Now You See It; Now You Don't

The Barry Hinnant Magic Program at the South Mandarin Library, June 25, had 85 spellbound customers waiting to see "what's next". Library Associate Christie Rogers said, "The large crowd had a great time and after the program, kids and adults were asking to check out books about magic."

Hot Buys @ Cool Prices: Friends July Book Sale

Like the old rock 'n roll song says, "Tell your ma; tell your pa..." --and, of course, your customers: 

Get your favorite books, DVD's, and CD's at the Friends of  the JPL Booksale (located at the south end of University Park Branch Library, 3435 University Boulevard North; a few blocks north of JU):

Friday, July 17 - 4 - 8 pm:  FJPL members only but you can join at the door & BUY ONE/GET ONE FREE!

Saturday, July 18 - 9 am - 5 pm: Unadvertised in-store SPECIALS!

Sunday, July 19: Noon - 5 pm:  buy 2 bags and get a 3rd bag FREE!

NS Hosts Clown With Valuable Stories

Cotton Candy the Clown put on a fun filled program for the lucky 45 children that attended her program at Brentwood Branch, June 23.  Her interpretation of the theme “Every Hero Has a Story” was “Every Story Has a Hero”.  The children (and adults ) laughed and enjoyed her antics while learning valuable lessons about everyday heroes.  We also discovered some of our children were “hams”.  Cotton Candy closed the program by pulling out a live bunny from her hat and everyone had a chance to pet him.

Thanks to Betty Williams, NS Library Associate, for the news.

Year Of The River Is Big Splash At NS

Pat Morrison, Urban Library Core Supervisor (NS, ES, WBK, and GB) is pleased with youth expanding their knowledge about the St. Johns River, "It began as a small project to get the teens to think about the St. Johns River and its importance to our community.  Tweens and teens gathered for an open discussion about how the river supports our way of life.  Answers ranged from a source of power and food, to a place to have fun fishing and boating.  Many of the teens were not aware of just how far south the river extends beyond our city.  The 'mural' reflects some of the inhabitants of the river that the students identified.

"The students, mostly teen males, spent one afternoon a week for several weeks creating the creatures.  The challenge was getting some of their giant creatures to stick to the backdrop.  NS staff also contributed to the project.  A manatee, alligators, giant shrimp, dolphins, a catfish, croakers, blue crabs and oysters are all a part of the scene.  I drew the line at eels and mullet."

BEAUTIFUL JOB!

Staff Profile - July 2015

JPL’s new Deputy Director of Public Services, Jennifer Giltrop, is thrilled to join the JPL Team. This is the 6th library system in Giltrop's career which spans libraries of various sizes coast-to-coast.  The experience that she brings will help JPL continue to transform into an excellent 21st century library system.

Most of you have now seen her at your library because she has visited all 21 at least once, including attending several meetings with the Friends of the Library groups to whom she is the Library liaison. Here we want to give the Deputy Director an opportunity to elaborate on her executive roles and how her expertise will benefit JPL.

Q: Tell us about your experiences with the D. C. Public Library and other libraries that you believe will be a good fit for JPL.

I have had so many great and rich experiences in my career up to this point—all of which allow me to come to JPL confident in the work we will do together to ensure the people of Jacksonville receive the best library service possible.  Every system I have worked in has had strengths and challenges.  The experiences and strengths I bring to JPL include navigating large institutions, organizational and staff development, ensuring resources are allocated and used well, making decisions with the customer at the center, community engagement, building and renovation experience, and political and financial acumen.  

As a library moving from transactional to transformational services, it is such an exciting time to be here and in public libraries generally.

This was taken in June 2012 at the opening of the Bellevue Neighborhood Library in D.C. with David Adjaye, British architect.  He designed two award winning libraries for DCPL.  On April 15, 2009, he was selected in a competition to design the $500 million  National Museum of African American History and Culture, part of the   Smithsonian in Washington, D.C,^[3] planned to open in 2015.

I have worked with some really great people in my career who have pushed me and supported me in so many ways and for that I am both humbled and grateful. I believe it’s now my turn to give back, by putting into action mentoring and coaching strategies for staff and colleagues in order to support them in reaching their potential. It’s important to me and something I spend a lot of time thinking about.

Q:  You also have seasoned experience in Finance and Human Resources.  Please tell us about that and how it will affect your decisions concerning JPL.

