Friday, March 28, 2008

Volunteers Needed!

This spring Franklin County Library System needs a number of volunteers to assist with a variety of special tasks in support local library and county-wide initiatives. Grove Family Library needs people to help with copying, stuffing, canvassing communities, making phone calls, and brainstorming new ideas. Coyle Free Library needs community members to serve on its Building Program Committee and Steeering Committe for a future capital campaign. Both Grove and Coyle need volunteers to help with the Spring House Tour on June 1.

The Library System needs volunteers to do behind-the-scenes preparation for reading programs, for children, teens, and adults, and to sort through book donations and plan a major book sale. We also need community respresentation on various committees.

Please contact Jill Snyder at 264-9863 or Erica Pryor at 709-0282 x209 for ideas of how your talents can be best utilized and to sign up as a volunteer, whether short-term or long-term.
All libraries can use volunteers to assist with special projects and weekly routines. So if you care, and have time to give, call today. We can use your help in a community close to you.

Career Planning?

Beginning on April 1, 2008, you will be able to get a free token at a local public library to plan your career and its development online through a great service called ACT Discover! Your token will open a world of interest, ability, and values' inventories, related career ideas and information, and a database of education information to you. Tokens are available from Coyle Free and Grove Family Libraries in Chambersburg, Besore Memorial Library in Greencastle, Alexander Hamilton Library in Waynesboro, and Fulton County Library in McConnellsburg. Once registered to use the service, users may login from any computer on the Internet to continue their inventories and searches for information. Don't forget that the library website www.fclspa.org, has other wonderful free resources to help you choose and develop careers, select colleges and technical schools, locate scholarships and loans, and prepare for standardized tests.

Sunday, March 2, 2008

Preschool Bookmobile Coming Soon

This week Franklin County Library System purchased a lightly-used health-screening vehicle from Franklin County for a sealed bid of $20,000. After interior refurbishment, mechanical service, and repainting are complete, the 2002 specialty van with less than 2,000 miles on it, will hit the road as FCLS's new preschool bookvan.

We expect to be able to complete the work, and put the preschool bookvan into operation before the end of 2008, thanks to the support of Patricia and Michael Hurt, T. B. Woods, Altra Industrial Motion, Genstar LLC, the Rotary Clubs of Chambersburg, Greencastle, Mercersburg, and Waynesboro, and Franklin County government. $42,000 is in hand to pay for the van and refurbishment, with another $58,000 committed to the project over the next 4 years.

The goal of the preschool bookvan is to expand outreach service to additional preschool educational and childcare centers throughout Franklin County. If you represent such a facility and would like to be considered for the expanded service later this year, please contact Bookmobile/Outreach Librarian Amanda Flagle, at aflagle@fclspa.org or 264-9863, who is overseeing the project.

Federal Grant Approved for New Project!

"An American Album", a new book discussion and local history project is coming to Franklin and Fulton County public libraries. The project, designed by me, was approved for $10,500 in funding under the Library Techology & Services Act from the Institute for Museum and Library Services, for implementation later this year.

American Album is a two-phase project: (1) creating discussion kits of paperback books and study guides on the theme of American History for local groups, then (2) stimulating local senior citizens and teens to work together to digitally videorecord oral history to DVD for local library collections.

During creation and implementation of "Blast From the Past", an American History public library program targeting the families of elementary students, we discovered the plethora of personal memories that came from grandparents attending the programs, their personal stories of World War II, the Great Depression, and much more. Sadly these stories are being lost, as grandparents and great-grandparents forget or pass away.

Phase one of the project will stimulate book discussion groups to ponder their own American History. Phase two will bring teenage techies together with other generations to learn about their heritage, while creating a permanent record of it.

If anyone out there is or knows any teenagers, senior citizens, or adults who may be interested in helping with this project later in 2008 and early 2009, please contact me.

VHS Loans Free!

Beginning Monday, March 3, all VHS viceocassettes will circulate for free from Franklin County Library System facilities. No more rental fees for VHS recordings! They will also check out for 2 weeks instead of 2 nights or 1 week. This applies to both entertainment and educational VHS recordings and to educational DVDs. Rental fees will only apply to entertainment DVDs.

This is a direct resut of the recent county increase in public library funding. Thank you, Franklin County Commissioners and taxpayers!

Overdue fines on videos will remain $0.50 per day, so please return them on time.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!

While Dr. Suess (Theodore Seuss Geisel), author of many wonderful books for early readers, is no longer with us, we continue to celebrate his birthday with "Read Across America Day". This afternoon, representatives of Franklin County Library System are joining employees of the Chambersburg Target Store in commemorating Dr. Seuss by reading some of his wonderful books. You may be aware that Horton Hears a Who is being released as a feature film in theaters near us this month. Even those who do not know Dr. Seuss intimately may be aware that one of his most famous stories, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, has been in movie form for several years.

My personal favorite is Green Eggs and Ham, which I hope to read this afternoon between 1:00 and 3:00 pm. at Target. Hope to see you there. And don't forget to "Read Across America" today, and all week!