Public libraries play a very important role in the life of a community - in the very fabric of society. A public library helps to insure that the information resources of a city, county, state, nation, etc., are available to all citizens. One of the cornerstones of democracy is that of an informed citizenry and the public library certainly has a vital part in providing services for the educational, cultural, and recreational needs of its patrons.
Libraries are fortunate when they have supporters who are committed to its mission. The Sumter County Library has been exceptionally lucky over the years to have a very dedicated and hardworking Friends group. Volunteers have been toiling for months sorting through donations and organizing materials into appropriate categories in preparation for the annual book sale. The location this year will be what was the old Service Merchandise store at Sumter Mall. This is the large, anchor store between Sears and JC Penney. The sale begins with a Friend's Only Night on Thursday, November 1 from 6 - 8:30 pm. If you aren't a Friend of the Library, you can join up Thursday evening and take advantage of opening night. We'll be glad to have you on board. The sale will continue on Friday, November 2 and 9 from 4-8:30 pm; Saturday, November 3 and 10 from 10 am - 6 pm; and Sunday, November 4 and 11 from 1:30 - 5 pm. All proceeds go to the Friends of the Library which will help the Library provide materials, programs, and services to meet the needs of the community.
One Friends fundraising event is about to begin and another was held on a beautiful October Saturday a few weeks ago. Over 170 runners and walkers turned out on the 13th to participate in the 2nd annual Forrest Ray 5K Run/Walk Celebration. Trey Parker of Wilson Hall School was the overall winner for the second consecutive year, trimming over a minute from his time last year. He completed the race in 15:54. Wilson Hall also won the school participation award. The military participation award went to Shaw's combined 28th and 9th Operational Weather Squadrons. Again, many thanks to all who came out to support the Library.
Robert
Forrest Ray 5K Run/Walk Celebration 2007 Winners
Overall:
1st Place Trey Parker 15:54
2nd Place Chris Hicks 16:52
3rd Place Joshua Jennings 17:41
Adult Male Adult Female
1st Place Chris Hicks 1st Place Rita Hobi
2nd Place James Goodson 2nd Place Julie Herlong
3rd Place Scott Snyder 3rd Place Heather Durant
Military Male Military Female
1st Place William Ray 1st Place Cathy Norwood
2nd Place James Slisik 2nd Place Noelle Caldwell
3rd Place Scott Stewart 3rd Place Jennifer Young
Youth Male Youth Female
1st Place Trey Parker 1st Place Erin Pratt
2nd Place Joshua Jennings 2nd Place Kat Blanchard
3rd Place Josh Watts 3rd Place Amber Collins
Forrest Ray 5K Traveling High School Cup Wilson Hall
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Friday, October 5, 2007
The Sumter County Library is very excited about the upcoming Forrest Ray 5K Classic Run/Walk Celebration on Saturday, October 13. The race begins at the Downtown Library at 9:00 am, and we'll be taking registration right up to race time. This years event will feature timing chips that will bring a bit more of a professional feel to the competition. Another added feature will be the awarding of the Forrest A. Ray Traveling High School Cup that will go to the fastest high school student. The Cup will remain at the High School until another school is able to wrest it away in future annual races. While the competitive aspect contributes to the sporting element of the event, the focus is still on fundraising for the Library. All proceeds go to the Friends of the Library and we welcome all participants - those who are determined to be best in the field, those who are organizing their own competitions with fellow runners, and also those who just want to participate in a great community event and support the Library.
As Interim Director of the Sumter County Library, I cannot begin to extend my thanks to those who have worked so tirelessly on the 5K or to those who support the Library in so many different ways. Bosch Braking Systems recently donated a collection of beautifully framed artwork featuring vignettes from around Sumter. These pictures are now hanging in the Library and have already attracted appreciative comments from Library staff and patrons. Bosch is also donating an extraordinarily restored 1929 Ford Model A to the Library. They should be delivering it to us shortly, and then the car will be auctioned online with the proceeds going to the Friends of the Library. The amazing restoration on this classic automobile was done by apprentices working at Bosch. Bosch also donated the funds that made the Technology Area possible at our Wesmark Branch. Thanks Bosch for all you've done for the Library!
