Off the Shelf - Spring 2013 - Free Library of Philadelphia

SP R IN G 2 01 3
VOLUME 2 • ISSUE 2
OFF the SHELF
A MAGAZINE FROM the Free Library of Philadelphia
Helping Hands
THE VOLUNTEERS OF THE FREE LIBRARY
Also inside: Get the scoop on The Philadelphia Book Festival,
see rare letters from Christopher Columbus, and travel the
neighborhoods with One Book, One Philadelphia
Secure the Free Library’s Tomorrow
Make a Planned Gift Today
The Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation is pleased to offer our supporters a new way
to make a difference to the future of the Library—by establishing a Charitable Gift Annuity
(CGA). A CGA enables you to receive a guaranteed income for life in return for an outright
donation today. Rates for CGAs are based on your age and can be established for as little as
$10,000. Current rates are below as of January 1, 2013.
For more about CGAs, contact Amanda Goldstein, DireCtor of Major Gifts
and Planned Giving at 215-567-7710 or goldsteina@freelibrary.org.
SAMPLE RATES FOR A $10,000 SINGLE LIFE ANNUITY
65
70
75
80
85
90
Annuitant RATE 4.7%
5.1%
5.8%
6.8%
7.8%
9.0%
CHARITABLE DEDUCTION
$2,661
$3,469
$4,102
$4,669
$5,419
$6,135
ANNUAL PAYMENT
$470
$510
$580
$680
$780
$900
Annuitant Age
A SELECTION OF
UPCOMING AUTHOR EVENTS
FOR MORE Info: 215-567-4341 • freelibrary.org/authorevents
FREE
APR 19 • 12:00 PM
APR 22 • 8:15 PM
APR 25 • 7:30 PM
APR 28 • 7:30 PM
APR 30 • 7:30 PM
FREE
TICKET REQUIRED
FREE
TICKET REQUIRED
TICKET REQUIRED
Cass Sunstein
E.O. Wilson
Isabel Allende
Simpler: The Future
of Government
Letters to A Young Scientist
Letty Cottin
Pogrebin
Vali Nasr
The Dispensable Nation:
American Foreign
Policy in Retreat
Maya’s Notebook
How to Be a Friend
to a Friend Who’s Sick
Barbara Gohn Day
Memorial Lecture
In conversation with Ian Sheffer
MAY 2 • 7:30 PM
MAY 9 • 7:30 PM
MAY 13 • 7:30 PM
MAY 14 • 7:30 PM
MAY 29 • 8:15 PM
FREE
FREE
TICKET REQUIRED
FREE
TICKET REQUIRED
Maria Semple
Claire Messud
Where’d You Go, Bernadette?
Nathaniel
Philbrick
The Woman Upstairs
Bunker Hill:
A City, A Siege, A Revolution
Horace W. Goldsmith
Foundation Endowed Lecture
Chimamanda
Ngozi Adichie
Americanah
Alice Walker
The Cushion in the Road:
Meditation and Wandering as
the Whole World Awakens to
Being in Harm’s Way
From the President and Director
Free Library of Philadelphia
President and Director
Siobhan A. Reardon
Associate Director
Dr. Joseph McPeak
Vice President of Development
Melissa B. Greenberg
Vice President of External Affairs
Sandra Horrocks
Director of Communications
and Brand Marketing
Alix Gerz
Writer/Editor
Michelle Saraceni Sheffer
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
Eileen Owens
Free Library of
Philadelphia Foundation
1901 Vine Street, Suite 111
Philadelphia, PA 19103
215-567-7710
freelibrary.org/support
OFF THE SHELF
offtheshelf@freelibrary.org
freelibrary.org/publications
Off the Shelf is published twice annually
for supporters of the Free Library of
Philadelphia Foundation and showcases
the Library’s educational, economic,
and cultural contributions to the region.
ON THE COVER: Clockwise from top left:
Peg Kozlowski, Pat O’Bannon, Irv Apt,
Randy Shuler, Mary Ann Tancredi,
Angel Byard, and Adrianne James are
just a few of the thousands
of volunteers who generously
share their time with the Free Library.
This issue of Off the Shelf highlights
our commitment to community
engagement. As part of our new
strategic plan, we here at the
Library crafted a bold statement
of vision, dedicating ourselves to
“building an enlightened community
devoted to lifelong learning.”
The following pages illustrate a handful of the many ways that the Free
Library is doing just that.
You’ll read about flagship programs, such as One Book, One Philadelphia
and the Philadelphia Book Festival, that reach beyond the Library’s
walls to engage Philadelphians of all backgrounds with the captivating
power of literacy. You’ll enjoy stories about our passionate community
of volunteers who help our librarians change lives every day because
of their dedication to their Library and their community. You’ll meet
renowned authors, see hidden gems from our special collections, and
find out how we celebrated a historic literary holiday, all of which help
us to inspire and engage countless Library customers across the region.
