Making Waves

New College dedicates Dr. Helen N. Fagin Holocaust Collection

The New College of Florida received more than $40,000 in donations to help establish the Dr. Helen N. Fagin Holocaust Collection of the Jane Bancroft Cook Library. The official dedication of the collection took place on Jan. 20, 2008 with special guest speaker William S. Parsons, chief of staff of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, DC. To date, nearly 1,000 volumes have been collected, roughly half of which were donated by the Florida Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg, which formerly sponsored the Sarasota-Manatee Arch Family Holocaust Education Center in Sarasota. Likewise, Dr. Fagin has donated some of her personal collection to the library, as have other individuals, adding to Holocaust material that New College’s Cook library has collected over the years. Born in Poland, Dr. Fagin survived more than five years of persecution at the hands of the Nazis, finally finding herself at a Displaced Persons Camp in Austria. She arrived in the United States in June 1946 and learned English by reading the New York Times with the help of an English-German dictionary.

A retired professor of English and former director of Judaic Studies at the University of Miami, she considers her collection at New College of Florida to be her true legacy.

Dr. Fagin chaired the education committee of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and was appointed by President Clinton to serve on the World War II Memorial Committee for the purpose of building a national memorial on the Mall in Washington, D.C.

To donate to the Dr. Helen N. Fagin Holocaust Collection at New College of Florida, please contact Jane Summerville Kiebitz, executive director of the New College Library Association, at 941-487-4600 or NCLA@ncf.edu.

Jane Bancroft Cook Library hosts African American Read-In

On Feb. 4, 2008, the Jane Bancroft Cook Library hosted the African American Read-In.  This is the third year that the library has sponsored this event at which students, faculty and staff from New College of Florida and the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee choose novels, poems, plays and short stories by African American authors to read out load during the two hour event. For the podcast of this event, go to http://www.ncf.edu/library/aareadin08.htm and click on the link at the top of the page.

Citrus County Library holds public groundbreaking

The Citrus County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) and the Citrus County Library System (CCLS) held a public groundbreaking ceremony for the Floral City Public Library and Town Center on Thursday, February 28, 2008 at 10:00 am, at the location of the old library at 8360 E. Orange Avenue, Floral City, Florida.

Left to right in above photo: Mary Zavotsky, President, Floral City Friends group; Adelaide Keller, Library Advisory Board; Harley Nelson, Chairman, Library Advisory Board; Dennis Damato, Commissioner BOCC; Marianne Quack, Library Advisory Board; Vicki Phillips, 1st Vice Chairwoman, BOCC; Joyce Valentino, Chairwoman, BOCC; E. E. Renfro, Library Advisory Board; John Thrumston, 2nd Vice Chairman, BOCC; Sylvia Wilson, Library Advisory Board; Flossie Benton Rogers, Director, Library Services; Edith Ramlow, Library Advisory Board; Butch Spires, Spires Construction; Ron Reitz, Schenkel Shultz Architecture; Gary Peterson, C & D Engineering; Brad Thorpe, Director, Community Services; Roger Pulley, Interim County Administrator

Clearwater Library System recognized for outstanding youth program

The Clearwater Library System was awarded the Florida Library Association’s 2008 Betty Davis Miller Youth Services Award for the Bright Minds program, coordinated by librarian JoAnne Howard. 

The Bright Minds program is for ages 3 to 5 and includes theme-based stories, songs, crafts, and literacy activities. This year the award is given to Children’s Services, the division that serves those ages 12 and under, for outstanding examples of direct service to youth. Outstanding is defined as unique, distinctive, exceptional, notable, praiseworthy or exemplary. Programs also promote reading, literacy, or library use.

For more information about Clearwater Library’s Youth Services call (727) 562-5236.

Palm Harbor Library to Close as Renovation Progresses

If you have visited or driven past the Palm Harbor Library lately, you’ve noticed that a lot of exciting things are happening.  The library is anything but quiet right now!  Staff and patrons have been listening to the sound of hammers, buzz saws, and welding torches as the first of four phases in a year-long renovation project gets close to completion.  The building exterior is taking on a whole new look now that it is being painted in clean, fresh colors.

But something else has been happening behind the scenes.  The library is converting to a new county-wide automation system that will more readily share information on books, audio-visual materials, and other items among all libraries in the county.  You will find it easier to locate and borrow materials from other libraries, and you’ll no longer have to register separately at each library.  Think of it as one-stop shopping for all of your needs!

