1,001 Buku (1,001 Books), a community that arranges donations of books to children, is holding a garage sale in Santa Market in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, from Saturday to Sunday to fund its biennial Independent Library Workshop and Olympiad, which will be held in August
1,001 Buku (1,001 Books), a community that arranges donations of books to children, is holding a garage sale in Santa Market in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, from Saturday to Sunday to fund its biennial Independent Library Workshop and Olympiad, which will be held in August.
1,001 Buku spokesperson Lucia Priandarini said during the opening of the garage sale on Saturday that the August event was expected to gather around 200 owners and users of small independent libraries across the country.
Lucia said the event, held every two years, was a vital chance for owners of small libraries to meet their fellows and share their experiences.
'We can gain a deeper understanding of the challenges and obstacles of independent libraries throughout Indonesia from talking to owners,' she said.
Owners, she added, could get to know each other and, if from the same area, exchange books. 'Most of them have limited collections, so exchanging books can be very useful,' she said, adding that most of the libraries were aimed at children.
Lucia said few owners of such libraries were wealthy, and many struggled to make a living. For example, she said some jamu (traditional herbal drink) peddlers also carried around books for hire as a sideline.
'At a previous event, we met a library owner who had pawned his teacher's certificate to fund his journey to Jakarta,' she said, adding that the man in question had been a low-earning contract teacher.
Some of the libraries, Lucia said, also played important roles in their community, citing one library in Poso, Central Sulawesi. 'The library is a meeting-place for children of conflict victims,' she said, adding that such stories could inspire other library owners to increase their community outreach programs.
The spokesperson said that the community had decided to hold a garage sale as they still lacked funds for the event. 'It will be a three-day event. We need to provide for the meals and accommodation for the participants,' she said.
She added that with the maximum facilities, the event could cost around Rp 700 million (US$52,360). At a minimum, she said, it needed Rp 150 million. 'We have managed to collect around Rp 50 million,' she said.
Lucia said the community had in the past relied on sponsorship from big companies for the biannual event. 'However, for financial reasons, many companies have stopped their funding this year,' she said.
She added that besides the garage sale, the community also sourced crowd funding from website
kitabisa.com and lobbied for individual donations.
Lucia said the community collected used items from volunteers to be sold. 'We chose Santa Market because the place is packed with young people who seem to support our cause,' she said, adding that she had also been given space free of charge.
Rani Daulay, a 56-year-old visitor, said she enjoyed the garage sale and liked the idea of buying while donating to a good cause. 'Some of the items are overpriced, but that's fine since it's for charity,' she said.
Rani, accompanied by her daughter, bought several items. She added it would be better if the garage sale offered more items and suggested the organizer cooperate with vendors to increase the range of products.
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