A:  That is a great question.  It's hard to know how I would approach my work or make decisions if I didn't have the background that I do.  What I can tell you is that as a library administrator for the last 18 years, it is my business and human resources skills and knowledge that I use each and every day in my work, from understanding budget management to people management and more.  I will be consistently focused on process improvement, efficient use of resources, staff training and development, and connecting our vision and values to what we focus on and support.

Q:  How do you think JPL can boost public interest and library visits?  

A:  We must create excitement about the library.  We must offer services and programs that meet the needs of our community.  We must support the goals of our elected officials so that JPL’s goals are aligned with them and the impact of our work gets noticed, highlighted, and funded. We must consistently provide the highest, most responsive levels of customer service.  We must be agile and flexible in meeting the changing needs of our community.  We must be good community partners, connectors, and facilitators.  We must build strong networks of library advocates.  We must continue to bring the joy of reading and learning to our youngest; support students, parents and caregivers; provide literacy and life skills training for adults; and provide quality services for all. We must remove barriers for access and use. We must continue to build a network of private and corporate donors and seek grants to enhance our services.  Each and every one of us is connected to our success, and together we will continue to provide amazing services for our community.

Q: We know you like golf, live near the beach, and have a large family. Please share whatever will help us know you better.  

A:  It has been a lifelong dream to live at a beach!  I find great serenity and do great contemplating by the waves and soaking up the sun.  I was born and raised in Michigan, and spent most summers in my youth camping in Michigan's state parks usually on one of the Great Lakes.  

I have five sisters and three brothers—and I am the oldest.  Together we are a motley crew: librarian, kidney research grant coordinator and triathlete, Air Force social worker, stock trader, elementary teacher, two entrepreneurs, and two in the mortgage industry.  I already have eight nieces and nephews and expect there will be more!  

I played many sports growing up, and then coached youth basketball and softball in my 20s and 30s. I also umpired and refereed youth sports. In fact my first "real" job was working for Saginaw Township & Recreation at 14. When I lived in Seattle I had season tickets for the Seahawks—of course their Super Bowl win came after I moved to DC!  I am a lifelong Detroit Lions and Detroit Tigers fan.  I took up golf in my late 20s and have loved it ever since; mostly I love being outside and every once in a while I get a shot that makes me go back for more.

I have traveled domestically and internationally a fair amount and enjoy doing so. The world is an amazing place!  I have also enjoyed living in different parts of the U.S. and feel fortunate that my career has provided me such opportunities.

I enjoy life and all it has to offer.  Like anyone, I have experienced trials and losses in life, but I believe that there are always ways to embrace these times and grow from them.  I love to laugh and believe humor is a great gift. 

I hope that gives you some insight, but hopefully over time we can learn more about each other, because I am just as interested to know each of you!

Above Cat in the Hat  shares fun with Jennifer Giltrop at D. C. Library where she served as Director of Public Services.

Strumming For SLP

Lynne Baldwin, KR Manager, reports, "We had 58 attendees for “Al Poindexter: Who Is Your Hero?” Summer Enrichment program. Kids had a blast learning about local heroes, folk tale heroes, and singing along to new songs."

Art Club At KR

Mandarin Library's Art Club, June 23, featured printmaking and radial symmetry. 

KR Branch Manager Lynne Baldwin said, "We had 21 attendees and they had a lot of fun."

Big Customer Draws for SLP at SE

Debra Wainwright, Clerical Support Supervisor, creates displays promoting Southeast Branch programs and the SLP displays are a BIG hit with customers. Displays are geared for kids to seniors, who enjoy a feast of books, AV materials, and graphics as they cruise down the "buffet line".  The yellow roller coaster seen in the background of the first two pics is run by staff to the delight of kids who especially like to see the cart whirl around the loop. 

  

NW Has New Slant For Superheroes

The children’s theme for SLP is: Every Hero Has a Story! Bradham Brooks Northwest Branch revised it a bit for their June 16 bedtime stories to read: Even superheroes go to bed.  Fifty kids listened as Sheenae Nelson read to them and they made these colorful masks. 

Richard Mott was there to shadow Sheenae and got in on the fun.

Dallas Graham Branch Celebrates 50 Years

The Dallas Graham Branch Library celebrated a 50^th Anniversary milestone on Monday, June 22 with a nostalgic and educational program honoring the history of the branch.  GB hosted an open house with a social hour followed by a program culminating with a videodocumentary and refreshments. 