The support we receive allows the Library to purchase items for our collection (books, audiobooks, dvds, etc.) that in turn benefit our patrons. We also receive support from people who come to our Library to present programs for the public. Kirstin Hemphill braved the rain and the traffic from the USC-Kentucky game to drive from Columbia to present an SAT Math Game Thursday evening, October 4, at the Downtown Library. The spirited students who attended formed three teams competing against each other in a "Jeopardy" style game that featured categories such as Arithmetic, Geometry, and Algebra I and II. Kirstin is a math and science tutor with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from Penn State. Kirstin says "I feel a responsibility to "the next generation" and South Carolina to give back to the community by providing this program free of charge, as a lot of students do not have the means of hiring a private SAT tutor, or attending an expensive prep course. I felt it was important to try to find a way to make it as fun as possible, as studying for the SATs can be a daunting task." Judging by the fun the participants seemed to be having, Kirstin more than achieved her goal.
Robert
As Interim Director of the Sumter County Library, I cannot begin to extend my thanks to those who have worked so tirelessly on the 5K or to those who support the Library in so many different ways. Bosch Braking Systems recently donated a collection of beautifully framed artwork featuring vignettes from around Sumter. These pictures are now hanging in the Library and have already attracted appreciative comments from Library staff and patrons. Bosch is also donating an extraordinarily restored 1929 Ford Model A to the Library. They should be delivering it to us shortly, and then the car will be auctioned online with the proceeds going to the Friends of the Library. The amazing restoration on this classic automobile was done by apprentices working at Bosch. Bosch also donated the funds that made the Technology Area possible at our Wesmark Branch. Thanks Bosch for all you've done for the Library!
The support we receive allows the Library to purchase items for our collection (books, audiobooks, dvds, etc.) that in turn benefit our patrons. We also receive support from people who come to our Library to present programs for the public. Kirstin Hemphill braved the rain and the traffic from the USC-Kentucky game to drive from Columbia to present an SAT Math Game Thursday evening, October 4, at the Downtown Library. The spirited students who attended formed three teams competing against each other in a "Jeopardy" style game that featured categories such as Arithmetic, Geometry, and Algebra I and II. Kirstin is a math and science tutor with a B.S. in Materials Science and Engineering from Penn State. Kirstin says "I feel a responsibility to "the next generation" and South Carolina to give back to the community by providing this program free of charge, as a lot of students do not have the means of hiring a private SAT tutor, or attending an expensive prep course. I felt it was important to try to find a way to make it as fun as possible, as studying for the SATs can be a daunting task." Judging by the fun the participants seemed to be having, Kirstin more than achieved her goal.
Robert
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Forrest Ray 5K Run/Walk Celebration
On October 13, 2007, the FORREST RAY 5K RUN/WALK CELEBRATION will be held as part of Octoberfest in Sumter County. The race is a fundraising event for the Sumter County Library. This will be the second year for the 5K, which is the inspired creation of Forrest Ray, a musician, avid reader, and dedicated library supporter. Forrest came up with the idea as a way to raise money to help in the renovation/expansion project of the Library Headquarters that saw the library go from an outdated relic of the 1960’s to the state of the art facility that opened in May of this year after a year and a half of construction. Forrest’s vision did not end with the construction of the building, however. Once the “house” was built, he envisioned this race becoming an annual event that would engage the entire community in raising money for furnishings, library programming, and books and audiovisual materials to fill the many rows of new shelving.
Last year’s race attracted over 100 participants. Forrest worked tirelessly to make the first annual 5K the success it was, even while enduring the effects of the cancer that would claim his life four months later. As a sign of appreciation for his efforts, the Library Board of Trustees and the Friends of the Library voted to name the event in his memory.
An athletic competition is perhaps not the first thing that would spring to mind when thinking of fundraising possibilities for a Library, but it has turned out to be a very inventive idea that takes into consideration the “whole” person – a health inspired event that will raise money to benefit the educational, cultural, and recreational life of Sumter County. In addition, the 5K positions the library front and center in a community event. This race will bring together young and old, industry and schools, Sumter and Shaw AFB residents, in fact, the very people the library wishes to reach and serve. The Sumter YMCA immediately signed on as a co-sponsor, as did Sumter County Lifestyles. SAFE Federal Credit Union became a major corporate supporter this year, thus enabling the event to soar to a new dimension of excellence.