Thank you for being part of our Free Library community, and I hope
you enjoy reading more about the people and programs that make
this institution a cornerstone of education, literacy, and culture in
Philadelphia!
Warmly,
PHOTO CREDIT: RYAN BRANDENBERG
PHOTO CREDIT: KATIE RIGGAN
BELOW: Retired teacher Rosetta
Perno volunteering at the South
Philadelphia Library
Siobhan A. Reardon
PRESIDENT AND DIRECTOR
WHAT’S INSIDE
8 Helping Hands: Volunteer Services
at the Free Library
4News & Notes
6HIDDEN GEMS: EXPLORING CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
7focus on: philadelphia book festival
12
ONE BOOK, MANY NEIGHBORHOODS
14The Final Word: SOLOMON JONES
15
BOARD LISTS
Pride and Prejudice at 200
On January 28, the Free Library hosted
a day-long celebration, “Pride and
Prejudice at 200,” honoring the 200th
publication anniversary of Jane Austen’s
most beloved novel.
Among many events during the day, Library customers
were treated to pop-up performances from actors from the
Old Academy Players; a digital exhibition of images from
Austen’s era; a special presentation from the Jane Austen
Society of Pennsylvania about the novel’s past, present,
and future relevance; and a discussion about the portrayal
of Elizabeth Bennett in film. “Pride and Prejudice at 200”
was a great success, and the Library looks forward to
presenting more literary celebrations soon!
Have you visited
the Free Library
Shop yet?
We launched our online store
recently, and we couldn’t be more
excited to offer an array of beautiful
and fun literary gifts! The shop
features Free Library T-shirts and
tote bags, books signed by their
authors, fun literary gifts, and lots
of items based on our own stunning
collections. More merchandise is
being added all the time, so be sure
to check out freelibraryshop.org
and get shopping!
Members of the
Old Academy
Players perform
scenes from Pride
and Prejudice
throughout the
Library. Here, Jane,
Lizzy, and Mary
Bennett converse
in Philbrick Hall
while Mr. Bingley
and Mr. Bennett
look on.
The Borrowers’ Ball
On December 1, some 400 festive Library lovers gathered at Parkway Central for The Borrowers’ Ball.
The smashingest literary party of the year gave guests the chance to enjoy cuisine by three outstanding chefs from Brûlée Catering—
Jean-Marie LaCroix, Matt Levin, and Guillermo Pernot—bid on glamorous getaways as part of a live auction, and dish on the latest news
from the world of words with today’s top authors, including Jami Attenberg (The Middlesteins), Veronica Chambers (Yes, Chef), and
Carlin Romano (America the Philosophical). Funds raised support the Free Library of Philadelphia Foundation, which make possible
many Free Library programs and services that enhance literacy, guide learning, and inspire curiosity throughout Philadelphia.
LEFT: Free Library Assistant Chief of Staff
Autumn McClintock joins Robert Heim, Chair
of the Board of Trustees, and his wife
Eileen Kennedy Heim
BELOW: John Downes, Sondra Bergey, and
Tobey Dichter, Chair of the Free Library
of Philadelphia Foundation Board of
Directors, enjoying the festivities.
Young supporters of the Free
Library at the Raven Society’s
Holiday FÊte; they later joined
up with Ball attendees for
dessert and dancing!
ALL PHOTOS COURTESY
OF KELLY & MASSA PHOTOGRAPHY
{4}
WYOMING
1
(1) In the fall, our younger customers at Wyoming
Library enjoyed a Diary of a Wimpy Kid party.
(2) A girl reads Three Stories You Can Read to Your Dog,
by Sara Swan Miller, to Lola, a therapy dog at Katharine
Drexel Library.
(3) A little bookworm chooses some favorite books at
the Greater Olney Library.
KATHARINE
DREXEL
ENCE
INDEPEND
3
GREATER OL
4
NEY
CUSTOMER
CORNER
2
(4) Children at Independence Library celebrate Snapshot PA
Day, when libraries across the state capture a day in the life
of their library.
Willo Carey (left) and her husband Peter Benoliel (right) ,
a member of the Board of Trustees and Board of Directors,
join Selby Kiffer, Sr. (center left), Vice President of
Sotheby’s, one of the Ball sponsors, and Sheldon Bonovitz
(center right), member of the Board of Directors.
