FOAL Focus - Friends of the Auberry Library

Jul y 2016
Volume 1, Issue 3
FOAL Focus
A Quarterly Newsletter from Friends of the Auberry Library
Teens Tour Historic Hanford
Inside this issue:
FOAL has many wonderful teen tours
planned for this summer! Just recently
we went on one that was absolutely
outstanding. We left from the library,
headed to the train station and left for
Hanford. For a lot of us, it was our first
time on a train, which is just what
FOAL does--it gives teens
opportunities. We then got to the
Hanford Carnegie Museum and had a
tour of the museum. We learned so
many things about how Hanford
became the city it is today. We got a
glimpse of what it was like to live in
Hanford back in the day, from the
medicine they used, to the toys they
played with. Once we finished the tour
we headed down China Alley. We got
to see the building where many
Chinese immigrants stayed. They
showed us where and how they
worshiped. We got to see where they
went to school and what they were
taught. We also got to see their game
room and everything in-between. We
finished the day by getting ice cream at
Superior Dairy, which tasted amazing!
Then we headed back to the train and
left for Clovis, ending back where our
adventure started--the library. Doing
the teen tours is an amazing way to
spend your summer. You get to
learn and experience so many
different and amazing things that
you wouldn’t be able to otherwise. I
know I will be going on as many
teen tours as I possibly can.
New Sidewalk
2
Poetry Share
3
Board Departure
3
Comedian a Hit
3
Astronomy Nights
4
- Elisabeth Deniston, teen contributor
Meet a Friend
4
Editor’s Note: One more event this
summer-- Woodward Shakespeare
Festival on August 11. Info available at
the library and through the FOAL
office. This program is co-sponsored by
the Bertha and John Garabedian
Charitable Foundation
Library Link
5
Annual Meeting
5
Recognitions
6
Upcoming Events
6
President’s Message 2
The teen group enjoying the Hanford view.
Come to Grizzly Baseball with FOAL!
FOAL has tickets to the Fresno Grizzlies game on Aug 18 vs. the Omaha Storm Chasers. Seats are in
Section 126, off the first base line. Game time is 7:05. And as a special bonus, this game is the 6th annual
“Taco Throwdown”, where taco truck vendors compete for customer votes. This event is a fundraiser for
FOAL. Tickets are $14, with $5 per ticket going to support FOAL programs. Tickets are available from
any FOAL board member, or through the FOAL office. Contact Loren Leach for questions/info at
foalorg@gmail.com.
2 President’s Message
I hope this midsummer finds you
enjoying yourselves, in spite of hot
temperatures, while exploring
ways to stay cool in our foothill
and mountain communities. At
our most recent outdoor concert
with one of our favorite local
musicians, Eva Scow and The
Experience, the small audience
enjoyed the beauty of a perfect
evening in our Sohm Garden as
night fell. The event left me
frustrated though at the size of
that small audience. What are we
missing in drawing larger
numbers? There is no cover
charge—but you could win cash in
a 50/50 raffle. There is nothing to
buy—unless you would like a
delicious Ooh-de-Lolli ice pop.
There are no tickets to
remember—just bring a chair or a
blanket. There is plenty of
parking—as well as room to dance
or otherwise express the music in
movement. We announce our
events on Facebook, in the
Mountain Press, through emails to
members and by distributing flyers
throughout the community. What
else can we do to encourage our
community to attend free events?
We are looking for new friends so
please help us reach more people.
“What else can we do to
encourage our community
to attend free events? We
are looking for new friends
so please help us reach
new people.”
Jamelie Taylor
FOAL's mission is to

Support the Auberry Branch Library as it strives to encourage literacy and lifelong learning;

Provide a vibrant cultural gathering place;

