The Aurora Public Library District was honored recently with the Liberty Bell Award by the Kane County Bar Association for the library district’s legal assistance programs.
The annual award, which was given at the 2025 Kane County Bar Association Annual Dinner on June 12, recognizes a non-attorney individual or community organization that has promoted a better understanding of the law, encouraged a greater respect for the law and the courts, stimulated a sense of civic responsibility and contributed to good government within the community, according to a news release from the Aurora Public Library District.
“The work of the Aurora Public Library District staff in ensuring that your constituents have access to and understanding of the court system has been nothing less than remarkable,” Halle Eichert, Kane County Law Library and Self Help Legal Center director, said in the news release.
In particular, the Liberty Bell Award was presented to the library district’s court support and access initiatives, such as the Lawyers in the Library program series, participation in the statewide pilot program of Court Access Library Centers and its partnerships with outside agencies to host expungement clinics and immigration consultations, the news release said.
The Lawyers in the Library series offers free consultations at the downtown Santori library in Aurora every second Thursday of the month from 6 to 7:30 p.m. In partnership with the Kane County Law Library and Self Help Legal Center, the library hosts two volunteer attorneys who offer walk-in, pro-bono legal assistance with a limit of 15 minutes per person, according to the release.
The Aurora Public Library District is also one of 18 across the state to participate in the Court Access Library Centers pilot program, which has a goal of breaking down barriers for people without lawyers and with limited resources by offering easy-to-access legal information and assistance at their local public library, the release said. Through the program, the library district offers assistance with finding and filling court documents, attending court hearings via Zoom and finding general information about court rules and procedures.
“The legal system can be confusing and intimidating, and it’s important and meaningful work to make access easier for everyone who needs it,” Aurora Public Library District Executive Director Michaela Haberkern said in the news release.
Previous recipients of the award include Linda Hagemann, who received the award in 2024; Lori Herte, who received the award in 2023; Nancylee Brown, who received the award in 2022, and Jenny Maxwell, who received the award in 2021.
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