Katherine J. Gilmore, currently a Legislative Aide
with Philadelphia City Council, began her journey with the
Free Library as a young student completing homework at
the Wynnefield Library. As she progressed through school,
she relied more and more on the Library for homework
materials and especially computer access, as her family
didn’t own one at home. In 12th grade, she accepted a
position as a Teen Leadership Assistant (TLA) at Wynnefield.
Her love for the Library and her many years of experience
made her a perfect fit to help younger students complete
their homework and utilize all of the vital Library resources.
Katherine loved her TLA position and feels that it prepared
her for her current career in City Hall. “The experience
helped me to learn that I enjoyed helping others, which
is a large part of the work I do now,” Katherine says. “It
also taught me discipline, time management, and event
planning skills, which have proven to be invaluable during
my professional career.” And although Katherine is busy
with her legislative work, she says the Free Library still
plays a role in her life: “I love the newly expanded services
at the Library, especially all of the information you can
access via computer.” As Katherine continues her journey
to help serve the city, we couldn’t be more proud to have
her as a life-long customer.
Velma and W. Wilson
Goode, Sr., a member of
the Free Library’s Board
of Trustees and the Free
Library Foundation’s
Board of Directors, with
Ralph Smith.
{5}
HIDDEN GEMS
Exploring Christopher
Columbus at the Free Library
The Rare Book Department at
the Parkway Central Library is a
veritable who’s who of big names in
the literary world. There are major
collections of Charles Dickens, Edgar
Allan Poe, and Beatrix Potter, just
to name a few. Tucked amongst
these renowned collections are a
couple of rarely seen items related
to a name so big it’s memorialized
in an elementary-school rhyme:
Christopher Columbus.
the letter was translated into Latin
and printed in Rome. The Rare
Book Department owns one of the
copies of this Latin piece, dating
to 1493. Interestingly, this piece
only references King Ferdinand as
monarch of Spain, leaving out Queen
Isabella, who was eventually added in
later editions.
Pollock notes that these later Latin
editions flourished across Europe
in 1493, “which is why the news of
Columbus’s ‘discovery’ reached so
many people so quickly in a world
where communication was not
exactly instantaneous.”
The Rare Book Department
has not one, but two
early copies of Columbus’s
first letter detailing his
discovery of what is now
the United States.
Christopher Columbus. Eyn schön hübsch lessen von
etlichen inßlen. Strassburg: B. Kistler, 1497. Gift of
William Elkins.
Each piece is a rare example of
incunabula—which is a book
printed in Europe before 1501—and
recounts Columbus’s discoveries and
documents his earliest impressions
of the “new world.”
In it he names the “Indians” and
remarks that they are very “docile”
and will easily be converted to
Christianity. According to Janine
Pollock, Head of the Rare Book
Department, the letter is the first
known document to announce the
outcome of Columbus’s voyage, and
was written during his return voyage
when he was aboard the Niña.
After Columbus reached Spain, the
letter was printed in Spanish in
Barcelona. Just one month later,
In 1497, the letter was translated into
German and printed in Strassburg;
the Rare Book Department also owns
a copy of this edition. This piece is
exceptional in its own right, featuring
a unique woodcut on the title page
showing Christ addressing King
Ferdinand and his followers.
Although the letters are
not available currently
for public viewing, the Rare
Book Department is open
for free tours that feature
other fascinating pieces
of literary history Monday
through Saturday at 11:00 a.m.
Stop by and make some
“discoveries” of your own!
• • • BY ALIX GERZ
Christopher Columbus. Epistola de insulis nuper
inventis. Rome: S Plannck. After 19 June 1493. Gift of
William Elkins.
{6}
A Literary Extravaganza
FOCUS
ON
Beloved Philadelphia Book Festival
Comes to Neighborhood Libraries
PHOTO CREDIT: JONI KABANA
CHERYL STRAYED
NANCY PEAR
L
OW
RACHEL MADD
LFUS
BARATUNDE
THURSTON
KEN KA
JAMES SALTER
ANDREW SO
LOMON
A RYS
PHOTO CREDIT: LAN
PHOTO CRED
IT: Annie Leibo
vitz
From hosting Tina Fey’s hilarious book talk to Barbara Walters’s
insightful conversation about her career in journalism, the
Philadelphia Book Festival has been one of the city’s premier
literary events for over half a decade.
“For the past few years we’ve become highly focused on moving
our key events into the neighborhoods and even beyond the
Library’s own walls, said Siobhan A. Reardon, President and
Director of the system. “To be able to take something as big
and as important as the Philadelphia Book Festival and make
it hyper-local is an impressive feat, and one that I’m incredibly
proud of. Our impact is just going to grow exponentially.”
*Check our website as some authors may move off site.