Over a year in the making, the new system became available to the public on Friday, April 25.  Library operations will be impacted during the month of April as the program is tested and finally put into place. 

Palm Harbor Library will be closed from Monday, May 5, through Monday, May 19, so furniture, books, and equipment can be moved in preparation for Phase II of the renovation project.  Once reopened, you’ll be treated to a newly remodeled Children’s Department.  Stop by to see what’s happening!

Hillsborough County's Imagination Library offers free books to children

Starting Feb. 26, as a way to help increase school readiness and improve the literacy skills of their community, all children living in Hillsborough County born on or after Sept. 1, 2006, regardless of income, are eligible to receive free, age-appropriate books delivered to their home monthly until their fifth birthday through the Imagination Library.

Imagination Library of Hillsborough County is committed to help improve early learning opportunities for all children by providing easily accessible, age-appropriate books in the home. Out-of-home resources support early literacy, school readiness and life-long learning. Children living in Hillsborough County are eligible to register with Imagination Library, anytime leading up to their fifth birthday. Once registered, the child receives age appropriate books by mail every month until age 5. If a family living in Hillsborough County has more than one child under the age of five, each child is eligible for participation in Imagination Library.

Families with preschool children who move into Hillsborough County may register for the program. A child registered at birth will ultimately receive a 60-volume, in-home library.

To register for Imagination Library, visit www.unitedwaytampabay.com/imaginationlibrary and download an application, call (813) 272-5017, e-mail ilibrary@hcplc.org, or pick up an application at any of the 27 branches of the Hillsborough County Public Library.

Lots going on at Pasco County Library

Pasco County Library System Named 2008 Library of the Year
The Florida Library Association named the Pasco County Library System the 2008 Library of the Year. This honor was awarded to the library for several reasons including its innovative programming for children, teens, and adults. Some of these programs include Pasco County’s Original Battle of the Bands XI: Rockus Maximus; the Children’s Adaptive Toy Collection especially for special-needs children; and literary speed dating for reading lovers, an innovative adult reading club program. Other particulars included quality marketing materials such as the libraries’ calendars of events and READ posters, use of the Internet for promoting library programs and events, and receiving a federally-funded E-Government Grant.

Libraries Director Linda Allen and Assistant Libraries Director Stephen Kershner received the award at the Florida Library Association at the Annual Conference on April 25 at the Tradewinds Conference Center at St. Petersburg Beach.

People and Pets Programs @ Your Library
A series of special programs, People and Pets, is currently being featured at the Pasco County Library System. They are sponsored by the Friends of the Library in conjunction with Pasco County Animal Services and PetSmart Charities. Programs are scheduled at each branch and include a wide variety of subjects: Romeo and Juliet, the painting horses, are at Hudson and New River Libraries; a therapy dog presentation is scheduled at Regency Park, Land O’Lakes and New River Libraries; the Basics of Living with Bunnies is scheduled at Regency Park, Centennial Park, and Land O’Lakes Libraries; and a Dog Training Presentation will be held at each branch of the Pasco County Library System. Pick up your copy of the Spring calendar of events at your local library for the complete list of programs and details.

The Coalition for Animal Welfare/West Central Florida, Pasco County Animal Services and the Friends of the Pasco County Library System received a $10,000 grant from PetSmart Charities to spay/neuter 200 pit bulls and to educate citizens about pet adoption. The goal of the project is to reduce the number of pit bulls who are all too often born into lives of pain, suffering, and neglect, eventually winding up in animal shelters where they are later euthanized. Pit bulls are a breed known for their strength, intelligence and loyalty, but are one of the breeds least likely to be adopted.

New Adaptive Toy Collection Housed at Land O’Lakes Library
The Land O’Lakes Library is the second library in the Pasco County Library System to now have its own Adaptive Toy Collection. The Rotary Club of Keystone-Sunrise generously donated the funds earmarked for this unique collection of toys designed especially for children with special needs. The toys teach children with special needs how to control their environment by emphasizing sensory exploration and play, cause-effect relationships, communication, and object manipulation through toys with special lights or textures. Special easy-to-use on-off switches are included to facilitate the use of the toys. This is the second such collection in the Pasco County Library System, the first one being housed at the Hudson Library. The toys can be routed and checked out by any of our patrons via our courier service. Check out our website at www.pascolibraries.org for additional information on this unique collection.