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The Port of Spain Heritage Library celebrated its founder Eintou Pearl Springer by naming a reading room in her honor on Friday.
Springer, 77, who began her career as a library assistant, was the founding director of the Heritage Library from 1993 to 2003. She received a plaque in her honor.
The event is the first in a series of events to be organized by the National Library Information System Authority (Nalis) to honor cultural icons. Library staff, Springer’s children and grandchildren were present to pay their respects. Port of Spain Mayor Joel Martinez and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Symon de Nobriga were also present.
Springer was grateful to have been recognized as a cultural activist before her transition. “A lot of times we wait for people to pass by to honor them, but thank God I’m still in the land of the living,” she told Newsday. “It’s important to me as a person and it’s a good feeling.”
She also expressed her gratitude that her children and grandchildren were there to witness the celebration.
During her speech, Springer spoke about the importance of mentorship and thanked those who mentored her when she was younger. She is a former pupil of St George’s College and said it was there that she first protested. She also talked about her love for libraries and books at a very young age and the importance of having art in a culture she can relate to. Springer also hopes the library will regain a large presence in TT with the Nalis initiative.
She urged librarians to avoid using Google if they want to research African or Caribbean heritage. “Allyuh loves books nah, you can’t be a librarian if you don’t love books,” Springer said.
Martinez has expressed her love for Springer and described her as a ground girl. He said the event enriched TT and the capital and called for greater recognition of cultural icons. He wants Springer’s legacy to live on.
“She touched my heart, when you hear the drums roll and the body move and she tells her story, you keep going,” he said.
He also said that the crime situation was due to the lack of appreciation of culture and was also grateful for the Nalis initiative.
De Nobriga described the event as simple but profound and praised Springer for his willingness to challenge the status quo. He said he has visited the Heritage Library several times and attributes his experiences to Springer’s hard work. “I am suitably impressed with the diversity of the collection and the passion and dedication of the staff members,” he said, “I can only imagine this is one of your legacies.” He also read lines from a poem in one of his books, Loving the Skin I’m In.
“Heritage, if properly managed, can contribute to strengthening social inclusion, developing intercultural dialogue, shaping our identity as a nation, improving the quality of our environment and ensuring social cohesion”, did he declare.
The minister said there are economic benefits to investing in heritage such as tourism development and job creation. He also expressed his condolences to the family of Alma Jordan, another pioneer librarian who died in January.