Neighborhood libraries selected
their author event based on what
their customers enjoy most. Direct,
focused service is just one hallmark
of the 21st century Free Library, and
Festival goers will get to see this
firsthand come the seventh annual
Philadelphia Book Festival, taking
place during National Library Week
from April 14–20.
• • • BY ALIX GERZ
Headlining authors,
pictured above, will appear
throughout the week at
Parkway Central.*
For a full schedule of
all Philadelphia Book
Festival events, please visit
freelibrary.org/festival.
{7}
PHOTO CREDIT: ALEXA LEE
Over the years, the Festival has undergone some changes: In
2010 it expanded from a two-day weekend festival to a six-day
extravaganza, featuring headlining authors in Parkway Central’s
Montgomery Auditorium every night of the week. This year the
Festival is changing again, exploding into every neighborhood
in Philadelphia, as each neighborhood library—all 53 of them!—
will feature a special in-house event with an author. Headlining
authors will continue to appear throughout the week at
Parkway Central, and this year’s voices include Ken Kalfus and
Rachel Maddow.*
• • • BY Michelle Saraceni Sheffer
Helping Hands
Volunteer Services at the Free Library
With a warm and friendly smile, volunteer Linda Blythe sits at the Free
Library’s Pop-Up Shop in the lobby of the Parkway Central Library, greeting
customers and helping them pick out the perfect gift or memento from
the variety of Library merchandise for sale. Farther downtown, at the
South Philadelphia Library, retired teacher Rosetta Perno welcomes
new Americans from Mexico, Vietnam, China, and beyond to her English
conversation group as they settle in for a lively discussion.
Each and every day throughout the Free Library of Philadelphia
system, volunteers work both with the public and behind the
scenes, making sure that librarians have the support they need and
that Library customers have the positive experiences they deserve.
Volunteers help with special projects and lessons for the Literacy
Enrichment After-school Program (LEAP). They wield microphones
and assist with book signings for the popular Author Events
Series. They shelve—and re-shelve—a variety of Library materials.
They prepare mailings and record thousands of books on tape for
visually impaired customers across the state. Without its volunteers,
the Free Library just wouldn’t be the same.
“Volunteers are an incredible asset not only
to the Free Library system but to the Greater
Philadelphia community,” says Siobhan A.
Reardon, President and Director of the Free
Library. “By being so giving of their time and
their expertise, our generous volunteers help to
enrich the lives of the hundreds of thousands of
people who visit the Library each year.”
The Volunteer Services Program at the Free Library of Philadelphia
began in 1995 in response to City budget cuts, with the aim
of supporting and enhancing the work of the system’s expert
librarians and other staff members. Volunteers initially helped
to process the rapidly growing collections of audio and visual
materials, but as the Program grew, volunteers began taking on a
diversified variety of roles, depending on where need was greatest.
Today, nearly 2,000 people volunteer more than 120,000 hours of
their time—in total valued at more than $2.5 million—every year in
each of the 54 libraries throughout the city.
“What I love most about my job is that I have the ability to impact
my city, my community, and my fellow citizens on a macro and
micro level,” says Ken Manns, the gregarious Director of the
Volunteer Services Program at the Library. “If I see a need—or if
a colleague comes to me asking for help—I have the resources
to address it. And I am able to help volunteers fill a gap in their
résumés, develop new job skills, build their intellect, or just feel
good about donating their time.”
Most recently, the Library has been actively recruiting volunteers to
serve as one-on-one computer tutors for seniors, helping them build
their computer skills and connect to loved ones online through
{8}
120,754
HOURS
OF VOLUNTEERS’
TIME
With the generous support of Wells Fargo, Oak Lane Library hosted
a community tree giveaway in celebration of Earth Day. In addition,
volunteers from Wells Fargo and Tree Philly helped to plant new
trees at the library! PHOTO Credit: Courtesy of Wells Fargo
Students with special needs volunteer throughout the Free Library
system, learning valuable life skills as they help with tasks like cleaning,
sorting, and organization. PHOTO CREDIT: EILEEN OWENS
1,929
volunteers
Statistics accurate for Fiscal Year 2012
{9}
Retired teacher Rosetta Perno leads an English conversation group at
the South Philadelphia Library. PHOTO CREDIT: KATIE RIGGAN
Volunteers Bobbi and Al Fox greet Free Library Pepper Society Members Ed and Lyn Tettemer as they arrive at the
author event with renowned journalist Bob Woodward at Parkway Central Library. PHOTO CREDIT: KATIE RIGGAN
A Free Library volunteer helps to manage the lengthy book-signing line at the Philadelphia Book Festival.
PHOTO credit: Shannon Grotzinger
email and social networking. (“Volunteers are integral to bridging
the digital divide between the young and old,” explains Manns.)