The courtyard blossomed with newly planted flowers donated and planted by The College Park Garden Circle.

Lots of details helped make the event a historical walk down memory lane. On display were books published in 1965 (50 years ago!), and Youth Services Librarian Peggy Crawford and Library Assistant Tyhedra Wilson used some children’s books published in 1965 to entertain the children. Some titles are still enjoyed today: “Mr. Pine’s Purple House” by Leonard Kessler and “I Wish that I had Duck Feet” by Dr. Seuss kept the children mesmerized while waiting for the main event to begin. 

A commemorative keepsake Children’s Activity book was created for the event which included puzzles, a word scramble, and “find a word” using clues about the Graham Branch Library and the surrounding community. The program, emceed by Library Board of Trustees member Jackie Perry, began with remarks by Barbara Gubbin followed by Councilwoman E. Denise Lee presenting the branch with a City Council Resolution. The program continued with musical entertainment provided

by an accomplished violinist Korah Leandra Cuff, the teenage daughter of Richard Cuff, owner of All About Kids Music Academy.  After the performance, two students read their winning Youth Writing Contest essays on the prompt “Why the Dallas Graham Branch is Important to Me”. The contest was sponsored by The Friends of the Dallas Graham Branch Library and the Good Neighbor M.A.N.I.A., Inc., under the leadership of Ms. Celia Miller with the Dallas Graham Branch Friends. Ms. Miller presented each student with a $50 check as their prize for the winning essays.

The event culminated with the viewing of a videodocumentary produced by Lisa Buggs and Justin Keiser which retold the history of the Dallas Graham Branch Library in pictures and interviews. The interviews were recorded with the help of many community members, local historians, educators, board members, and Friends of the Graham Branch Library. The video was enhanced with pictures provided by Special Collections, personal photos provided by customers, and photos gleaned from articles and other library events dating back to 1965. 

The refreshments were a sight to behold with a gold and cream “mountain” of cupcakes, sandwiches, cookies and lemonade. Countless people, both customers and staff, worked tirelessly to accomplish the event. Among those staff instrumental in decorating and refreshments were Library Supervisor Pat Morrison, Library Clerk Delores Walker and part-time library clerk Carolyn Armstrong. Library Associate Linda Griffin Foresto and part-time library clerk (and Videodocumentary star Leroy Harrison IV) handled the raffle and door prizes. Branch Manager Jackie Spiritas said, "Everyone was eager to help. Without the big hearts and busy hands of the 50^th Anniversary Committee, loyal customers, and the library staff, the event would not have been as meaningful or successful. It was a very interactive event for all and that’s what made it great!” 

Florida State Senator Audrey Gibson and a representative from Marco Rubio’s office, Angela Swift, were in attendance as well as Library Board of Trustees Chair Erin Vance Skinner and many other respected members of the community and retired staff. Among those retired staff in attendance were former Deputy Director Carolyn Williams, and former Library Administrator Margaret Smith and Daniel Kibler, who was a previous manager of the Graham Branch Library. Thank you to staff that helped work the Customer Service desk: Annie Norris from Graham and Kathleen Brunner and Donna Crowther from Main). 

The day marked an occasion to momentarily look back and a golden opportunity to talk about the importance of the library going forward. The Florida Times Union, sensing greatness, took the story and ran with it on the front page of their Tuesday paper. The videodocumentary is now posted on YouTube for all to enjoy.

245 People At SOM's 10th Anniversary Open House

 

On June 18, South Mandarin Branch Library celebrated ten years of service with an Open House attended by 245 people.  CM's Matt Shellenberg and E. Denise Lee respectively read resolutions approved by City Council.

Mandarin's fire house engine No. 42 gave fire safety tips and kids were excited to see a fire truck up close and asked the firemen questions; both firemen and kids enjoyed the experience. 

Sunshine, the Therapy dog, was with the children for a reading and the Mandarin Garden Club held a seed planting program in the children's department.  Door prizes, including an iPad mini, were awarded and the event was topped off with refreshments.

Kudos From Customers - June 2015

Main – Ref/Per:  All aspects of the staff have been excellent. In particular, Karren Deas, is an exceptional employee, who has always consistently helped me when I needed it. Overall, she is a polite, professional, and informative employee who is an asset to any organization.

