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October 2, 2006
Library’s
“Kool Reader’s Club” Discussion Oct. 12
October 3, 2006
Schedule of Events Planned for “One Book, One Allegany County 2006”
Campaign
October 6, 2006
Dedication of New
Bookmobile on October 20
October 6, 2006
LaVale Library
Picks October Discussion Book
October 9, 2006
Kid’s Books Discussions Help Libraries Build Good Readers
October 10, 2006
Teen Read
Week™2006 Celebrated by Libraries
October 10, 2006
Frostburg Library Hosts Jill Craig on History & Genealogy Resource
October 16, 2006
Scales and Tales
at LaVale Library Saturday
October 20, 2006
Library Book Group Discussing Frankenstein on Oct. 26
October 25, 2006
Storyteller at Frostburg Library’s Story Time on Nov. 2
October 25, 2006
Meet Author Evan
Offstein at LaVale Library
October 26, 2006
George’s Creek Library having Halloween Party at Story Hours
October 26, 2006
Westernport Library Closing November 6 - 14 for Repairs
October 2, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
The South Cumberland Library’s “Kool Reader’s Club” will discuss the
Newbery Medal winning Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi on
October 12 starting at 7PM. All children are invited to come share their
thoughts on this 14th century, action-filled, medieval story.
The Kool Reader’s Club is held the
second Thursday of each month at 7PM, following Evening Story Time.
Meetings consist of a half hour of discussion and reading activities for
young readers.
October 3, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
A Schedule of Events planned for the “One Book, One Allegany County
2006”, 4th Annual, county-wide, reading incentive has been
announced. People are encouraged to read this year’s book selection
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and/or the children’s book
selection, Abner & Me by Dan Gutman; then, come together for some
of the events listed below.
October 17 at Noon, Frostburg State University’s Library Staff and
Center for Creative Writing will pull together a panel of Literature
Faculty, International Relations Staff, and people who have an interest
in the regional setting of the book, including a student from that
region, for a discussion of The Kite Runner. The event will be
held in Room 237 of the university’s Library. All students and members
of the community are invited to come to this unique opportunity!
Also on October 17, to allow the public to gain more perspective on life
and culture in Afghanistan, Main Street Books in Frostburg will delve
into the Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad, a story from a
female Norwegian journalist who stayed with a bookseller’s family in
Kabul during the spring of 2002. This program will start at 7:30 PM in
the bookstore.
October 19 at 3:30 PM, Project Yes and South Cumberland Library staff
will hold a discussion of Abner & Me. This book and The Kite
Runner are both books that demonstrate the uniqueness of father and
son relationships. They also cover the subjects of “bullying & revenge”,
and “the use of non-fiction elements in fiction”. These are some of the
subjects that will be covered in this discussion. Teens and adults
reading The Kite Runner may want to bring some reflections
to share from that book to compare the two books at this discussion.
November 1 at 7 PM, Allegany College of Maryland’s Bob Baldwin, Director
of Learning Resources will lead a discussion of The Kite Runner.
All of the public are invited to attend this event at the college’s
Library Conference Room.
In keeping with the multi-media tradition of Allegany County’s “One
Book” programs, we encourage you to attend “The Lone Star League” by Jim
Ralston. Premier performances will be at Frostburg State University on
Nov. 10 and 11. This play is part of the Baseball FOREVER: Mirror of
American Life, a 3 ½ day conference being held at the university
starting Nov. 8.
One of the major themes of both 2006 One Book selections is “enhancing
life with sports”. Enhance your knowledge of baseball at this
conference, which will be a unique mix of the best of baseball’s
historians, journalists, broadcasters and other informed aficionados
with a lifelong love affair with the game.
The Kite Runner comes in many formats: large print, book on
cassette, and book on CD. Copies of the books are available at local
libraries and book stores. Published in 2003, the book is one of the
most talked about books in recent years. It’s a beautifully written book
about family relationships and friendships set in Afghanistan. It is a
debut novel for Hosseini, who was born in Afghanistan and moved to the
U.S. as a child. He is now a medical doctor, living in California.
Abner & Me is recommended for children ages 8-12. This Baseball
Card Adventure Book’s main character takes a time travel back with his
mom to meet Abner Doubleday, a Civil War General who was said to have
invented the game of baseball.
Any agency, business, or group that would like to partner with our group
is asked to call Linda at the South Cumberland Library, 301-724-1607.
