Volunteer Spotlight: Meet Zac!

Zac grew up in a small, southern town in Ohio with memories of the local librarian yelling at anyone who looked at her wrong. “Libraries were not the warm and welcoming spaces they are now,” he said. Fast forward to adulthood, and Zac’s perception has changed as he has learned more about resources and had a better experience with the library systems in Akron and Cleveland. When he moved to the Dayton area, he jumped on the Dayton Metro Library website to learn more about our services, programs, and events. It was there that he looked into volunteer opportunities with DML and completed the application.

Since June, Zac has volunteered in 12 or more different roles at various locations, including programming for patrons and a variety of projects and tasks behind the scenes, like setting up the Friends of the Library Book Sale and entertaining children as Cosmo, the Library mascot. Many service hours have been spent at the Mini Resource Fair, most Tuesdays at the Main Library, by helping set up tables and chairs in the Atrium for nonprofits and social service agencies while counting patrons who visited those tables. Through this service opportunity, he has learned about local area nonprofits and plans to connect more closely with one organization in particular, Habitat for Humanity, once the warm weather returns.

Because of his experience serving individuals with diverse abilities, he has naturally enjoyed helping with the monthly All-Abilities Adventure program at the Northmont Branch, which is designed for adults with diverse abilities. He noticed that other patrons have participated in this program and emphasized how important that is for reducing the stigma and “othering” that people experience for being different.

A mother brought her children to the program and remarked to Zac how important it was for her children to participate. This sentiment resonated with him. Bringing diverse groups of people together is an important value for both Zac and the Library. In addition to volunteering with DML, Zac enjoys attending Library events and learning from programs and resources. A recent Library event that stood out to him as informative and enlightening was We’ll Always Be Here: A Summit on Trans Lives Past, Present, & Future.

Zac has been studying for an associate degree and has a goal of attending law school with a focus on civil rights. In addition to the Library, he has been actively volunteering with political movements, including driving people to the polls, volunteering as a poll observer, and, most recently, working as an official poll worker. Soon, he will be adding yet another role to his resume as a public servant when he begins a new job with the U.S. Postal Service.

Thank you, Zac, for all your support and 42+ hours of service with the Library, and congratulations on the new job!