Main Library – Circulation: I write to praise Main Library employee Erin Tuzuner, who is consistently helpful and engaged. She is alert to patrons who could use assistance. Her demeanor is calm, efficient, and friendly. She seems knowledgeable about many aspects of the Library. Thanks for being a library whose staff is welcoming and helpful!

Pablo Creek Branch - Winning statement of SirsiDynx contest (see link in article below for full statement): …Its structure and cleanliness is inviting and its staff always helpful.  It provides tools such as computers, classes and advice to all sorts of needs.  It’s a place to meet and learn for adults and children….

University Park Branch: I called today and a very pleasant, articulate, well-mannered young man assisted me in putting a book on hold. His name is Justin Broadfoot, and I think he deserves some kind of recognition, REAL recognition. He was courteous, knowledgeable, and affable. … He's a "good guy" in my book…. 

PCR Customer's Love For Library Wins $250 for JPL

                             Pablo Creek Branch Library Employees 

Lynn Jacobson, Bibliographic Systems and Access Manager, wanted to share some good news, "How cool is this? A Pablo Creek customer submitted a story about why she loves her library in the SirsiDynix Love Your Library contest. Because of her story SirsiDynix will be donating $250 to the library. Congrats to Sandy Ostroski and her staff!

More information is below but here’s a link to Suzanne-Marie’s story: http://librarylove.sirsidynix.com/story/suzanne-marie-pablo-creek?mkt_tok=3RkMMJWWfF9wsRonv63McO%2FhmjTEU5z14uorXKCg38431UFwdcjKPmjr1YIEScBmI%2BSLDwEYGJlv6SgFSbLAMa1l07gKWxk%3D

Important Japanese Exhibit Opens At JB

 A new history exhibit, "Rising Sun in the Sunshine State" opened at the Beaches Branch, June 9, 2015, and will be up through July. A reception was held, followed by a program attended by 115 people. This important piece of Duval County history was created by Elsie Oishi (standing to right of the podium, as she was being introduced), who serves the Jacksonville Historical Society as their volunteer expert genealogist, and REALM Consulting. The exhibit tells the story of Tokutaro Takami, his family, and friends. The Takami family arrived from Japan at the turn of the 20th century. They settled in Duval County, bought property, invested in businesses, educated their children, served in the military and became an integral part of the American dream.

The story was told by Elsie Jun Oishi, Tokutaro's granddaughter. Her interest in her family’s history started in 1988 after she read an article about the Japanese community in Duval County. It took Ms. Oishi, a former JPL senior librarian, 25 years to research her family history and she came to realize that her family was the first Japanese family in Jacksonville Beach.

Bishop Estevez Co-Hosts Storytime At KR

Community leader Bishop Felipe Estevez co-hosted Stories for Young Children at the Mandarin Branch Library, June 18, for a crowd of 40 children and caregivers. Bishop Estevez read from I Spy Under the Sea and Hooray for Fish for an ocean theme. The children especially enjoyed answering the Bishop’s questions about the stories and talking about their favorite fish. Having the Bishop read stories for our community was a great way to liven up summer programming for early literacy.

KR Branch Manager Lynne Baldwin said, "Bishop Estevez was very pleased to have been invited for story time and thought it was a wonderful idea to ask people of faith to come to the library.  Brandon, the photographer for the diocese, also attended the program and will be sending us photos."*

___________________________

Photo(s) will be added here later.

Tim Meusel Retires from Talking Books/Special Needs

Tim Meusel (2nd from L) volunteered 18 months for JPL before he became an employee in 1993. A veteran of Bradham Brooks Northwest and Main libraries, Tim has been known for being a vital part of JPL's Talking Books/Special Needs departments housed at Main.  Amazingly, Tim has inspected about 500 returned items a day.

At the June 11, 2015 Library Board Meeting, Board Chair Erin Skinner (L) and Director Barbara Gubbin (far R) honored Mr. Meusel  with a congratulatory letter and a JPL gold card.  Tim Meusel retired, June 3, 2015. To Tim's left, is his wife, Anne, who often acts as Tim's "eyes" since he is visually impaired.

ALL OF US AT JPL WISH YOU THE VERY BEST, TIM AND ANNE, AND THANK YOU SO MUCH, TIM, FOR ALL YOU HAVE DONE TO KEEP TALKING BOOKS/SPECIAL NEEDS RELEVANT TO THIS COMMUNITY.

Clowing Around Gets Serious AT KR

David Foster welcomed Cotton Candy Clown to the Mandarin Branch Library on June 17. The first Summer Learning Enrichment Program of the season was a big success with 123 kids attending the program.  