Enhance the Library's resources and services; and to increase community access to
information and knowledge.
A “Concrete Contribution” from FOAL
Our FOAL board is always looking
for ways to improve accessibility
and engagement with our
community. Our latest project
was the addition of a concrete
walkway on the edge of Sohm
Garden. FOAL engaged local
contractor Matt Saar to create a
walkway from the front parking lot
to the rear of the garden. Outback
Materials donated 9.5 yards of
concrete for the project. According
to FOAL President Jamelie Taylor,
these contributions made a
tremendous impact on FOAL’s
ability to accomplish the project.
This upgrade will hopefully make a
difference for those with
wheelchairs, walkers, strollers, as
well as moving items out into Sohm
Garden for events. We are looking
forward to seeing it in use!
- Contributed by Connie Schlaefer
The new Sohm Garden sidewalk
New Poetry Sharing Venue
Board Member bids Adieu
FOAL has a new program for our community:
“Friends of Poetry”. The first small get-together
was held in the Auberry Library on June 27.
Hosted by Tina Galfo, this is planned as an
opportunity for anyone to share poetry that
moves them. Tina shared the work of several
poets she was introduced to by her mother and
then some more recent favorites from
anthologies that she has collected including
e.e. cummings and Emily Dickinson. Stella
Velez, an excellent aspiring poet, shared some
original pieces that she is working through.
Jamelie Taylor read some favorites by the
former poet laureate, Billy Collins, and others
by Naomi Shihab Nye. The next opportunity to
share is July 25. We hope to see more friends
with poems at 7pm.
The FOAL board bids a fond farewell to longtime member Jason Rinker. Jason has been on
the board for six years, and has been a key
contributor with his background as a local
businessman and as the treasurer of our
organization. As we prepared for our annual
meeting in June, where we conduct a vote for
board members, Jason let us know he would be
moving on to other ventures. The FOAL board
and its members send him off with our best
wishes and our deep gratitude for his service. If
you see Jason around town, please join us in a
hearty “Thank you, Friend!” from your FOAL
family.
Pare down that stack of books sitting around
gathering dust. Pass them along to another
reader AND earn money for your favorite
library support group! FOAL collects books,
On Friday,
June
17, FOALgets
brought
and
when the
inventory
largesome
enough, we
comedy
to
an
appreciative
audience,
a only
have a book sale. This is a great eventinnot
packed
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for
FOAL,
but also
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shoppers.
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usually $0.50 - $1.00, and the selectionFresno
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This time
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and
bring
themit over
to the FOAL
office on
philosopher
Bennett,
with
hisduring
latest
Tuesdays,
orJaguar
to the library
any
time
regular
hours. Throw
your used
printer
show - Bullsh*t
is my Native
Language.
cartridges
in
too…we
now
recycle
them.
Part personal history, part an insider’s
view of
Questions? Please contact our Program
the Marketing Industry. His comic monologue
Director, Loren Leach at foalorg@gmail.com
had people laughing out loud while pondering
how much of their lives are affected by
marketing.
Comedian Jaguar Bennett Packs the House
What’s the secret power that rules the world?
Marketing! Jaguar Bennett, (a real-life
marketing professional) revealed how truth is
manufactured, and how advertisers have
implanted what you think are your core
beliefs. It was a hilarious, thought-provoking,
and maddening comic expose of the marketing
industry.
Fresno comedian Jaguar Bennett
Do you want to be on the
mailing list for FOAL
events? Just contact us
at foalorg@gmail.com
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4
Get Star Struck at FOAL Astronomy Nights
Friends of the Auberry Library and the Bertha and
John Garabedian Charitable Foundation
sponsor a monthly Astronomy program each year
during the summer and fall. It’s called Astronomy
Nights. This free event outside on the lawn at the
Auberry Library is a fun time for the entire family.
Amateur astronomer and local resident Carl Dotts
leads the program and there are a couple of
telescopes set up for viewing. Each month features
the Constellation of the Month, where we talk
about the constellation's name, its mythology, its
features, boundaries etc.
The next two Astronomy Nights are:
Friday, August 12. 8:30-10:00 p.m. Focus: Saturn,
Constellation of the Month – Hercules.
Wednesday, September 7. 8:00-9:30 Focus: Saturn,
Mars, Constellation of the Month Ophiuchus.
Bring binoculars and a blanket!
Meet a “Friend”: Amy Poore
Tell us how you first got
involved in with F.O.A.L: My
friend Bonnie called me one
day a little over four years
ago, and asked if I might be
interested in getting
involved. Having spent so
much time at the Auberry
Library, especially when my
children were little (Thank
you Library Anne), and
considering how much our
library has benefitted my
own family, I figured that it
was time to give back in some
way. I thought that any
organization that supports
our library must be a worthy
cause, and that has proven to
be true about FOAL!
FOAL proves that wrong by
providing so many different
kinds of cultural experiences
through free programs: concerts,
theater programs, informational
speaker series on varied topics,
teen tours, adult tours,
astronomy programs, and more.
There is something of interest