Volunteers are also being trained to serve as English Language
Facilitators, who host informal conversation groups in libraries
throughout the city for people new to the United States who are
looking to build their English-language skills.
In March of 2012, retired teacher Rosetta Perno became an
English Language Facilitator at the South Philadelphia Library.
For Rosetta—a lifelong reader and lover of books—deciding to
volunteer at the Library was an easy and natural choice. She
admits to worrying at first that her conversation group wouldn’t be
successful, but thanks to promotional efforts and word of mouth,
Rosetta now welcomes a core group of adults each Monday for
casual conversation about any topic under the sun.
“Meeting with members of my English
conversation group is the most personally
satisfying professional experience that I have
ever had,” she says. “The participants are
very eager to become productive members of
American society, and I truly admire all of the
members of my group. It is a joy to spend time
introducing our country to them.”
In addition to the variety of opportunities available to interested
individuals, the Volunteer Services Program also offers special
programs for learning disabled adults in life skills groups, as well
as for court-ordered volunteers who need to fulfill community
service hours. The Library also welcomes corporations wishing to
organize large-scale volunteer projects for their employees. In April
2012, Comcast hosted a volunteer day at McPherson Square Library,
where employees painted the building, cleaned up the surrounding
park, and donated a variety of materials and art supplies. Other
corporate volunteer opportunities include reading to children and
helping out with a variety of Free Library events, including the
Philadelphia Book Festival and One Book, One Philadelphia.
The newest and most rapidly growing component of Volunteer
Services at the Free Library is the Work Study program, which
began in 2009 with grant support from the Institute of Museum
and Library Services. Through Work Study, nearly 200 students
from area technical schools, colleges, and universities share their
skills and talents in a variety of ways, from helping with robotics
programs for Philadelphia schoolchildren to undertaking research
projects for a variety of Library departments.
University of Pennsylvania Work Study student Chris Zhang
is helping with a research project that will shed light on the
provenance of materials that have been donated to the Library
over the past two centuries by digging into and organizing donor
archives from the Library’s early days.
$2,518,928
total value of volunteers’ time
{ 10 }
80%
of Free Library volunteers
provide 20 or more hours
of service each year.
“Although on-campus volunteer jobs are very convenient, they
often lack the connections to the community at large,” says
Zhang, a math and economics student. “The Free Library offered
me a much more direct way to contribute what I have back to
society and interact with people whom I would’ve never been
able to meet.”
Volunteers
Mimi Barton
and Tresa The
a variety of
len staff the
literary good
Free Library’
ies and merc
items in the
s Pop-Up Sho
handise based
Library’s ric
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ique
It is a spirit of friendliness and inclusiveness that keeps many Free
Library volunteers coming back year after year. Linda Blythe has
been volunteering at the Library for over six years. When she’s
not helping to run the Pop-Up Shop, she’s serving as a greeter at
Parkway Central or as an Author Events ticket-taker and microphonehandler. A passionate traveler, Linda enjoys taking tours of historic
buildings across the country and, noticing that there was no formal
tour available of the Beaux-Arts Parkway Central Library, offered to
organize and host one for an event with the Laureate Circle—a group
of donors who have been supporting the Library for over 10 years.
Becoming a Free Library
volunteer is a simple,
two-step process.
Interested adults and teens ages 14
and up can fill out an application—
available online at freelibrary.org/
VOLUNTEER—that surveys their interests
and strengths. Then, they will be called
in for an interview with the Volunteer
Services team to figure out where best
their strengths line up with the Library’s
needs. For the most fulfilling experience,
volunteers are generally asked to
dedicate at least one day a week, three
to four hours per day, over the course
of 90 days. Join the team today!
“The best part was when we all gathered around the statue of George
S. Pepper on the staircase landing at the end of the tour, and I asked
the group who had founded the first free library in Philadelphia,”
says Linda with a smile. “Everyone said ‘Ben Franklin,’ and I got
to explain that no, it was actually this man [Pepper] right here!”
(Franklin founded the Library Company of Philadelphia, which
required a paid subscription.)
If there’s a common thread through the diverse group of Free Library
volunteers, it’s the passion and enthusiasm that everyone shares
for their work and for each other. By generously giving of their
time and talents, volunteers help to advance literacy, guide learning,
and inspire curiosity each and every day, ensuring that the Library
remains a vibrant, welcoming place for all Philadelphians. • • •
170
Work Study student Chris Zhang, from the University of Pennsylvania, is helping to
dig through and organize more than 100 years’ worth of donor archives and items.
