91´«Ã½

CHICAGO – 91´«Ã½ President Loida Garcia-Febo supports efforts to provide literacy resources to Puerto Rico’s most vulnerable communities. Today Garcia- Febo joined library leaders at the Puerto Rico Center for the Book to participate in a discussion entitled Read to Heal and Transform Lives, a local effort to provide library services to battered girls and adolescents in Puerto Rico.

“I am honored to have this opportunity to participate in Read to Heal and Transform Lives, one of the first events in a series by the Library of Congress Center for the Book in Puerto Rico at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras Campus,” said Garcia-Febo. “I'm inspired by the possibility of libraries providing books and services that would help heal young girls who have experienced so much at a young age. Today’s discussion illustrates how libraries and library workers transform communities through mindfulness, wellness and reading. I am humbled to be part of this beautiful project and hope that our efforts will continue to assist those in Puerto Rico who look to libraries to better their lives through education and lifelong learning.”

Garcia-Febo discussed the role libraries play in strengthening communities and her presidential wellness effort that works to support good health within the profession of librarianship. Other library professionals and staff from Hogar Escuela Sor Maria Rafaela, a local government institution supported by the Puerto Rico Department of Justice and Department of Family for battered girls and adolescents. discussed their work to support healing efforts through reading.

The Puerto Rico Center for the Book was established in 2019 by Garcia-Febo’s alma mater the University of Puerto Rico Graduate School of Information Sciences and the Library Sciences and Informatics Library. It is the 53rd affiliate center of the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress Center for the Book is a network of sites promoting an interest in reading and literacy. The center is housed at the University’s Río Piedras Campus in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

The center will offer a wide range of events, such as authors colloquia, workshops, reading festivals and contests to explore the making and writing of books. A makerspace is currently under development, as well as a virtual space to stimulate creativity and innovation in reading and writing.

To learn more about Read to Heal and Transform Lives please visit ;