Jayson Conner, 48, and Jeffrey Newman, 58, Die; Gave Thousands of Backpacks to Those in Need; The New York Times, July 11, 2026

Clay Risen, The New York Times ; Jayson Conner, 48, and Jeffrey Newman, 58, Die; Gave Thousands of Backpacks to Those in Need

The couple, who died within a few days of each other, provided needed supplies, like socks and wet wipes, to people living on New York City’s streets.

"Jayson Conner and Jeffrey Newman, a couple who spent years walking the streets of New York and handing out tens of thousands of backpacks filled with supplies — toiletries, socks, notebooks — to people in need, died within days of each other...

Once a week, a few dozen people would gather at a rental space in Queens, and Mr. Conner and Mr. Newman would lead them in organizing items into more than 100 backpacks that were loaded onto a moving van.

They would then drive the van to Manhattan, and, over the next several days, the volunteers would fan out, backpacks slung over their shoulders. Mr. Conner and Mr. Newman trained the volunteers on the best way to approach and engage with people who might be experiencing extreme physical or emotional pain — or might just want to talk to a friendly face.

“It was fascinating to see how well they managed to communicate with people on the streets,” Kristina Kashtanova, who began volunteering with them in 2020, said in an interview. “They taught me how to be a better human and how to talk to people who were so different from me.”

Giving away the backpacks was initially a side project of their nonprofit, Together Helping Others, which provided a range of social services. In moving from place to place, they discovered, unhoused people often lacked something as simple as a container to hold their belongings. What people in that situation needed, the two men figured, was sturdy backpacks."

Libraries are reimagining what public safety and access to resources look like; Prism, May 5, 2022

 Tamar Sarai, Prism ; Libraries are reimagining what public safety and access to resources look like

"“People think libraries have changed so much, but really, we’re still doing the same things,” Fewell said. “We are making sure people have access to information and resources… connecting people [with what] they need: food, wound care, connecting to the WiFi because the only device they have to access the internet is their phone… We’re providing resources to get people the next thing that they’re looking for, and I love it.”

As libraries and library staff begin embracing new ways to serve their patrons and in doing so, promote alternative conceptions of public safety, pushback has followed. Local police have decried the initiatives as eroding relationships with law enforcement, and other patrons have argued that their libraries are becoming less safe and that their own needs are being neglected as marginalized community members find themselves increasingly welcome into the library’s branches. However, while providing more social services and even connecting with currently incarcerated people might expand the work of libraries, staff engaging in these initiatives argue that the work is simply a fulfillment of the library’s long-standing purpose to provide information and foster community."

Why your local library might be hiring a social worker; NPR, January 3, 2021

DARIAN BENSON, NPR; Why your local library might be hiring a social worker

"For years, libraries have been a place people turn to for information to help them solve problems. But the challenges patrons are dealing with are increasingly beyond the scope of what most librarians are trained to handle — and that's where social workers can fill in the gaps."

Library workers fight for safer working conditions amid coronavirus pandemic; NBC News, April 8, 2020

Olivia Solon, NBC News; Library workers fight for safer working conditions amid coronavirus pandemic

"Despite the American Library Association recommending in a statement March 17 that libraries close to the public, many librarians and support staff are still being asked to travel to work or risk being laid off, organizers say, even though many services could be delivered remotely.

Libraries in states across the country, including in New York, Iowa, Florida, California and Minnesota, have started offering curbside pickups to reduce contact between workers and patrons. Organizers believe this puts librarians at an unnecessary risk...

Library staff, particularly those in urban areas, spend a lot of time helping people apply for jobs, housing and government services that have shifted online -- services that will be more critical than ever when the pandemic is over and libraries reopen.

“Libraries are used by poor people, homeless people and others with a need for basic social services that have been destroyed over the years,” Macrina said. “It’s heartbreaking to take another necessary service away from their lives, but we have to do it because it’s a life or death situation.”"