Everything you know about human trafficking is wrong.
“I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money. But what I do have are a very particular set of skills, skills I have acquired over a very long career, skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you let my […]
Billy the Kid was mad at me.
It was too cold to be this foggy. Maybe the weather was different in Salt Lake City. I didn’t know. I had only been there for a dozen hours. The motel had promised a “full breakfast,” but the waffle maker was broken, and the eggs were greener than even Theodor Guisel would eat. I settled […]
I don’t know much about suicide.
I have a lot of professional experience with homelessness, mental illness, substance abuse, PTSD and traumatic brain injury. I have very little experience with the issue of suicide. Personally, I am grateful for that fact. Professionally, though, it is a gap. For years, people have been asking me to do a training on the topic. […]
How bad are homeless people?
I stumbled upon something interesting over the weekend and I had to share it… In an average night in New York City in January 2022: That means: Is it possible that homeless folks aren’t as bad as the world thinks? peace, Ryan SOURCES AND NOTES (1) That number is from the annual point in […]
The hardest day of my life was December 20, 1998.
Even though I was twenty years old, I crawled into my parent’s bed and sobbed. I felt like a frightened five-year-old, but this time the monsters lurking in the shadows were real. Everything had changed. All food had the same bland taste. Sleep was sporadic and unfulfilling. I always felt claustrophobic—even when I was in […]
Can I enforce the rules if someone is mentally ill?
Dear Ryan, I work in a public library. Last week, a patron with obvious mental health issues set a pocket knife on the table where he was reading. He didn’t threaten anyone with it, but he did leave it out in the open where it was visible to everyone for several hours. Some of my […]
What Librarians taught me about social workers
The last two weeks I wrote about social workers in libraries. I got several emails from libraries pointing out issues that I should have included. It reminded me that I am not an expert in this area. That is why I am particularly excited to be interviewing two actual experts for this month’s monthly training. […]
How about a social work intern in your library?
Howdy! Last week we tackled the question about whether libraries should hire social workers to support folks who need help beyond what the library can provide. If you have no budget but really want to bring social services to those you serve, you may be asking: Are social work interns a good option? MAYBE. Social […]
Should libraries hire social workers?
“Should our library hire a social worker to help with issues we can’t help with like mental health, housing assistance, etc.?” Library managers ask me this A LOT. Over the years, libraries have been transformed into community centers. It’s natural that the most vulnerable in the community seek out libraries for help with tough questions. […]
He could have snapped me like a twig.
This is part 2 in our 2-part series about how to provide backup correctly. In the last email in this series, we talked about what a backup staff member should NOT do. ——— I was meeting with an intern at the shelter when the phone call came in: “Ryan, get outside quick! There’s a guy […]
