The Enoch Pratt Free Library has earned a spot on the Top 10 Nicest Places in America list and a feature on Good Morning America. The big news comes with one year left in the central library's historic restoration project, but the national recognition isn't for the beautiful appearance of hte buildings. It's for the people who staff them.
"It doesn't matter if you're the mayor of if you're someone maybe down on your luck, looking for a job, you're treated absolutely the same. I don't think there's a lot of places in the world that can say that," Meghan McCorkell, marketing and communications director for the Enoch Pratt Free Library, said.
10Best teamed up with Reader's Digest and Good Morning America to find the nicest place in America, where kindness reigns supreme and where communities come together to make a difference.
Over 450 destinations were narrowed down to 10: cities, counties, a yoga studio, a falafel house and the Enoch Pratt Free Library.
"To be up against a whole town is pretty exciting," McCorkell said.
A crew from GMA spent 3 days with library staff. They toured the mobile job center, children's programs and met with people helped by the Social Worker in the Library program.
"In just their first year, they helped 600 library customers with housing insecurity, with food insecurity, with major life things and they did it fo free," McCorkell said.
As the central library undergoes restoration, the nation's first public library system continues expanding to impact a city in need.
"We're happy to be a great headline but we are also a catalyst for change in this community because we’re looking at those headlines that say not great things about Baltimore and we’re trying to find a way to change that; change the message but really change things in our community for the better," McCorkell said.
They have 21 other branches and 3 mobile units to serve every community in Baltimore.
Library staff will be featured Tuesday morning on Good Morning Maryland, and the full feature will air during GMA after.