The FORREST RAY 5K RUN/ WALK will begin at 9:00 am at the Sumter County Library, and the race itself will follow a route that will take runners and walkers through downtown Sumter, past residences in the historic district, and finish at the beautiful Swan Lake Gardens. Transportation will be available to take participants back to the library. Registration is available online at the Sumter YMCA (an organizational sponsor of the race) at http://www.ymcasumter.org or the library’s site, www.midnet.sc.edu/sumtercls.
Robert
Last year’s race attracted over 100 participants. Forrest worked tirelessly to make the first annual 5K the success it was, even while enduring the effects of the cancer that would claim his life four months later. As a sign of appreciation for his efforts, the Library Board of Trustees and the Friends of the Library voted to name the event in his memory.
An athletic competition is perhaps not the first thing that would spring to mind when thinking of fundraising possibilities for a Library, but it has turned out to be a very inventive idea that takes into consideration the “whole” person – a health inspired event that will raise money to benefit the educational, cultural, and recreational life of Sumter County. In addition, the 5K positions the library front and center in a community event. This race will bring together young and old, industry and schools, Sumter and Shaw AFB residents, in fact, the very people the library wishes to reach and serve. The Sumter YMCA immediately signed on as a co-sponsor, as did Sumter County Lifestyles. SAFE Federal Credit Union became a major corporate supporter this year, thus enabling the event to soar to a new dimension of excellence.
The FORREST RAY 5K RUN/ WALK will begin at 9:00 am at the Sumter County Library, and the race itself will follow a route that will take runners and walkers through downtown Sumter, past residences in the historic district, and finish at the beautiful Swan Lake Gardens. Transportation will be available to take participants back to the library. Registration is available online at the Sumter YMCA (an organizational sponsor of the race) at http://www.ymcasumter.org or the library’s site, www.midnet.sc.edu/sumtercls.
Robert
Monday, August 20, 2007
High temperature and humidity aside, summer is drawing to a close. Schools will be back in session this week and you can already tell that the days are getting slightly shorter. Here at the Library we are also beginning to make the transition to fall. The biggest change will of course be the students that will be coming to the Library after school to work on homework, science projects, and the inevitable term papers. We are looking forward to being able to provide assistance to our student patrons in our expanded facility. Several plans are in the formative stages for programming for the fall, but it might be a good time to pause and look back over the last few months.
The Summer Reading program, Get A Clue, was a resounding hit. It was evident that the children thoroughly enjoyed the programs that our intrepid Children’s Department staff provided for them. Kudos to Karen Edgar, Vickey Haynesworth, Janet Caldwell, Nipa Brown, Glenda Fulwood, and the entire staff as well as their tireless volunteers who worked so hard to make this year the success it was. And we can’t forget to thank the Friends of the Library who once again sponsored the programs – we couldn’t have done it without their support. Speaking of support and the Children’s Department, the Junior Welfare League of Sumter has once again supplied the Library with a generous donation to purchase books. Some of these have already arrived and will soon be making their way into the hands of eager young readers. The Kiwanis have also done much in the past and continue to provide books for the Children’s Department. These organizations are helping to foster the habit and joy of reading in young library users that will last them a lifetime.
Our movie nights have been a growing favorite, with just the right blend of contemporary and classic movies. One week our patrons have enjoyed Robin Williams in RV, another James Dean in the enduring Rebel Without A Cause. We’ve already worked up a slate of movies for the fall and details will be forthcoming shortly.
The Downtown Library was closed on Friday, August 17. We apologize for any inconvenience this caused our patrons, but the day was spent by the staff in honing their skills to better serve the Sumter community. We were very fortunate to have presentations in the morning from two staff members from the South Carolina State Library, which works tirelessly to support libraries across the state. Deborah Hotchkiss presented a customer service workshop that went against the grain of treating patrons as potential problems to be dealt with or managed. Instead, her focus was on how the attitude of the staff can make patrons feel welcome as soon as they walk through the doors. Amy Duernberger followed with a demonstration of the many tools available through the online databases of DISCUS, which is accessible at the Library and for home use as well. Contact the Library for any information on the incredible goldmine of information that can be obtained from the DISCUS databases. The morning lineup was perfect – the importance of good customer service followed by a great customer service tool. The afternoon session was headed by Joseph Tobiere, the longtime IT for the Library. From the moment the Internet made its first appearance at the Library when we had a grand total of three or four computers for public use, to the 35+ that are in our lab today, Joseph has been their every step of the way as the Sumter County Library has made its way along the information highway. If you ever drive by the Library late at night and see a light burning somewhere in the building, that’s probably Joseph or one of his techs responding to a cry for help from the library staff. Joseph gave a very informational talk on computer use in the library that was very appreciated by all those staff members that attended.
