If you're a librarian looking to do safety programs, especially fire safety programs, a good starting point is your local fire department. Firefighters are knowledgeable and most departments want to do outreach as much as you want to host them. An ongoing partnership can also host multiple kinds of fire safety events, from the youngest of children all the way up to seniors. Such a partnership can increase the overall safety of your community.

See our page Example Programs for some ideas to get you started!

P.S. Is your library fire safe? Check out some resources below to keep your staff and your materials safe. Your local fire department can also help you discover unexpected fire hazards in your building.

If your fire department is looking for good partners for outreach, your local public library is a good starting point! Libraries reach community members of all ages, ethnicities, and economic backgrounds. Librarians are also pros at programming, so they're excellent partners for outreach. By partnering with your local library you can reach a broad cross-section of your community in one place.

Photo courtesy of the USFA.

The Illinois Fire Service Institute Library contains books, codes and standards, DVDs, CDs, periodicals, manuals, e-resources, audiobooks, and other fire emergency resources, totaling over 65,000 items. We serve all first responders in the state of Illinois. Materials can be requested in person, by phone or email, or online through our catalog. You can search our catalog by title, author, keyword, subject, or publisher, and choose the formats you want to see. Enter as few or as many search terms as you would like; the more search terms you use the fewer results you'll get, but the results will be more specific. If you live in Illinois and have a public library card, we can send materials to your public library via interlibrary loan. Anyone is also welcome to visit us in person!