for everyone!!
What has surprised you
most about working with
FOAL? How much FOAL does
to promote literacy and
learning in our community
and to support our library, I
had no idea!
What might someone be
surprised to know about you?
I am a Birth Doula. I love
working with mothers and
families as they journey through
the life changing experience of
giving birth.
What do you wish other
people knew about FOAL
Programs, programs,
programs! If you ever think
that our small community
doesn’t have much going on,
What do you like to do in your
spare time? Spend time with my
kids and husband who are the
most inspiring people in my life!
Do you have a favorite quote?
Today my favorite quotes are
“Once in a while you get shown
the light in the strangest of
places if you look at it right…”
and "It is not happy people who
are thankful, it is thankful people
who are happy."
Amy is our FOAL secretary. She
is a homemaker who has lived in
our community for 16 years.
I like to listen to music and
dance, read, play cards, play
Scrabble, and go on road trips!
If you could witness any
historical event, what would
you want to see? The
founding of The Farm in
Summertown, Tennessee in
1971, and the development of
its midwifery system over the
next 12 years.
What book did you read last:
Lately I have been reading
Margaret Atwood. The last
book was Oryx and Crake and
before that The Heart Goes
Last.
Library Link: Happenings at our favorite Library
Summers at the Auberry Branch Library are
always busy, busy, busy! Incentives and prizes
are offered to kids, teens and adults to
encourage reading throughout the summer
months. There are incentives such as a
drawing for Kindle Fires to a few lucky people
who completed their reading logs, and filled
out a program survey at any of the Fresno
County Public Libraries. Special programs for
kids are fun and entertaining, and are well
attended, averaging about 90 kids, teens and
adults at each program! This summer there are
a few new programs for families: play Wii
Sports at the library, Zappcon Board Games,
and Zumba with Josie! For more information
about the Summer Reading Challenge, or other
programs with the library, call the library, or go
to www.fresnolibrary.org
E&M Reptiles is a favorite summer guest. Fleming photo
– Contributed by Raelene Fleming
Annual Meeting, Ice Cream, and Tree Die-off
On June 21 we conducted our annual meeting, a
panel discussion about the massive, local tree dieoff, and an ice cream social. Jamelie Taylor was
reelected to the FOAL Board and the actions taken
by the board in 2015 were ratified. The meeting
was short, the discussion informative, and the ice
cream, delicious as usual. Carolyn Ballard U.S.F.S.
Fire Management Officer, and Mark Johnson and
Craig Tolmie from Cal Fire all live within 10 miles of
Auberry and certainly understand our present
concerns. Protection of, as well as education for, our
mountain community are their major concerns.
Some highlights: 400,000 of 1.3 million acres,
constituting 80% of pines, are already infected, and
the concerns have moved to the fir population as
well. The beetles are native and with the warmer
winters have had as many as 4 broods. The interagency, tree mortality task force is primarily focused
on fuel breaks around structures and removal of
dead trees where the falling of them can create onroad hazards. Standing trees are a real concern for
fire spreading fast. We all know about the need for
structures. We need to make plans for quick
evacuation, including two different ways to get
out. What are our evacuation priorities including
medications? How we will find out about emergency
a 100-foot defensible space around our own
structures. We need to make plans for quick
evacuation, including two different ways to get
out. What are our evacuation priorities including
medications? How we will find out about emergency
evacuation orders?
The panel included information about what is being
done, or currently being discussed on the local,
state, and if we can include FEMA lobby, the federal
level. We can expect road delays through
Huntington Lake and possible campground closures
as the agencies continue to address the
concerns. Treating and falling of trees will begin
along HWY 168 in early July.
- Contributed by Charlotte Gordon
“We need to make plans for quick evacuation,
including two different ways to get out.”
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Friends of the Auberry Library (FOAL)
P.O. Box 157, Auberry, CA 93602
33049 Auberry Rd, Auberry, California
Phone: (559) 779-3625
E-mail: foalorg@gmail.com
Board of Directors
Jamelie Taylor, Chair
Charlotte Gordon, Vice Chair
Amy Poore, Secretary
Beth Linder Carr
Lorraine Doyle
Sean Marjala
Anne Neal
Connie Schlaefer
Recognitions
The Friends of the Auberry Library would like to thank
the following sponsors for their generous support:

The AHS Foundation

The Bertha & John Garabedian Charitable
Foundation

The Downing Planetarium

The Rotary Club of Auberry Intermountain

Southern California Edison
Program Director
Loren Leach
FOAL Focus Newsletter
Connie Schlaefer, Editor
Upcoming Events
Monday, July 25 - Friends of Poetry night, 7 p.m., Auberry Library
Saturday, August 6 - Concert, Glen Delpit and the Subterraneans, Sohm Garden
Thursday, August 11 - Teen Tour. Woodward Shakespeare Festival, Rosencrantz and Gildenstern
are Dead, Meet at Auberry Library
Friday, August 12 - Astronomy Night, Sohm Garden, 8:30 p.m.
Thursday, August 18 - Fresno Grizzlies baseball game, Chuckchansi Park, 7:05 p.m.
Wednesday, September 7 - Astronomy Night, Sohm Garden, 8:00 p.m.
We’re on the Web!
http://www.friendsofauberrylibrary.org/