What one woman learned working at every library in San Francisco Yes, all 28 branches

"I see libraries as more than buildings with books. It's where a community is truly formed and where people come to share their difference of opinions." "I see libraries as more than buildings with books. It's where a community is truly formed and where people come to share their difference of opinions." Photo: SFGate Photo: SFGate Image 1 of / 15 Caption Close What one woman learned working at every library in San Francisco 1 / 15 Back to Gallery

When Alice Chan immigrated to San Francisco from Hong Kong in 1989, she was 11 years old. And she very quickly found there was only one place in the city that made her feel at home: the library.

Every weekend Chan took multiple buses to travel from her family's home in the Outer Sunset to Chinatown where she read books in Chinese at the library.

"I remember finding the comic book that I had read in Hong Kong," Chan, now 41, says. "It provided comfort for a girl who had a lot of fear. I remember thinking, 'This is it. I've found my place in America.'"

Now, 30 years later, Chan is employed at "her place" — she works at the city's main branch, managing the entirety of the third-floor with a collection of a half-million books, including plenty in Chinese.

"There's a woman who regularly comes all the way from Sacramento," Chan says. "She takes the bus here so she can check out Chinese books."

Chan has been an employee of the San Francisco Public Library for 21 years and worked at all 28 locations, doing everything from shelving books to feeding hungry teenagers to helping children write letters to their mothers and fathers in prison. A conversation with her reveals that while the city's libraries are "quiet" spaces, they may be where the city's heart beats the loudest.

SFGATE: In 21st-century San Francisco, how would you describe the role of libraries?

ALICE CHAN: I see libraries as more than buildings with books. It's where a community is truly formed and where people come to share their difference of opinions. When I think of my days working in the Visitacion Valley branch, I remember welcoming seniors who came in to read the paper. They would chat among themselves. Sometimes the arguments and the discussion got heated; at that time it was the Taiwanese versus the Chinese. And then the next day it was as if nothing happened.

In the morning, you'd have grandparents bring in their kids at story time, and then in the afternoon time, that's when school gets out and you'd see parents bring kids in after work. They exchange recipes, talk about their lives. During after hours, community groups had meetings. The library is the anchor of the neighborhood.

SFGATE: And what's the role of a librarian?

AC: We provide what I like to call the "human touch." We're connecting people with not only books but also information, and sometimes we're bridging the gap, helping people. Sometimes people want to come in and learn how to send an email. Sometimes it's someone who wants to learn how to read. It's the human touch librarians provide that makes everything magical.

SFGATE: In recent years, libraries in San Francisco have increasingly become a place where people without housing find refuge. Does the library welcome them?

AC: I think the library is built on equal access. The door is open truly for everyone. It's one of those places that's truly free. I think it's important that we value every person who comes in.

At the end of the day we need to remind ourselves that we're all human. Anyone who behaves badly, of course, those people aren't welcome. But just because you're houseless doesn't mean you're behaving badly. I think a distinction needs to be made between the two.

SFGATE: Some library patrons may be using substances. Do you carry naloxone (often called Narcan) to help someone during a drug overdose at the library?

AC: We don't carry the Narcan on ourselves, but every floor has Narcan available. Two weeks ago, one of my colleagues saved a life with Narcan at the main library. It was on a Saturday. Someone brought to the attention to one of our librarians that someone was ODing. Sure enough, we had a hard time waking that person. She jumped to action, administered the Narcan and saved a life.

SFGATE: Over the years, what are ways you helped library patrons?

AC: We're always helping people find jobs. I remember helping this lady who used to work as a paralegal at a law firm and she lost her job. She used to come in every day for an hour or two to look for jobs and upload her resume. I would talk with her, encourage her. Then finally after two months of this, she came in and said she had found a job.

We used to help kids with book reports and we'd hear time and time again, "Do you teach children how to read?" At Visitacion Valley, we developed a reading program. We got a group of kids. Each kid took a turn to read a page. After a month or two, one girl's mother came in and she was so proud. The girl's teacher had said her daughter's reading ability had improved two levels.

We helped people write letters to their loved ones in prison. I think people still don't realize that some people's reading and writing levels aren't quite up to what we would expect them to be. When you visit someone in prison, you need to go online to make a reservation, so we do a lot of that now.



SFGATE: What was your first job in the library system, and how did it shape where you wanted to take your career?

AC: I was working as a part-time page at the Richmond Branch, shelving books. I noticed you'd have a group of teenagers come in, and you'd see the faces change on everyone in the library. Everyone was ready to shush them before they even came in. I knew I wanted to work with teens. I have a passion in justice and fairness, and I knew becoming a librarian would allow me to combine my passions and help these teenagers.

SFGATE: You went on to work as a teen services librarian in the Sunset and Parkside and finally at the Bayview branch. In what ways do you feel like you were able to make a difference?

AC: I was amazed at how many teens were hanging out at the library from the time they would get off at school until almost dinner time. They all came to know me by name. They were often hungry and so I started feeding them. I would bring bread, peanut butter and jelly. On their birthdays, I would bring a cake and we would celebrate.

I called them my kids, my teenagers. I ran into one of them recently and he told me he's going to college now. He told me the library really gave him the space after school he needed to stay on track ... instead of just hanging out with his friends and getting into trouble.

SFGATE: The Bayview library is now named after its former manager Linda Brooks-Burton. Did you know her?

AC: She is the one who really showed me what the library is all about. She knew everyone. She knew the kids' names, and the phone numbers for their parents. She was so entrenched in that community, and after she passed away unexpectedly, they named the branch after her. She defined what the library is truly. Someone came in once when I worked there and said she wouldn't have finished college without Linda's help.

SFGATE: After Bayview, you moved into a role that allowed you to spend time in all the city's libraries.

AC: We're such a small big city yet we're divided into so many different neighborhoods. We have 28 locations. We have at least one branch in each neighborhood. And each branch is designed to meet the needs of that community.



SFGATE: What's the most popular book right now?

AC: For summer, Michelle Obama's "Becoming" is definitely the hottest.



SFGATE: What's your favorite book?

AC: "Oh, the Places You'll Go!" by Dr. Seuss. I think it's so inspiring. Kind of similar to what Michelle Obama said in her book, you're always evolving, you're always learning. The world is your oyster.

Amy Graff is an SFGATE digital editor. Email: agraff@sfgate.com