Partnering for the 2006 campaign are the Allegany County Library System,
Frostburg State University’s Center for Creative Writing and Baseball
Forever Conference, Allegany County Cooperative Extension Service F-NET
Program, Allegany County Board of Education, Allegany Arts Council, Main
Street Books in Frostburg, Project Yes, Allegany College of Maryland
Library, Book Center in Downtown Cumberland, Waldenbooks in County Club
Mall, the Cumberland Times-News, and the Volunteer Center of Allegany
County.
October 6, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
The Allegany County Library System extends an invitation to the public
to join us as we dedicate the library system’s new Bookmobile to the
service of the citizens of Allegany County. The celebration will take
place at the LaVale Library, 815 National Highway, on Friday, October
20, 2006 at 11:00 AM.
The Bookmobile was donated in memory of Dr. Benedict Skitarelic through
the generosity of his family. This traveling library on wheels brings a
wide variety of library services to adults and children in schools,
nursing homes, day cares, and rural neighborhoods throughout Allegany
County.
Join library staff at this dedication to thank the Skitarelic family for
this generous gift. To learn more about the Bookmobile services contact
any library branch or visit the library’s website given below.
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
The LaVale Library Book Discussion Group has picked The History of
Love by Nicole Krauss for their discussion on Wednesday, October 25
at 7:00 PM. This novel, with its many haunting twists and humorous
turns, tells of the life and love of writer Leo Gursky. Everyone is
invited to come discuss the book. Copies are available at the library.
For more information please call 301-729-0855.
October 9, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
Allegany County Library Branches throughout the county now offer a
variety of children’s book clubs to help build good readers among
children in the elementary and middle school grades. The clubs allow the
children to discuss with one another the best in children’s literature,
with a wide variety of books used; this has proven to be extremely
motivating!
The Big Kids Club will be held on Saturdays Nov. 4, and Dec. 2 at 2:00PM
at the Washington Street Branch for kids in the upper elementary and
middle school grades. Included is reading, discussion and other
activities based on the book.
Book Brats, Frostburg Community Library’s reading club for kids ages
6-12 years, is held the second Saturday of every month at 2:00 PM, for
one hour: Sept. 9, Oct. 14, Nov. 11, and Dec. 2.
The Chapter Club is the library system’s newest group for kids, starting
this fall at the Westernport Library on Saturdays Nov. 4 & 18, Dec. 2,
16 & 30 at 11:00 AM. This book club is for grades 4 and up, includes
reading together and book discussions. For more details call
301-359-0455.
GC CrickCats will be held at the George’s Creek Regional Library on
Thursdays Oct. 12 & 26, Nov. 9, and Dec. 14 at 6:30 PM to explore
reading and making crafts together.
Kool Reader’s Club at the South Cumberland Library is held the second
Thursday of each month at 7:00 PM, following Evening Story Time. This
half-hour includes a discussion and sometimes other activities based on
chapter books, often Newbery Medal Books or books on a 3rd, 4th,
or 5th -grade reading level.
Middle School Book Discussion Group is held at the LaVale Library on
Thursdays at 6:00 PM: Oct. 26, Nov. 30, and Dec. 28. Pre-registration is
required for this one hour program; call 301-729-0855.
Saturday Story Time is held at the Washington Street Library once a
month at 11:00 AM. This half hour program for children of all ages,
includes reading, stories and crafts.
“Children throughout the county are encouraged to attend one of these
book groups,” commented Linda Burkey, coordinator for the Kool Reader’s
Group. “We find that the children that attend these reading groups tend
to connect with reading in a special way, often learning to read on a
level far above their grade level. Also the books selections for these
groups can often make great read-aloud books for families to use for
reading times together in their homes.”
October 10, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
Teen Read Week™2006
will be observed October 15-21 at Allegany County Library System
branches across the county with the release of the winning artwork from
the system’s Teen Photo Contest. Photographs by Sierra Spiker and Sarah
Foye will be featured.
YALSA, the Young Adult Library Services Association, a division of the
American Library Association, advocates the observance of the week,
“encouraging teens to use library resources to help them lead an active
life.”
Students from Project Yes will be helping the “One Book, One Allegany
County 2006” program by helping lead a discussion of the book Abner
and Me at the South Cumberland Library on Thursday, October 19 at
3:30 PM.
A special invitation is being extended to all teenagers to read Mary
Shelley’s Frankenstein, then to take part in a discussion of the
book on October 26, 7:00 PM at the South Cumberland Library. “So many
teens don’t know the true story of Frankenstein; they only know him from
the movies,” commented a library staff member. “Actually, he was a
gentle, sensitive creature at the beginning of his life. Read the book
and find out what happened to him.”