GB's YA Job Fair Signs Up 295! YEA!

Dallas Graham Branch Manager Jackie Spiritas said, "The Urban Core held a Young Adult Job Fair, June 12,  at GB that rocked the house from 3:00-5:00 p.m. Thanks to the efforts of JPL’s Community Relations and Marketing department, social media, radio, television, and word-of-mouth, it was obvious that news of the event hit a grateful nerve in the community. 

For hours before the event began, Graham’s telephones rang almost nonstop with calls from people confirming the time, location, asking what to bring, etc. When the community doors opened, 10 businesses and career agencies were set up and ready to receive questions and dole out literature, freebies (logo pencils, candy, tote bags etc) to many eager young adults who were ready to go to work. A total of 295 young adults signed in for the Job Fair after patiently waiting in a line that wrapped around the inside of the library and outside down the sidewalk. 

The event would not have been possible without the commitment and energy of the Graham Branch Staff and the Young Adult Job Fair Committee which included staff from each of the Urban libraries. For the last several months the committee contacted businesses, created table-top signs for each business, customized raffle tickets, prepared treat bags, and stuffed pocket folders with job-related literature. In the month prior to the Fair, The Jacksonville Urban League and library staff conducted career workshops around the Urban Core on interviewing skills, how to dress and prepare resumes so the attendees could be ready for this event. For example, for each Career Workshop, Graham Branch Library Assistant

Tyhedra Wilson went on location with a handful of neckties and taught the attendees how to tie a necktie. The workshops were hands-on and contained value added perks provided by library staff. 

 "What can only be described as an overwhelming response, the Job Fair brought out many young adults to the event in the hopes of acquiring a summer job or work experience to kick start their careers.

"We appreciate everyone who participated in this very successful event:

"Young Adult Job Fair Committee Members: Gloria Armstrong, Michelle Dubois, Linda Griffin Foresto, Jackie Spiritas, Antoinette Walker, Susan Williamson. Supportive Roles:  Leroy Harrison IV, Amber Holley, Pat Morrison, Luis Terron, Tyhedra Wilson, and Eva Newton.

"These Businesses/Career Resources were represented: Advance Auto Parts, The Armed Forces, CareerSource Florida, Checkers, Fresh Ministries, Habijax, Northeast Florida Builders Association (NEFBA), Nemours Children's Services, Publix, and Randstad Staffing.

"Door prizes were donated by: Nemours Children’s Services, Checkers, Gale Databases, and Shear Finesse Beauty Academy."

Buffalo Soldiers Historical Society Exhibit Opens

Cranston Burney shared images from the Buffalo Soldiers Historical Society’s (BSHS) exhibit opening program held at the Main Library, Saturday, June 13, 2015.

Congresswoman Corrine Brown addressed the crowd and BSHS made former JPL Deputy Director Carolyn Williams an honorary member and presented her with a commemorative throw.

Former KR Volunteer Wins National Merit Scholarship

Former Mandarin Library volunteer Dipayan Banerjee graduated with honors from Stanton College Preparatory School with a 4.91 GPA.  Dipayan is a recipient of a National Merit Scholarship and will be attending Northwestern University in Chicago where he will be studying Industrial Engineering and Management Science.  Dipayan is the son of Mandarin Library Clerk Shukti Banerjee.  Congratulations to Dipayan and his family!

A Carnegie Library In Ireland

Kristi Dorney says, "On my recent trip to Ireland, I stumbled upon the Kilkenny County Library. My Great-Grandfather was from County Kilkenny. I did not get a chance to go inside the library, but I did find it interesting to see that it is a Carnegie Library. During my travels, I did pass by the Trinity College Library as well at the County Kerry Library.

WBK's Father's Day Program

Westbrook Branch's Father’s Day craft was a success with 21 kids in attendance. They chose to make a tie or bow tie (some made both) for their father, grandfather, uncle or a

male role model. They loved it per Kimberly Cherry at Westbrook Branch.

Every Event Is An Opportunity To Promote JPL

Several area ShAdCo’s (Sheriff’s Advisory Councils) met together at the Legends Center on

June 8 to say farewell to Sheriff Rutherford, who will be replaced in the next few weeks by incoming Sheriff Mike Williams. Sheriff Rutherford expressed his gratitude to the community members that support ShAdCo and the work that the neighborhoods do to reduce and prevent crime by being aware and outspoken of what is going on around them. Dallas Graham Branch Manager Jackie Spiritas ran into Northwest Branch Manager Guy Adkins at the event and they introduced themselves and shamelessly plugged the library. 

