NGO Library Setup & Cataloging

I’m looking for an experienced librarian-type professional to transform a room full of donated books and periodicals into a functioning physical library for our NGO. The immediate priorities are to catalogue and organise the entire collection and to establish a simple, reliable borrowing system that volunteers and visitors can manage without constant supervision.

At present everything is boxed by donor, not by subject, and nothing is indexed. I need you to:

• Create a full catalogue (Dewey, Library of Congress, or another appropriate scheme—open to your recommendation) and supply both a digital spreadsheet/database backup and clearly labelled shelf markers.
• Design and document a checkout workflow that suits a low-tech environment—this could be a card pocket system, barcode labels with an open-source tool such as Koha, or another low-cost solution you have successfully implemented before.
• Train one staff member in daily routines (check-in/out, new acquisitions, inventory spot-checks) and leave concise, step-by-step instructions we can follow after you leave.

Acceptance criteria: every item is located on a shelf with its call number, entries are searchable in the catalogue, and the borrowing procedure is tested end-to-end with sample users.

The room is available weekdays, internet is limited, and our timeline is three weeks from project start. If you have set up small community or NGO libraries before and can work on-site in that timeframe, I’d love to hear how you would tackle this and what tools you recommend.