So, it’s been a pretty good summer and we look forward to many new and exciting ways to serve the Sumter community in the fall months ahead.
Robert
The Summer Reading program, Get A Clue, was a resounding hit. It was evident that the children thoroughly enjoyed the programs that our intrepid Children’s Department staff provided for them. Kudos to Karen Edgar, Vickey Haynesworth, Janet Caldwell, Nipa Brown, Glenda Fulwood, and the entire staff as well as their tireless volunteers who worked so hard to make this year the success it was. And we can’t forget to thank the Friends of the Library who once again sponsored the programs – we couldn’t have done it without their support. Speaking of support and the Children’s Department, the Junior Welfare League of Sumter has once again supplied the Library with a generous donation to purchase books. Some of these have already arrived and will soon be making their way into the hands of eager young readers. The Kiwanis have also done much in the past and continue to provide books for the Children’s Department. These organizations are helping to foster the habit and joy of reading in young library users that will last them a lifetime.
Our movie nights have been a growing favorite, with just the right blend of contemporary and classic movies. One week our patrons have enjoyed Robin Williams in RV, another James Dean in the enduring Rebel Without A Cause. We’ve already worked up a slate of movies for the fall and details will be forthcoming shortly.
The Downtown Library was closed on Friday, August 17. We apologize for any inconvenience this caused our patrons, but the day was spent by the staff in honing their skills to better serve the Sumter community. We were very fortunate to have presentations in the morning from two staff members from the South Carolina State Library, which works tirelessly to support libraries across the state. Deborah Hotchkiss presented a customer service workshop that went against the grain of treating patrons as potential problems to be dealt with or managed. Instead, her focus was on how the attitude of the staff can make patrons feel welcome as soon as they walk through the doors. Amy Duernberger followed with a demonstration of the many tools available through the online databases of DISCUS, which is accessible at the Library and for home use as well. Contact the Library for any information on the incredible goldmine of information that can be obtained from the DISCUS databases. The morning lineup was perfect – the importance of good customer service followed by a great customer service tool. The afternoon session was headed by Joseph Tobiere, the longtime IT for the Library. From the moment the Internet made its first appearance at the Library when we had a grand total of three or four computers for public use, to the 35+ that are in our lab today, Joseph has been their every step of the way as the Sumter County Library has made its way along the information highway. If you ever drive by the Library late at night and see a light burning somewhere in the building, that’s probably Joseph or one of his techs responding to a cry for help from the library staff. Joseph gave a very informational talk on computer use in the library that was very appreciated by all those staff members that attended.
So, it’s been a pretty good summer and we look forward to many new and exciting ways to serve the Sumter community in the fall months ahead.
Robert
Monday, July 30, 2007
Book Review
One of our patrons, Beatrice Brown, is acting as guest blogger to give us her review of the new Harry Potter book by J. K. Rowling. Beatrice doesn't give away the plot (but beware of spoilers!) Hopefully, we will be able to offer reviews from more of our younger patrons in the near future.
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was one book that I did not want to put down. As soon as I opened the first page, I was drawn into Harry's next adventure. J. K. Rowling holds a level of suspense through out every part of the book.
The first chapter, like many other Harry Potter novels, does not begin in Harry's point of view. As the story progresses, Harry comes into the picture. Harry, who is just about to turn 17, is trying to figure himself out. Since Dumbledore died and Voldemort came back, the wizard world has been in turmoil. Voldemort's death eaters are trying to hunt Harry down and they are killing everyone in their path.
Harry has to make the tough decision of going after Voldemort or staying and following Dumbledore's orders of destroying all of the Horcruxes. Ron, Hermonie, and Harry decide to follow Dumbledore's orders which eventually lead them to Voldemort.