A single
volunteer
recorded
157 books on
tape for the
Library for
the Blind and
Physically
Handicapped
over just 18
months’ time.
work study
students
from nine area colleges,
universities, and technical
schools volunteered
54,440
hours of time.
{ 11 }
e
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t
m
o
fr
OODS
R
O
B
H
G
NEI
H
One Book,
Many Neighborhoods
For the past 11 years, One Book,
One Philadelphia has lived up to
its name. With the uniting force of
the official book selection, citizens
across Philadelphia read, learn,
create, and most importantly, come
together. The eight inspired weeks
of programming take place in
the neighborhood libraries along
with Parkway Central Library, and
with additional events created by
outside partners, One Book reaches
into every corner of the city.
neighborhoods, citizens both young and old participated in the
plethora of One Book programming.
“One Book, One Philadelphia is a favorite annual tradition,
inspiring and bringing thousands of diverse peoples together
in ways that help fulfill the promise of Philadelphia as the City
of Brotherly and Sisterly love,” Marie Field, Chair of One Book
explains. “Essential to the success of the program as a catalyst
for community involvement is the dedicated participation of
the Free Library branches, whose talented librarians engage the
people of their neighborhoods by creating stimulating programs
around our yearly One Book selections. One Book salutes and
extends heartfelt thanks to the neighborhood libraries and
their personnel who play such a vital role in our literacy and
community building program.”
As in years past, the programming generated around the One Book
selection highlights the themes, culture, and spirit of the selected
book. This year’s choice, Julie Otsuka’s The Buddha in the Attic,
inspired dozens of events outside the Library system, and even
more in the neighborhood libraries, ranging from Japanese art,
music, and history, to women’s rights, immigration, and identity.
Readers across the city—including the Philadelphia City
Council—became immersed in the story. With book discussion
groups for The Buddha in the Attic and after-school literacy
activities based on the children’s companion selection, A Place
Where Sunflowers Grow, occurring throughout the
{ 12 }
In four different neighborhood libraries, Mama Carla—
Founder and CEO of Progeny’s Legacy Jamaa, an arts group in
Philadelphia—led an event about the power and uses of tea
around the world. As a performer, event leader, and community
member, Mama Carla can vouch for the program’s ability to
connect the city’s neighbors. “By holding programs throughout
Philadelphia, I noticed people who normally don’t linger at
the library stay a little longer to learn something different and
share with those in their community,” Mama Carla observes. “It
is my pleasure to watch new friendship sprout while others are
renewed through art, laughter, [and] conversation.”
As events happened simultaneously across the city, One Book’s
connectivity was seen in every Philadelphia neighborhood. At
the Philadelphia City Institute in Center City, program leader
Fumiyo Batta headed a Kimono Dressing Workshop; at the
Lawncrest Library in Northeast Philadelphia, children and teens
learned how to make Origami; in the Southwest at the Thomas F.
Donatucci, Sr. Library participants created their own fans from all
over the world; and at libraries in all neighborhoods, customers
TOP: Lawncrest Library was just one of many neighborhood
libraries to host origami workshops for children.
MIDDLE: Workshop leader Fumiyo Batta teaches participants
the art of kimono dressing at Philadelphia City Institute.
BOTTOM: Young customers at Thomas F. Donatucci, Sr. Library
create fans from around the world.
photo credit: DEBRA MIKUS
Philadelphia City Council enjoys this year’s featured selection.
photo credit: kelly & massa photography
Now that the One Book, One Philadelphia 2013 season has come
to a close, the city eagerly awaits the next official selection. What
will the next book investigate? Will we have the opportunity
to explore another culture? What social, historical, or personal
issues will the author, and in turn Philadelphia, consider?
And as exciting as it may be to guess the next selection, one
fact is always predictable: The next season of One Book, One
Philadelphia will unite a city of neighborhoods under the lasting
effects of literacy, solidarity, and community.
One Book, One Philadelphia is generously funded by Walmart, The Field
Foundation, The Lenfest Foundation, PECO, Pepper Hamilton, LLP, and Stradley
Ronon. Without these sponsors, One Book programming in neighborhood
libraries would not be possible.
• • • BY EILEEN OWENS
{ 13 }
photo credit: kATIE RIGGAN
Sarah Byker James, a One Book program leader, facilitated Japanese
poetry workshops at multiple neighborhood libraries. From Oak
Lane to Kensington, she created haiku collages with children
and teens from all over Philadelphia, connecting neighbors who
might not get to know each other otherwise. Byker James explains:
“Through One Book, year after year, we Philadelphians […] grasp
experiences we wouldn’t otherwise grasp. Like most people in
most places, we often stick with what we know. Reading puts us
in the company of those we don’t already know, and a program like
One Book encourages us to listen.”
photo credit: kATIE RIGGAN
talked about The Buddha in the Attic in book club style discussions
led by librarians.
