Friend`s Newsletter - the Hunterdon County Library

Friends of Hunterdon County Library
Friend to Friend
Fall 2016 Newsletter
(Number 69)
Book Sale Thank You & Scholarship Presentations
On June 7th, FOHCL presented
the 2016 Books for the College
Bound Scholarship awards to
the students and their parents.
Joan Wolsiefer, outgoing chair
of the scholarship committee,
made the presentations. Joan
stated that the committee had a
tough time making selections
this year given the quality of the
applicant essays.
Although two of the recipients,
Daniel
Shea
and
Nora
Mahmoud, were unable to attend the presentation, Joan was
able to personally hand checks
to Ryan O’Connor, Brigette
Weinstein, and Kevin Sievers,
and their parents.
That same evening, library staff
hosted a “Thank You” celebration for the successful 20th
Pictured from left: Mark Titus, Library Director; Ryan O’Connor, Del Val; Brigette Weinstein,
South; Kevin Sievers, home-schooled (Central); and Joan Wolsiefer, FOHCL Scholarship
Committee. Not pictured: Nora Mahmoud, home-schooled (North); and Daniel Shea, Voorhees
anniversary Book Sale. Warm remarks by Karen
Kilpatrick and Mark Titus were well received by
the volunteers.
The book sale is the primary revenue source for
the Friends, making possible all of the programs
that the Friends support, garnering much appreciation from the library staff.
Emcee Karen Kilpatrick, Library Liaison
Cake!
2016 Book Sale Wrap Up
The Finance Committee reports:
Although our total sales were down slightly
from last year, we can commend our book sale
committee for controlling expenses so well that
our net profit was actually up a little to
$53,800.
The Book Sale continues to be our major source of funds.
It is also a major undertaking. Planning begins a year
ahead of time; securing the buildings, contracting for
trucks, porta johns, etc. Then we put out the call for volunteers, with over 200 positions to be filled. Many of
our members selflessly fill multiple roles, with Jackie
Cady taking the lead in organizing the cadre of volunteers.
Work begins in earnest with the book collections and ‘pre
-sorting’ about two weeks before the sale. Volunteers sift
through all the donations, dividing the books between
fiction and non-fiction and making the often difficult
decision to pitch books in poor condition. This year we
filled two 36-yard dumpsters with books that were
moldy, torn, damaged or otherwise unfit for sale. The
books in the dumpsters are sent for recycling. Believe it
or not, these dumpsters are one of the largest expenses
for the entire sale.
The week before the
sale, the heavy lifting
begins... and I mean
that literally as well as
figuratively. Pictured
are some of the tables
and bookshelves used
at the sale. Volunteers
move all the furniture
from storage then assemble the shelving.
Only then can the massive task of sorting
begin.
Every single
donated book must be
handled, first sorted
into categories then
moved to the table(s).
We don’t have an estimate for how many
books we receive, but
for an idea of scale
look to the photo
again.
Those large
boxes on the left,
called gaylords, are
loaded with the books
that didn’t sell this
year. We filled 26 gay-
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lords, estimated to weight 1,200—1,500 pounds each.
Through dogged persistence tracking down the appropriate organization, Chuck Mangi, arranged to have ~20
tons (!) of books picked up by Better World Books. This
socially conscious business sells anything commercially
viable then ships the remainder to those in need, supporting their goal to increase literacy. Read more about
them on http://www.betterworldbooks.com. And cheers
to Chuck for making the connection and keeping these
books out of landfills!
I wish I had space to name all the volunteers individually. The upcoming Book Sale Volunteer Thank You Dinner is an even better “Thanks.” This invitation-only
event will be held Friday, October 7th. There is a modest
fee for dinner and dessert. The event features a presentation by Tim Betz, Assistant Director of the Red Mill
Museum Village in Clinton on the history of Hunterdon
County Peach Cultivation. Attendees can also catch up
with their work-mates and reminisce about the camaraderie enjoyed while lifting all those tons of books!
~Karen Mitchell~
Thank You Joan!
Through the years, Joan has loved reading the essays. Many of
them are funny, others are insightful. Some are touching. The
beauty of the work, says Joan, is that no two years are ever the
same. The committee might send out a question thinking they'll
get certain kinds of responses only to find out at decision time
that the students have looked at the question through an entirely different and interesting lens. Some years it's hard to choose
just one winner from each school because the essays are so good
and worthy of consideration.
Without a doubt, Joan's favorite part of the process is the
awards ceremony, which she decided early on should include
the parents and families. Only South Hunterdon Regional High
School holds their awards ceremony as part of the graduation.
Joan's idea is that the students have been able to excel and win
the scholarships because of the support from their families and
that it's important to recognize the families for their achievement as well. Meeting parents and congratulating them on a job
well done has been a wonderful experience for Joan.
