ROANOKE, Va. – After nearly a year, the Roanoke Diversity Center Library held its grand reopening, complete with a wide arrange of new books for patrons to enjoy.
The revamping of the library started last April, but the building itself remained open.
“We have all new labels on all of these books. We completely did a refresh and weeded the collection to allow for growth,” Lorelei Sensabaugh, the secretary of the Roanoke Diversity Center, said. “So we’re really going to try and get some contemporary readings for people to read.”
The Roanoke Diversity Center acts as a place to educate the community on various LGBTQ+ issues and acts as a “home away from home” for groups that are often marginalized.
Its leaders say the new library fits with that mission.
“I feel like it’s a great resource for everyone,” Sensabaugh said. “People really want to come in and read these materials and have access to them. I think it’s really difficult in the current climate.”
The grand reopening also featured a drag story time, something the center hopes becomes a regular event.
“With this kind of organization and kind of thing it gives them a chance to have somewhere to come and get the resources they need and know they are loved under any circumstances,” Ms. Roanoke Pride Icon Trista Storm said.
Sensabaugh says the center’s role is becoming more important, with DEI programs being eliminated elsewhere.
“It really just helps people learn more about the community or if maybe they are questioning or maybe if they are looking for resources,” Sensabaugh said. “A center like this and this type of collection it just really helps inspire people and bring people together.”
With the new books and new programs they’re hoping to bring in, the center is hoping that they can continue to spread their message of peace and love within the community.
“There is no reason to hate something if you don’t understand something asked,” Storm said. “Walk up to somebody, there doesn’t have to be hate behind it, just everybody needs to love one another."
