Another Snopes Hunt

I knew it would happen, but I had to do it anyway. The patron was sure he heard somebody on a local talk show--he named the time and station--say that there were $5,000 grants for businesses starting up in Toledo. So I tracked down the hostess, Maggie Thurber, who was on vacation at the time, and who suggested I contact 2 substitute hosts. I did, and they didn't know about it, either. No, there's no grant for showing up and starting a business.

Grants librarians do a lot of snope hunting. We nearly always know how it ends, but we have to hunt the snopes anyway. Once in a while, it leads to a genuine grant opportunity. And we almost always know more afterwards than we did before, so it's not all wasted time. Yes, there are some financial incentives for Toledo businesses. So, unless you are a patron looking for your $5,000, some good came out of it.