HUG THERAPY
The library at Los Angeles Valley College is a popular place, thanks to the head librarian, Barbara Toohey. It all started last year when she expanded the library services by posting a sign at her desk, proclaiming herself the campus “Hug Therapist.” Students were hesitant at first to check out her therapy, but one cold morning a nervous student whispered, “I think I could use a hug.” Once the ice was broken, Toohey found her arms full. Both students and faculty members streamed through the turnstiles for her deluxe bear hug to help them make it through the day. During exam periods, the embracing business gets so heavy that assistant librarians are collared as “surrogate hug therapists.” And though the need for hugging drops off during the middle of the term, Toohey reports that a number of “regulars” drop by the library for a daily hug . . . whether they’re overdue or not.
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