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact: Pat Merrbach
Frostburg Library
65 E. Main Street
Frostburg, MD 21532
Jill Craig, librarian with Western Maryland Public Libraries and curator
for Whilbr, Western Maryland’s Historical Library online, will be at the
Frostburg Community Library on Thursday, October 19, at 11:00 AM for a
presentation on HeritageQuest Online, Sanborn Maps, and Whilbr.
HeritageQuest Online is designed specifically for patrons in public
libraries who are either just beginning their family research or who
after years of work are still uncovering their past.
Digital Sanborn Maps, 1867-1970 provides access to more than 660,000
large-scale maps for more than 12,000 American towns and cities.
Sanborn fire insurance maps are the most frequently consulted maps in
libraries, and are valuable historical tools.
Whilbr is a local history web site, produced by Western Maryland Public
Libraries, where visitors can view images from the collections of the
libraries, historical societies, and individuals in the three counties.
There are photographs, newspaper articles, indexes, rare books and more.
Whilbr is available at
http://www.whilbr.org or
as a link off the Allegany County Library System’s Online Database page.
Recently the City of Cumberland and Allegany County Directory,
1895-96 was added to Whilbr. This directory lists the names,
occupations and residences of heads of households in Allegany County,
Maryland in 1895, along with the companies doing business in the region.
There are separate entries for Cumberland City, Barton, Frostburg,
Lonaconing, Mt. Savage and Westernport. There is a general listing for
Ocean, Orleans, Oldtown, Eckhart Mines, Flintstone, Pratt and other
small towns, which also includes those who resided outside the town
limits.
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn more about all these local
historical and genealogical resources.
October 16, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact: Pam Neder
LaVale Library
815 National Highway
LaVale, MD 21502
Rocky Gap’s very popular educational nature program Scales and Tales
will be at the LaVale Library on Saturday, October 21 at 3:00 PM.
Everyone is invited to come see their live birds and reptiles and to
hear their stories!
October 20, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
The South Cumberland Book Discussion Group will be discussing Mary
Shelley’s Frankenstein on Thursday, October 26 starting at 7:00
PM. Everyone is invited to read the book and come discuss what went
wrong in the life of this wonderfully gentle creature. Was it fair that
he wound up with such an extremely bad image in the movies?
October 25, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact: Connie Wilson
Frostburg Library
65 E. Main Street
Frostburg, MD 21532
Storyteller Georgeanna Wellings will be
present to tell a “Turkey Tale” at Evening Story Time at the Frostburg
Community Library on November 2nd starting at 6:00 PM. The
audience will have a chance to participate in the telling of this story
by filling in some blanks to see where turkey might end up!
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact:
Linda Burkey
South Cumberland Library
100 Seymour Street
Cumberland, MD 21502
Evan Offstein, author of Stand Your Ground: Building Honorable
Leaders the West Point Way will be at the LaVale Library on
Thursday, November 9 at 7:00 PM to talk about his book.
A former Military Intelligence Officer and graduate of the United States
Military Academy at West Point, Evan earned a Master’s degree in
administration from Central Michigan University and Doctorate in
business from Virginia Tech, and is currently a member of the Business
Management Faculty at FSU.
Evan has managed and led at profit and non-profit organizations
including Corning, Target Corporation, and the Virginia Military
Institute. His research on senior executives has won recognition at top
international conferences including the Academy of Management
Conference, Strategic Management Society Conference and the American
Society for Competitiveness Conference.
October 26, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact: Debbie Hartman
George's Creek Library
76 Main Street
Lonaconing, MD 21539
The George’s Creek Regional Library will hold a Halloween Party at their
regularly scheduled Story Hour for 3-6 year olds on Wednesday, October
25 starting at 2:30 PM and again at their Evening Story Time for all
aged children at 6:30 PM.
“Story Hour and Evening Story Time are held every Wednesday at the
library from September thru December 13,” explains Debbie Hartman,
Children Librarian. “These programs help the child become socialized and
used to taking part in learning activities with other children.”
October 26, 2006
PRESS RELEASE - Allegany County Library System
Contact: Nancy Sudine
George's Creek Library
76 Main Street
Lonaconing, MD 21539
The Westernport Library will be closed from Monday, November 6 thru
Tuesday, November 14, 2006 while work to replace the library’s roof and
other repairs are made. The library will re-open to the public on
Wednesday, November 15, 2006.
The meeting room at the library will also be closed during this period.
