February 1, 2012
A Little Help from our Friends
One year ago, The Bryant Library BLog recognized the loss of one of the Library's staunchest supporters and community emissaries, Norma Perlman. Norma was one of the founders of Friends of Bryant Library, former Library Board member and past-President.
On the anniversary of that great loss, we'd like to recognize one of Roslyn's young parents, visionary, designers, and one of the early presenters of the Friends of Bryant Library Building Bridges Family Programs, Roseanne Frank. The Building Bridges programs are supported entirely by the Friends of Bryant Library. Working with Tinette Sterling, President, and the Executive Board of Friends of Bryant Library, Roseanne Frank took the children's portion of Friends activities to a whole new level. "Without Roseanne's dedication, these unique exceptional programs and the experiences they afforded, would not have taken place," said Barbara Homola, Coordinator of Children's Services.
In early 2005, Roseanne approached Barbara about offering programs to upper elementary students that would lend itself to a parent and child involvement. In Fall 2005 they hosted the first of what would become many Building Bridges Programs, a Parent/Child Book Discussion. A copy of Frindle by Andrew Clements, was purchased for every participant. In Spring 2006, Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater was discussed. Roseanne was the leader for each of the discussions. That was just the beginning for Roseanne and Barbara!
Since then, additional programs have included:
• Parent/Child Book Discussion for Young Adults and one for children
• Mother/Daughter Tea at Cedarmere
• Father/Son Nature Adventure Walk at the Muttontown Nature Walk
• Family Card Game Event
• Scrapbooking and an Art Project, "Be Creative At Your Library," creating a 3-Dimensional Art Museum
• Read, Make & Take. Participants read a book, made an art project, and took a copy of the book home with them.
Roseanne recently left the Board of Friends of Bryant Library. However, her influence continues as the Board continues to support these events.
Thank you, Roseanne, for all of your efforts, promoting both Friends of Bryant Library and The Bryant Library. Your greatest gift has been given to the children in Roslyn who are richer for having participated in the Building Bridges Programs over these past six years. Your dedication and efforts have been fully realized at each of these programs and the participants (children and adults) have benefitted from the experience.
Posted by Michele at 2:19 PM
November 21, 2011
People's Library
The People's Library at Occupy Wall Street in Zucotti Park is a beautiful thing. No matter what your political beliefs, it is hard to disagree with a community that values a library above all.
According to Stephen Abrams, "Occupy Wall Street has a library because you're not a real community without a library. When you want to really hurt a community you damage their library(ies). Caesar razed the library at Alexandrina. The students in Egypt valued it so highly they ringed the modern version of this library to protect it. In the War of 1812 the British/Canadians burned down the Library of Congress in retaliation for the burning of Toronto's library. Lots of other examples. Communities rebuild."
Below is the statement from the American Library Association:
Longstanding ALA policy states:
"The American Library Association deplores the destruction of libraries, library collections and property, and the disruption of the educational purpose by that act, whether it be done by individuals or groups of individuals and whether it be in the name of honest dissent, the desire to control or limit thought or ideas, or for any other purpose."
American Library Association (ALA) President Molly Raphael released the following statement regarding the destruction of the People's Library:
"The dissolution of a library is unacceptable. Libraries serve as the cornerstone of our democracy and must be safeguarded. An informed public constitutes the very foundation of a democracy, and libraries ensure that everyone has free access to information.
"The very existence of the People's Library demonstrates that libraries are an organic part of all communities. Libraries serve the needs of community members and preserve the record of community history. In the case of the People's Library, this included irreplaceable records and material related to the occupation movement and the temporary community that it represented.
"We support the librarians and volunteers of the Library Working Group as they re-establish the People's Library."
The American Library Association is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with more than 60,000 members. Its mission is to promote the highest quality library and information services and public access to information."
You don't have to support the OWS movement to appreciate the growth and rebuilding of a library in the midst of protest. It means that people still believe that the library has always been and will remain the center of a community. I believe this to be true.
Posted by Michele at 12:44 PM
November 10, 2011
Reach for the Stars
Library Journal just came out with their list of America's Star Libraries... and we're on it! The Bryant Library is one of 39 New York State libraries. We are so proud of how we've risen to the challenge created by the economy, technology, the internet, Google, Netflix, ereaders, etc. We have met and exceeded our goals in terms of statistics, circulation, traffic, etc. Cathy Mealing, our Director, Joan Casson Sauer, our Assistant Director, and our entire staff work very hard to provide the kind of service we can be proud of. And, we're very proud of and grateful to the Roslyn community for supporting the existence and the importance of a library...our library... your library. Thank you.
