• Nominations may be made by anyone employed in a library
• Nominations must include a narrative of how the library has faced a challenge such as those listed in the above criteria, including no more than two pages of narrative and up to three pages of supportive material (newspaper articles, photos, etc.).
• The KPLA Awards Committee will make the selection based on the above criteria.