To listen to SOLOMON JONES’s Author
Events podcast—AMONG OTHERS—visit
freelibrary.org/authorevents.
An award-winning columnist for the Axis Philly,
Philadelphia Daily News, and WHYY’s Newsworks,
Solomon Jones is the author of the Essence
Magazine bestselling novel The Bridge, as well as
the critically acclaimed books Pipe Dream, Ride or
Die, C.R.E.A.M., and Payback. Jones is the founder of
Words on the Street Literacy Program; he previously
taught creative writing at Temple University and
served on the boards of several committees to end
homelessness. The Dead Man’s Wife is his eighth
novel and the latest in the Coletti crime series.
OTS What role have libraries played in your life?
SJ I love books. I always have, and the library is the place where
books live. Perhaps that’s why libraries have served as a sanctuary
for me. When I walk into a library the smell of books envelops me
and the memories come flooding back: high school papers and
index cards, the Dewey Decimal System and microfiche, librarians
who knew everything, and computers with flashing green cursors.
The library was a place where I could go to learn anything, and that
made me feel smart and powerful.
OTS What role do you think libraries play in our 21st
century society?
SJ Libraries in the 21st century are instrumental to closing the
digital divide. They are critically important to keeping people
informed, engaged, and connected by providing patrons with
access to computers, ebooks, websites, and other digital
equipment. Libraries will also be critical to filling the role of the
rapidly shrinking bookstore industry, providing space where
authors and readers can speak face to face, where book-centered
events can take place, and where literature can be a tool to
connect people around shared ideas. At a time when technology
can serve to isolate people from real human contact, libraries are a
place where research can be a team endeavor, where communities
can come together around the issues that are important to them,
and where people can dialogue around the topics that bond us all.
OTS You’re well known for your acclaimed, bestselling
urban crime novels. In addition, your nonfiction writing
has appeared in many local publications, including the
Daily News and Philadelphia Weekly, and you recently began
writing a regular column for WHYY’s Newsworks, in which
you focus on family and community life in Philadelphia.
What about our city—good or bad—continues to inspire you
to pick up a pen (or power up your computer) every day?
SJ Philadelphia is old and new, young and old, conservative and
Africa; Logan has immigrants from Asia; the Northeast is home to
a large pocket of Russians; and unlike other cities I’ve seen, African
Americans don’t just occupy the hood. We are longtime property
owners in some of the most desirable areas of the city. Philadelphia
is grimy and dark in spots, and the crumbling architecture and
abandoned properties in the old industrial neighborhoods stand out
like ugly scars. But the city also has a beauty that’s stunning in both
its simplicity and its scope. Take a walk along Kelly Drive and marvel
at the statues, the river, and the greenery. Go to neighborhoods like
Chestnut Hill or Overbrook Farms and see the architecture of old
beautiful houses. Drive through Fairmount Park, the largest urban
park in the world, and look at mansions that are centuries old. Why do
I write about Philadelphia? I love it. I love it because it’s mine, because
it’s home, and because it has a vitality that makes even the grime
come to life every day.
OTS You recently founded Words on the Street, a
nonprofit literacy program for students and parents
in Philadelphia. Tell us a little about why you feel so
impassioned about literacy and what you’ve been able to
achieve through Words on the Street.
SJ Writing saved my life by snatching me off the streets and giving
me a voice. I believe writing can do the same for young people. In
order to write, however, students must know how to read. Reading is
the key to learning. If you can’t read a science book you can’t learn
chemistry. If you can’t read a math book you can’t learn algebra. So
reading is a skill we must teach our students at all costs. That’s why
I’m so passionate about Words on the Street. Through Words on the
Street, which was funded by Verizon and the Knight Foundation, I
partnered with Art Sanctuary, Barnes & Noble, the Philadelphia Daily
News, Clear Channel Radio, and the School District of Philadelphia’s
Parent University to reach more than 2,000 students with the
message of advancement through literacy. We taught workshops to
nearly 400 students and 28 parents, distributed 1,500 books, and
enabled nine gifted writers to be published in the Philadelphia Daily
News and interviewed on Power 99FM. We also partnered with local
businesses to distribute $500 in scholarships.
OTS To you, the Free Library of Philadelphia is also the
Free Library of ________. Why?
