Some public libraries have makerspaces with 3D printers. The Lawrence Public Library offers devices that digitize MiniDV camcorder tapes and shellac 78 rpm records.

Tucked next to the local history room in the library’s basement, patrons can find these tools and more in the DIY Memory Lab, which is dedicated to digitizing older media formats.

The library’s Public Technology Services team aims to make the lab streamlined and user-friendly so anyone can walk up and make use of it with some preliminary guidance from staff.

The machines are congregated in one area, plugged in and ready for use. In some cases, the digitization process is as simple as turning on a computer, loading the media into the appropriate device and pressing a button.

The digitization equipment was once stored in a closet and retrieved upon patron request. Now, the official lab is coming up on its first anniversary following its hard launch in March 2025.

Matthew Pelsma, the SOUND+VISION Studio specialist at the library, is a technician for the recording and podcast studios as well as the lab. He said the latter is routinely booked out for at least two months. As of this article, it’s reserved almost solidly until May.

Jim Barnes, Public Technology Services supervisor at the library, said they mostly see folks using the space to transform their home videos into shareable files.

“People will import a DVD that was made from a wedding or something like that, and they’ll import that into the computer as an MP4 using this,” he said, indicating equipment in the lab. “So most of the time we see, like, weddings and vacations and family movies and stuff like that.”

If patrons forgo cloud storage, they can buy USB drives for $10 at the public information desk. Barnes said folks will mail thumb drives with their digital memories to friends and family.

Pelsma said he’s there to help patrons get started on their projects and address technical issues when they arise. 

“Part of our job is to give people all the privacy that they need or require, but whenever anybody wants to tell me what’s going on in their videos or photos, I am so happy to hear it,” he said. “It’s one of the best parts of my job.”

As Pelsma has become privy to some patron’s family histories, he’s noticed connective tissues of a larger, shared Lawrence history. People who worked in film and TV in the ‘90s have come in to digitize and save demo reels and broadcasts, for example.

“That’s pretty cool, because you’re seeing either some old Channel 6 news broadcast, where you’re seeing a commercial for, I don’t know, Kring’s Interiors or Paradise Cafe, or just these old Lawrence stuff that not a lot of people remember,” Pelsma said. “But I’m like, ‘I see you. This is great. I love this.’”

Don Low is a library patron and former Friends & Foundation volunteer who used the equipment when it was still stored in a closet. 

“When I was in college, my brothers and I had done some oral histories with my parents over different occasions,” he said. “Ended up having four cassette tapes of interviews with them.” 

Low had transcribed the tapes into text. Still, he wanted his grandchildren to be able to hear their great grandparents’ voices, and he figured they wouldn’t have access to cassette players. 

“I hadn’t listened to them for 30, 40, 50 years,” he said. “So just listening to them … hearing the voices again was really — I started, actually started crying at one point.”

Low’s wife wants to use the lab to convert her picture slides, but she’ll have to elbow onto the long waiting list. 

With high usage comes high wear and tear. Barnes said their last slide scanner was produced for individual use to handle around 5,000 slides over multiple decades. Instead, the machine saw almost 40,000 slides.

“It’s taken some maintenance,” Pelsma said. “I’ve had to get in there, glue some things back together, replace some parts.”

To keep the lab alive, Barnes and Pelsma said they are keeping a cushion in that budget for backup and replacement machines. The lab was established after the community raised about $60,000 during a library book and media sale, and they welcome donations to the library specified for the DIY Memory Lab.

Patrons can read more about the making of the lab at this link; review all of the equipment available at this link; and book the space at this link.

Copies of much of the equipment in the lab are also available for checkout for those who prefer to digitize at home. Learn more at this link.

Can’t snag a reservation? Attend an event

Curious patrons can check out the “Discover the DIY Memory Lab” event, which is part of the library’s 2026 Read Across Lawrence programing.

RAL centers one book as a springboard to gather community and discuss current events, and this year’s title is “The Anthropocene Reviewed” by John Green.

“(The book) is all about your perspective on single issues,” Pelsma said. “John Green wrote it specifically about how he feels about something, and then also finding some really interesting history behind it. My goal is to be up there with some people … to really talk about a personal story and a personal perspective on how their memories — seeing their memories — have affected them.”

The event will run from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 18 at LPL, 707 Vermont St. Registration is limited and required; folks can sign up at this link.

Wulfe Wulfemeyer (they/them), reporter and news editor, has worked with The Lawrence Times since May 2025. They can be reached at wulfe@lawrencekstimes.com.

Read their complete bio here. Read their work for the Times here.

Molly Adams (she/her), photo editor, has worked with The Lawrence Times since May 2022. She can be reached at molly@lawrencekstimes.com.

Check out more of her work for the Times here. Check out her staff bio here.

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