In this Harry Potter adventure, many questions are answered and many events happen that change everything. There is even an epilogue that tells about what happens to Harry 19 years later. So, instead of reading this, why don't you go out and borrow the book from the library and start Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!
Beatrice Brown
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was one book that I did not want to put down. As soon as I opened the first page, I was drawn into Harry's next adventure. J. K. Rowling holds a level of suspense through out every part of the book.
The first chapter, like many other Harry Potter novels, does not begin in Harry's point of view. As the story progresses, Harry comes into the picture. Harry, who is just about to turn 17, is trying to figure himself out. Since Dumbledore died and Voldemort came back, the wizard world has been in turmoil. Voldemort's death eaters are trying to hunt Harry down and they are killing everyone in their path.
Harry has to make the tough decision of going after Voldemort or staying and following Dumbledore's orders of destroying all of the Horcruxes. Ron, Hermonie, and Harry decide to follow Dumbledore's orders which eventually lead them to Voldemort.
In this Harry Potter adventure, many questions are answered and many events happen that change everything. There is even an epilogue that tells about what happens to Harry 19 years later. So, instead of reading this, why don't you go out and borrow the book from the library and start Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows!
Beatrice Brown
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
New at the Library
A book about a certain young wizard has dominated the publishing headlines for a while now, but since it's hit the shelves of bookstores and libraries everywhere, it might be a good time to look at some other titles that are new on the shelves of the Sumter County Library. The Berlin Wall stood for nearly thirty years as a symbol of oppression and totalitarianism before its fall. Author Frederick Taylor has written a book combining official history, archival materials and personal accounts in The Berlin Wall : a World Divided 1961-1989. He details the story of the Wall's rise and eventual fall, recounting the stories of those who risked their lives to scale the Wall to freedom and those who paid the ultimate price in attempting to do so.
The story goes that shortly after the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943, an Army Ranger on a beach in Salerno was asked by a staff officer where William Darby, one of the most successful officers of World War II, could be located. The Ranger replied, "You'll never find him this far back." Darby began the war as an artillery captain, but by 1945 had been promoted to colonel and had commanded Ranger battalions in twelve major battles. His story is told in Onward We Charge - the Heroic Story of Darby's Rangers in World War II by H. Paul Jeffers.
Continuing backwards on history's timeline, Amity Shales writes a reinterpretation of the Great Depression in The Forgotten Man - a New History of the Great Depression. She details the neglected stories of the individual Americans and their struggles during this time. And delving even further into the past, Privilege and Scandal - the Remarkable Life of Harriet Spencer, Sister of Georgiana tells the story of Lady Harriet Spencer, ancestor of Princess Diana. Janet Gleason pens the story of Harriet's life. Lady Spencer was an eyewitness of the French Revolution, traveled through Europe during the Napoleonic Wars, gambled excessively, and quarreled with Lord Byron when he pursued her younger daughter.
The Lincoln Highway : Coast to Coast From Times Square to the Golden Gate celebrates America's first transcontinental highway. The story begins in 1913 with a new highway that stretched across 3,389 miles and thirteen states. It lured newly motoring Americans to drive their Model Ts and explore a frontier that was even then beginning to fade away. After a period of decline, the Lincoln Highway has experienced a renewal of interest of late. Authors Michael Wallis and Michael S. Williamson report the finds that adventurous travelers can discover - from a portrait of Ronald Reagan made from 14,000 jelly beans in Illinois to the bends of the "Loneliest Road" in Nevada.
Finally, in Porch Talk - Stories of Decency, Common Sense, & Other Endangered Species, author and storyteller Philip Gulley reminds the reader of a time when life revolved around the front porch. Friends gathered, stories were told, and small moments took on large meanings.
You can find all these and much more at the Sumter County Library, so come and check us out.
Robert
The story goes that shortly after the Allied invasion of Italy in 1943, an Army Ranger on a beach in Salerno was asked by a staff officer where William Darby, one of the most successful officers of World War II, could be located. The Ranger replied, "You'll never find him this far back." Darby began the war as an artillery captain, but by 1945 had been promoted to colonel and had commanded Ranger battalions in twelve major battles. His story is told in Onward We Charge - the Heroic Story of Darby's Rangers in World War II by H. Paul Jeffers.
