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Amy Ryan, director of the Hennepin County Library in suburban Minneapolis, talks of a program for seniors called 55+. “It's about programs, yes, but it's also about voluntarism and partnerships with other organizations,” she says.

The program has developed new volunteer positions—running conversation circles, teaching computer classes and leading book talks, for example. A story in the Library Journal says, "These trade on Boomers' skills and involves us in the library, creating new advocates. HCL taps people who have connections in the community and also actively markets the opportunities to draw in workers who may be under their radar."

The article by Beth Dempsey is a good one, looking broadly at what Boomers are experiencing as well as focusing on what libraries can do.

Dempsey looks at another library that's addressing the issue. Old Bridge Public Library in New Jersey opened its Senior Spaces in June. “The employee pool is going to dwindle,” says assistant director Allan Kleiman. “We need to get [boomers] involved.” He goes on to say: “Why isn't the library community up off its tush about this? We can't wait. We'll lose [Boomers] to Barnes & Noble.”

Kleiman says libraries can be “ageist,” spending energy dividing children's services into age-appropriate segments while adult services are clumped as “18 until death.” Old Bridge has divided a dedicated space for seniors into three areas: boomers, newly retired, and older seniors.