Bernard Baruch, the famous philanthropist and statesman, once
said, “Age is only a number, a cipher for the records. A man can't retire
his experience. He must use it.” Except for the pronoun, he could
well have been speaking about Joan Wolsiefer. Joan spent
much of her career as a guidance counselor, first at Hunterdon
Central High School and then at Del Val from which she retired.
A number of years ago, Milly Jagel, one of the founders of
FOHCL, came to Joan and told her that Norita Feinberg, another Board member, had the idea of starting a scholarship for students who had participated as volunteers in FOHCL, but she
wasn't sure how to go about it. Might Joan be interested in using all of her guidance counselor experience to help them get a
scholarship program off the ground? Joan was very interested
and became the scholarship chairperson, a position she held for
the next 11 years.
As chairperson, it was her job to set up the parameters of the
competition, invite the various schools to participate, send the
essays to the committee for discussion and decision, and to plan
the awards ceremony.
Although participation by the various schools has fluctuated
from year to year, all the guidance counselors are helpful in recruiting entrants. Private school students and home-schooled
students are eligible to participate and they compete with the
students from their sending districts. Some things have remained constant: the money is awarded to help defray the cost
of books for students entering college and there are always two
questions. The first asks the students to talk about a particularly meaningful volunteer experience they've had. The second
question changes every year but always has to do with the value
of libraries in our society.
Alas, Joan has decided to step down as chairperson of the scholarship committee, handing the reigns over to Bob Seymour who
has previously helped us with tech support. Happily for us, she
will remain on the selection committee.
~Pamela D’Amato~
2017 Meeting Dates
For your information: Board meetings and general membership meetings for 2017 are listed below. If you have comments or ideas about the Friends, please feel free to contact a
board member.
January 12
Board Meeting
HQ
February 9
Board Meeting
NC
February 22
General Meeting
HQ
March 9
Board Meeting
HQ
April 13
Board Meeting
HQ
May 11
Board Meeting
NC
June 1
June 8
Book Sale Thank You and Scholarship Awards
Ceremony
HQ
Board Meeting
HQ
June 21
General Meeting
HQ
July 13
Board Meeting
NC
September 14 Board Meeting
HQ
October 12
Board Meeting
NC
October 25
General Meeting
HQ
November 9
Board Meeting
HQ
HQ = Headquarters Library
NC = North County Branch
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Co-Presidents’ Message
Dear Friends,
For many of us the annual 4H Fair and Labor Day signal the
end of summer, in this case a long hot summer. In spite of the
sweltering days of July and August our Friends’ volunteers have
been very busy. After another very successful Book Sale, we
joined some of the Headquarters’ library staff at the Hunterdon
Community Day at South County Park in June where we were
able to show community members the benefits the library and
the Friends provide.
Also, for the first time this year the Friends were a presence at
the 4H Fair with a table in the Community Services tent. Our
display was designed to show the many programs and activities
our organization funds by virtue of the book sale profits. Visitors were amazed at the many opportunities provided by our
efforts.
Thirty three of our dedicated members volunteered to spend at
least two hours over the five day fair meeting visitors and telling them about the Friends of the Hunterdon County Library.
We also offered a “Fair Special” of half-priced memberships
valid until February 28, 2017. The result was 25 new members
joining at the fair and 28 more taking registration materials
home for further consideration.
We were also able to announce our new fund-raising activity,
the Tricky Tray Basket Raffle, scheduled for October 8th at the
Main Library. The Tricky Tray has had enormous support from
our volunteers, who have been soliciting sponsors for the prizes
to be offered at the event. The response from the local merchants has been very generous and enthusiastic. One Frenchtown artist told me that she would love to make a donation to
support the library because, “the library has supported me all
my life”.
So, while the summer is almost over, the Friends’ Fall season
will bring its own interests and excitement: A General Membership meeting, September 28th at 7:30 PM at the North
County Branch, our annual Book Sale Volunteer Appreciation
Dinner on Friday, October 7th at the Mountain View Chalet, and
the Tricky Tray Basket Raffle on October 8th at the Main Library on Route 12 in Flemington.
We want to thank all our volunteers and the library staff for
their dedication and support of the work of the Friends.
Send questions to fohclfriends@gmail.com. Don't forget to like
us on Facebook at Friends of the Hunterdon County Library.
~Pam D’Amato & Georgia Muhs~
Events
Save the Dates
FOHCL General Membership Meeting
Wednesday, September 28th, North County Library
Book Sale Volunteer Appreciation Dinner
Friday, October 7th, Mountain View Chalet
Questions?: fohclfriends@gmail.com
New
New
New
FOHCL is trying something new, a Tricky Tray Basket Raffle
fund-raiser. Slated for October 8th, participants purchase sheets of tickets,
and place as many as they like in baskets for prizes. Tickets are then selected from the baskets and the winners are announced. It’s fun, it’s social, and
proceeds support our many programs. Prizes include gift certificates from
local merchants, ceramics and jewelry made by Hunterdon
artisans, as well as sports memorabilia and much more.