How has the library changed in these economic times?
"The explosion of library use, particularly demonstrated in stats for circulation and visits, reinforces the belief that libraries are more important than ever...These statistics also confirm the powerful deliverables of public libraries: as resources for education, entertainment, and information. Our political leaders can't afford to cut them, either in a depressed economy or a thriving one." (From a Beyond the Stars editorial.
Posted by Michele at 1:18 PM
November 1, 2011
Cathy Mealing, Keeping Up with the Times
Congratulations to our Bryant Library Director, Cathy Mealing for the article written about her in Newsday this week.
I don't want to give it all away, but Cathy spoke about her love of technology and about how she has brought that love and enthusiasm to the library. The article also talked about how Cathy got into the library business and how her career path has led her to where she is now. With her enthusiasm and drive to move us forward, we are lucky to have Cathy at the helm.
Posted by Michele at 4:18 PM
September 16, 2011
New Join Friends Paypal Option
You may have noticed the bright new Paypal button on our website. We now have the option of joining the Friends of Bryant Library via Paypal. You don't need to have a Paypal account to join. It's simple, fast and secure.
What do the Friends do for the library? The Friends run the Roberta Balfus bookstore. Staffed by Friends volunteers, they sell lots of wonderful books throughout the year. The Friends fund the Museum Pass Program. This is a blockbuster of a program. It is a program that is highly used and appreciated by many Roslyn residents. Not that long ago, both the Reference Desk and the Circulation Desk were funded by the Friends of Bryant Library. The Friends also sponsor Children's, Young Adult and Adult programs, including the William Cullen Bryant lecture, coming up in November.
These hardworking volunteers, known as the Friends are very much appreciated by both the staff and the community. Their motto is Carpe Diem, or Seize the Day. So, Seize the Day and join Friends today and show your appreciation.
Posted by Michele at 9:22 AM
September 12, 2011
Ebooks
Many of you have already jumped on the ebook bandwagon. Whether you're reading on your phones, Nooks, Kindles, iPads or other tablets or ereaders, we have heard only great things. It is great for those of us who need larger print, lighter books, those of us who enjoy reading in bed and those of us who are on the go. There is no question that ereaders will continue to evolve, but the medium is here to stay.
The Bryant Library, along with other Nassau County libraries, subscribes to Nassau Digital Doorway. Through this service, you can download ebooks (and audiobooks) for free, just as you would check out a library book. Like popular library books, you may have to reserve a title and you will get an email when it becomes available. Unlike library books, the titles expire and disappear after two weeks, so there is no chance of accumulating library fees.
We get many questions about our collection being available for the Kindle. That is out of our control. Our understanding is that Amazon is in discussion with Overdrive (the service that manages Nassau Digital Doorway). Our hope was that it would be up and running by the end of the summer, but that obviously didn't happen. We hope that it will be soon, and we'll let you know as soon as we know.
The books can be found in our regular catalog. You'll notice that when you search for a book, you will see several entries with the same title -- these will be the Large Type edition, the sound recording and the 'electronic resource.' This last one is the link that will lead you to Nassau Digital Doorway to download the title. Notice that the 'request' button that is on every entry in our catalog, is not there for these ebook entries. This is because the request needs to be placed directly in Nassau Digital Doorway.
There are a few steps that you need to do the first time you download a book, but after that, it doesn't take more than two minutes. The download itself is very easy to do, but a little different for each device. Check out 'My Help' at Nassau Digital Doorway, or call or visit the Reference Desk for additional assistance.
Remember our ebook collection when you're looking for a bestseller, a classic book or just want to browse.
Posted by Michele at 9:59 AM
September 9, 2011
Remembering
It is impossible not to remember and reflect back to September 11th, 2001. Ten years have passed in a blink. The memories are still so vivid. It will never be just another date on the calendar, but will always be heavy with grief, memories and cultural significance. Over the years, I've heard that people commemorate this day in various ways. Remember in your own way. When you're ready for information, books or articles, we'll be here.
If you want to read more about September 11th, there is a free ebook collection online, and another link to all things September 11th.
Posted by Michele at 2:38 PM