SJ It’s the Free Library of Hope. Every book in every library is made
up of words, and words are the key to communicating. If we can
communicate through words rather than violence or hatred or malice,
then we can understand each other. We can work together. We can
thrive. Every time I see a library, I see the hope that the words inside
will unlock someone’s imagination and help them to see a brighter
future. That’s what libraries did for me, and it’s my enduring hope that
they will continue to do that for others.
liberal. It has an eclectic mix of neighborhoods and cultures that is
truly mind-boggling. Southwest Philly has pockets of immigrants from
{ 14 }
FREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Chair
Robert C. Heim
Members
Donna Allie
Steven M. Altschuler
Christopher Arlene
Jacqueline Barnett
Darwin Beauvais
Peter A. Benoliel
Patricia A. Coulter
Pamela Dembe
Tobey Gordon Dichter
W. Wilson Goode, Sr.
Melissa Grimm
Nancy D. Kolb
Noel Mayo
Sonia Sanchez
John J. Soroko
Sherry A. Swirsky
Nicholas D. Torres
Ignatius C. Wang
Shelly Yanoff
Emeritus
Joseph F. Burke
Gloria Twine Chisum
Armand Della Porta
Herman Mattleman
Teresa Sarmina
Take a Front Row Seat
The George S. Pepper Society recognizes those who give
$1,000 or more annually to the Free Library Foundation.
In appreciation of their generosity, Peppers receive early
access to and special pricing on Author Events tickets,
exclusive invitations to literary soirées, personal access
to world-renowned authors, and much more.
Ex-Officio
Michael DiBerardinis
Deputy Mayor for the Environment
and Community Resources
For more information on the Pepper Society, contact
Rebecca at formanr@freelibrary.org or 215-567-7710 x 519.
Irv Ackelsberg
Friends of the Free Library
FREE LIBRARY OF PHILADELPHIA
FOUNDATION BOARD OF DIRECTORS
FOR $25,000
Wish List
Chair
Tobey Gordon Dichter
Members
Cynthia Affleck
James H. Averill
Phyllis W. Beck
Peter A. Benoliel
Sheldon Bonovitz
George Day
Andrea Ehrlich
Daniel K. Fitzpatrick
W. Wilson Goode, Sr.
Daniel Gordon
Richard A. Greenawalt
Elizabeth Grenald
Melissa Grimm
Robert C. Heim
John Imbesi
Philip P. Jaurigue
Geoffrey Kent
Alexander Kerr
Marciene S. Mattleman
Leslie Miller
Thomas B. Morris, Jr.
Stephanie W. Naidoff
Patrick M. Oates
Derek N. Pew
William R. Sasso
Susan G. Smith
Miriam Spector
Stacey Leigh Spector
Barbara Sutherland
Monica Vachher
Jay Weinstein
Larry Weiss
The Wish List below details just a few
of the many ways your support of the
Foundation can enhance and improve
the Free Library of Philadelphia:
FOR $25,000 a neighborhood library
can provide after-school programming
for thousands of children four days a
week throughout an entire school year.
FOR $20,000 Behind the Screens,
a film literacy program for teens,
can be presented in four branches
for two months. Filmmaking
equipment is included.
FOR $5,000 the Free Library can
provide 20 programs for job seekers
on writing a résumé, conducting
an online job search, and preparing
for an interview.
FOR $2,500 a series of 10 Englishas-a-Second-Language classes can
be offered in a branch.
FOR $1,000 one is recognized
as part of the George S. Pepper
Society, the most generous group
of library supporters, and enjoys
exclusive opportunities to meet
with renowned authors.
FOR $500 the Free Library can
add 75 ebooks to its collection to
be downloaded and read by hundreds
of individuals.
EMERITUS
Marie Field
Elizabeth H. Gemmill
A. Morris Williams, Jr.
To make a gift to the Foundation,
visit freelibrary.org/support or call 215-567-7710.
{ 15 }
The Free Library is one of the most
important educational and cultural
institutions in Philadelphia.
The City of Philadelphia provides
funds for the operations of the
Free Library system, including
staffing at our 54 locations.
Through the generosity of
individual gifts, the Free Library
Foundation supports many of
the Library’s incredible programs
and services, which advance
literacy, guide learning, and inspire
curiosity throughout our city.
To make a gift to the Foundation,
please visit freelibrary.org/support
or call 215-567-7710.
Summer Reading
at the Free Library
June 17 – August 9, 2013
With plenty of books, special activities,
and surprises, Summer Reading at the
Free Library helps more than 50,000
Philadelphia schoolchildren keep
their minds sharp over their summer
vacations by rewarding them with prizes for reading and
learning as much as they can! Studies indicate that students
who read six or more books over the summer can prevent
“brain drain” and even make gains in their reading levels.
Stay tuned to freelibrary.org for more details later this spring!
This crucial, flagship program would not be possible
without generous private support. To make a gift, call
215-567-7710 or visit freelibrary.org/support.