Details available on Page 6 and from the link on our web
page, http://www.hclibrary.us/friends.htm. Help make
this new event a success!
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FOHCL was contacted by Brandi Megan Granett, author
and organizer of River Reads, offering a donation from
proceeds collected at her event. The idea started with the
desire to hold a book launch that was about more than
her book alone. So Ms. Granett conceived of a multiauthor event with signings and readings, which has
grown to include a crepe truck and wine tasting. As of
the end of August, over forty authors will participate.
Many genres will be represented, including children’s
literature. Book lovers…. bring the family and enjoy
books in a whole new way.
Library Information
Book Club
Want to read a good book and FALL in with a great club for some thought-provoking discussion? Well, then come out and join the FRIENDS OF THE HUNTERDON COUNTY
LIBRARY BOOK CLUB! W e m eet once a m onth to discuss our titles a s a liv ely and friendly group of readers. We’ll be discussing DEAD WAKE by Erik Larson on September 29th, CORELLI’S MANDOLIN by Lou is De Ber niér es on October 27 th, and
LAST MAN IN TOWER by Ar a v ind Adig a on Nov em ber 17 th. We alternate meetings at the Library HQ on Route 12 and the North County Branch in Clinton. All meetings
are 7:00-9:00 pm. Check our website for the details.
Contact Renée with any questions at rking100@yahoo.com. Hope to see you there!
Hunterdon County Library Headquarters (HQ) Flem ington, NJ – (908)
788-1444
North County Branch Library (NC)
Clinton, NJ – (908) 730-6262
South County Branch Library (SC)
Lambertville, NJ – (609) 773-0032
Affiliated Community Libraries:
Bunnvale—(908) 638-8884
Frenchtown—(908) 996-4788
High Bridge—(908) 638-8231
Holland Township—(908) 995-4767
Readington—(908) 534-4421
Tewksbury—(908) 439-3761
Three Bridges—(908) 782-2908
Friends Of
Hunterdon County Library
Sept 29th
Oct 27th
Nov 17th
If you are interested in helping on a particular committee or just have a question, feel
free to email any of the following individuals at: fohclfriends@gmail.com
Officers
~Renee Allegro King
Library Director’s Message
I’ve decided that it’s finally time for a little self-improvement this month. My plan, simple
and, hopefully, not overly ambitious (I don’t want to discourage myself from not following
through) is as follows:
1) Learn Spanish. I’ll be availing myself of our new resource, Rosetta Stone, which is available through the database page of our website. It makes learning a new language fun, with up
to 30 languages to choose from. And, of course, it’s free to anyone with a library card!
2) Enter a photograph in this year’s Amateur Photography Show. This October marks the
twenty-fifth year that HCL will be holding this annual event. Registration fee is only $2.00
($1.00 for Students). I will do my best to find an interesting animal or still life to take an
award-winning picture!
Co-Presidents: Pam ela D’Amato &
Georgia Muhs
Vice President: Lynn B ur tis
Secretary: Laur a B linder m an
Treasurer: Rober t Nathanson
Committee Chairs
Book Sale Volunteers: Jackie Cady
Book Scholarship: B ob Seym our
Affiliated Library Liaisons: Helen
Brown & Penny Gallagher
Finance: Mar y Ann Seym our
Friendship Gardens : Jean E. Allur ed
Membership/Computer Records:
Pamela D’Amato & Bob Seymour
Newsletter: K aren Mitchell
Outreach: Peggy B ryer s
Programs: Lynn B ur tis
Publicity: Tom Mullen
3) Brush up on my knowledge of investing with Morningstar Investment Research Center. I
figure it’s time to get serious about preparing for my retirement! This is also available
through the database page of our website. And, need I mention, it’s
free just like Rosetta Stone!
Please join us in welcoming:
4) Prepare to run a Half Marathon by reading Jeff Galloway’s The
Run Walk Method. Another freebie, although I’ll have to buy a new
pair of running shoes for all the training miles I’ll be accumulating!
Bob Nathanson, Treasur er. He br ings exper ience and energy and we are glad to have him join the Board.
5) Lose 10 pounds by closing my eyes when I walk by the candy machine in the Headquarters Gallery. I’m not convinced this one will
work, but it’s worth a try!
Bob Seymour, Scholar ship Com m ittee. Though he has
been contributing for years, Bob now lends his considerable skill in
an official capacity.
Best wishes,
Thank You to Past Treasurer MaryAnn Seymour for her years of
service. Her guidance was invaluable and we are happy that she will
continue to serve on the Finance Committee.
~Mark Titus~
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~Mark Titus~
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