AURORA, Ill. (AP) — Libraries throughout the Chicago suburbs are making efforts to welcome and accommodate people who are homeless.
The Chicago Tribune reports that libraries in Aurora and Naperville have joined others across the country in receiving training from Ryan Dowd on how to work with homeless patrons. Dowd is the director of Hesed House, a shelter in Aurora.
His training focuses on using empathy to address issues like body odor, carrying too many bags, sleeping in the library and interacting with people who are delusional. He says the training is designed to help library officials enforce rules while maintaining individuals’ dignity.
Dowd built the in-person program after a YouTube video he made of the training gained popularity.
Aurora Public Library officials say they almost immediately had fewer issues after the training.