Continuing backwards on history's timeline, Amity Shales writes a reinterpretation of the Great Depression in The Forgotten Man - a New History of the Great Depression. She details the neglected stories of the individual Americans and their struggles during this time. And delving even further into the past, Privilege and Scandal - the Remarkable Life of Harriet Spencer, Sister of Georgiana tells the story of Lady Harriet Spencer, ancestor of Princess Diana. Janet Gleason pens the story of Harriet's life. Lady Spencer was an eyewitness of the French Revolution, traveled through Europe during the Napoleonic Wars, gambled excessively, and quarreled with Lord Byron when he pursued her younger daughter.
The Lincoln Highway : Coast to Coast From Times Square to the Golden Gate celebrates America's first transcontinental highway. The story begins in 1913 with a new highway that stretched across 3,389 miles and thirteen states. It lured newly motoring Americans to drive their Model Ts and explore a frontier that was even then beginning to fade away. After a period of decline, the Lincoln Highway has experienced a renewal of interest of late. Authors Michael Wallis and Michael S. Williamson report the finds that adventurous travelers can discover - from a portrait of Ronald Reagan made from 14,000 jelly beans in Illinois to the bends of the "Loneliest Road" in Nevada.
Finally, in Porch Talk - Stories of Decency, Common Sense, & Other Endangered Species, author and storyteller Philip Gulley reminds the reader of a time when life revolved around the front porch. Friends gathered, stories were told, and small moments took on large meanings.
You can find all these and much more at the Sumter County Library, so come and check us out.
Robert
Monday, July 16, 2007
Interactive Search Guide being Created at the Wesmark Branch
The Wesmark Branch is extremely excited to announce that we are in the very early stages of creating an interactive instructional guide for searching POLARIS – our online catalog. This guide will feature animations, graphics, and optional sound. It will be geared towards the young adult patron to the very mature patron. The purpose of the guide is to provide a fun but informative method for information gathering in an electronic environment. However, it will not replace the personal and professional service that the Wesmark Branch provides.
Keep blogging to learn about the progress of this project and the many other surprises that the Wesmark Branch has planned for our patrons.
Chris
Keep blogging to learn about the progress of this project and the many other surprises that the Wesmark Branch has planned for our patrons.
Chris
Friday, July 13, 2007
Friday Night and Harry Potter (and Saturday morning, too!)
The Sumter County Library has a special program planned for Friday night and Saturday morning to celebrate the release of the latest (and last in the series) Harry Potter book. We will be closing Friday, July 20, at our regular time of 6:00 pm, and then reopening at 9:00 pm for a special showing beginning at 9:30 of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The movie should conclude around midnight, and at 12:01 am, we will be holding a special drawing. Three lucky people will be the first ones able to check out Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. We will also be drawing for a set of the first six Harry Potter books and two DVDs, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - (special note: you must be present to win) This event will be taking place in our new Meeting Room. We'll be providing the popcorn and we'll also be on hand to give directions and lead everyone to the right place. The entire staff is very excited about this program. Our Children's Librarians, Assistants, and volunteers are hard at work to make this an occasion to remember - so please plan on joining us for this very special event.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
He's here!
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final installment in the series by J. K. Rowling arrived at the Library this morning. Of course, he is still in the box with strict instructions not to be released before 12:01 am, July 21, 2007. Stay tuned for further information.
Robert
Robert
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
"You don't have the book I want"
Just because we don't own a book, doesn't mean we can't get it for you! We borrow hundreds of books every year on InterLibrary loan (ILL). We cooperate regularly with our Polaris partners--Darlington, Chester, Dillon, Georgetown, Marion & Marlboro county libraries-- borrowing their books and loaning ours to them. We can get a book through the SC State Library--they loan items from their collection and USC's Thomas Cooper Library in Columbia. We also borrow regularly from the Richland County Public Library. Any library can ask to borrow items from any other library just by using the ALA (American Library Assoc) ILL form. Recently, one of our patrons borrowed microfilm for genealogy research from the Library of Virginia. Any Reference Librarian, at any branch can help you begin the process. It may take a week or two for your items to get here, but it's usually free of charge and very convenient. Questions, call Janet at 774-7123.
Saturday, June 30, 2007
Transitions
Transitions. That's the word that crops up the most when I think about the last few years here at the Sumter County Library. It has been a time of constant change, packing and unpacking, moving from one location to another while our Wesmark Branch and the Downtown Library were being renovated and expanded. It has definitely been a challenge for the Library staff, and I know it has been for our patrons as well. Having to hand out flashlights to help people find their way around the stacks as we had to do in one of our temporary locations wasn't exactly the ideal library environment, but somehow everything worked out and the Sumter community was amazingly patient. Now we are settling into our new Library and the consensus opinion seems to be that it was worth all the effort. I began working at the Library in June of 1980, twenty-seven years ago, and even back then it was apparent that we sorely needed more space. We have that now and the entire staff at all our locations (Downtown, Wesmark, and South Sumter) is dedicated to offering the best possible library service we can. Whether you are a regular patron, drop by once in a while, or have never used the library, come in and see what we have to offer.
And please let us know what we can do to improve our services - let us know what kind of books, movies, audiobooks, magazines, etc. you would like the Library to have in the collection. Also, share your ideas of what types of programs you would like the Library to offer. We look forward to hearing from you.
About our blog - I was at the American Library Association conference recently, and many of the topics were centered around social software and web-based information services such as Wikis, Blogs, Web 2.0, Podcasting and Flickr. The big question and challenge facing libraries is how to properly use these technologies to actually improve services to patrons - it should not be a matter of just jumping on board with the latest trend. Hopefully this blog can be a good starting point to test the waters. I hope as many members of the Library staff as possible will share information about what's going on at the Library - whether its a program like the Hot Nights - Cool Movies, the appearance of the Charleston County Dive Team on July 11th, or just the latest bestsellers we've added to the collection.
Robert Harden
And please let us know what we can do to improve our services - let us know what kind of books, movies, audiobooks, magazines, etc. you would like the Library to have in the collection. Also, share your ideas of what types of programs you would like the Library to offer. We look forward to hearing from you.
About our blog - I was at the American Library Association conference recently, and many of the topics were centered around social software and web-based information services such as Wikis, Blogs, Web 2.0, Podcasting and Flickr. The big question and challenge facing libraries is how to properly use these technologies to actually improve services to patrons - it should not be a matter of just jumping on board with the latest trend. Hopefully this blog can be a good starting point to test the waters. I hope as many members of the Library staff as possible will share information about what's going on at the Library - whether its a program like the Hot Nights - Cool Movies, the appearance of the Charleston County Dive Team on July 11th, or just the latest bestsellers we've added to the collection.
Robert Harden
Friday, June 29, 2007
Movie Nights at your library
Beginning next Tuesday July 3rd, the Downtown Library will be hosting 'Hot Nights with Cool Movies' at 5:30 in the Meeting Room. We are doing two series - Modern and Classic - on alternate weeks. The Modern series consists of : I Walk the Line, RV, Pirates of the Caribbean, and The Devil Wears Prada. The Classic will be showing and discussing She Wore a Yellow Ribbon, Rebel Without a Cause, The Graduate, and Star Wars - A New Hope! We think that offers something for almost everyone and we hope to build a strong base for different approaches in the fall - maybe a foreign film series, or musicals, or horror? Anyway, we will be soliciting opinions as we go along. So come on out and view something fun with us and maybe learn something interesting! For instance that is NOT Anne Bancroft's leg in the notorious ad picture for The Graduate - but it does belong to another famous Hollywood star - know who? By the way, all films are of course BYOP! (Bring your own popcorn)
David
A New Beginning!
Last year when we began experimenting with a blog it was decidedly experimental. But now that we're in our new Downtown library and have our new staff aboard, we feel that we have a better handle on what we want our blog to accomplish: 1. we want it to be almost instant updates rather than waiting for an article in the newspaper or inhouse handouts etc. 2. we want you to hear from as many of our staff in as many areas as we can so it doesn't always reflect the same 'take' on things 3. we hope it becomes interactive and that way we can be aware of what the public community wants in the way of programing and activities.
So here goes - by the way, all the posts will be signed by its author so you'll know who to contact for more info. And we're off!
So here goes - by the way, all the posts will be signed by its author so you'll know who to contact for more info. And we're off!
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