KR Kicks Off W/232 In Attendance

KR Manager Lynne Baldwin reports, "The 2015 Summer Learning Kick Off Party, June 10, was a wonderful success.  We had 232 in attendance! Using the SLP theme, "Every Hero Has A Story", Alison Pulley and her team of library of super heroes--David Foster, Frances

Wickes, Lisa Veal, Sara Peretzman, Deborah Wainwright, Shukti Banerjee and Jessica Jones--welcomed the kids for an afternoon of crafts, photos and special treats. In addition to signing up for SLP, kids were able to create their own shield and gauntlet, become their favorite super hero at the Dress Up Box and leap off the highest building for their Super Hero Photo Session.  Some kids had their photo taken with Iron Man, Batman and Thor. Everyone feasted on Super Hero Cake, juice, and popcorn.  It was quite an afternoon and the perfect way to kick off a summer of fun at the Mandarin Branch Library.  

"Everything went smoothly, despite the large crowd and not enough parking spaces. I am really proud of Alison Pulley, Frances Wickes, David Foster and the whole Mandarin staff.  A special thanks to Sara Peretzman and Jessica Jones for decorating the library for Summer Learning, and to SE Region Youth Services Librarian III Carisia Rooney for her help at the Kick Off Party.  She went over and above at the party–covering the information desk for two hours, handing out popcorn, helping with photos and crafts, telling customers about summer learning and much more.  Carisia is truly a library superhero!! It was a real team effort that paid off big time."  

                            THEY MADE IT HAPPEN!

GB's Eva Newton Moving to D.C.

The Graham Branch Library hosted a farewell breakfast (sumptuous) for Youth Services Librarian Eva Newton on June 10. Many JPL staff current and retired showed up to wish Eva well on her new journey. Eva has worked with JPL for five years and began as a part-time employee and worked her way up to Youth Services Librarian of the Urban Core libraries. Eva will be moving to Washington D.C. shortly and everyone wishes her well. Eva was showered with her favorite treats, which include chocolate and coffee. Eva will be missed by all of the staff and many of the customers. She was great with children and teens and left a lasting impression on everyone with her smile and bubbly personality. Farewell Eva, until we meet again!

GB Kicks Off SUMMER LEARNING PROGRAM

          Graham Branch Library kicked off the Summer Learning Program on Tuesday, June 9, with a fun activity and a cool treat for the kids. Even though Spiderman was busy making the world safe and couldn’t come to the opening program, everyone else had a wonderful time! Nineteen kids attended and got to pretend to be Spiderman by navigating through a “spider web” made of yarn.  Youth Services Librarian Peggy Crawford reported that the spider web was an idea that Susan Mankowski presented to the children’s staff several months ago and it was a great hit. You can see this is true by the looks on the “spiders” faces! The children,

ages 2 to 12, had a ball going over, under, and through the web. The children got a popsicle treat after listening to spidery tales and coloring. The event was the beginning of what is sure to be an exciting Superhero summer.

CAL Celebrates The Year Of The River

Reading on the River

CAL celebrates the Year of the River

The Center for Adult Learning spent the month of May celebrating the St. Johns River.  Classes took field trips to the river to see it firsthand.  Each week of the month a different topic associated with the river was discussed. 

 The first week concentrated on the seven bridges.  Many of the English Second Language (ESL) students did not know the name of the bridge they cross every week to get to class but they knew the color. 

Next, the classes concentrated on the wildlife and the impact on the environment associated with the river.  Students wrote about the river and Jenny Busey from the St. Johns Riverkeeper came and spoke to the classes about the river and its wildlife. The students had many questions for the Riverkeeper especially about fishing.  We never knew we had so many fishermen and women in our classes.

Here is a poem from one of our ESL students from Russia:

Florida’s Springtime

I like Florida’s springtime.

Flowering bushes, flourishing trees

Renovation of nature.

I live on St. Johns riverside

Here, evening is the most beautiful.

I see the city

The luminous bridges, the sparkling light.

The varicolored lights of the city.

My soul rejoices.

Ludmilla Kahan

A student’s answer to –Why the St. Johns River is important for me?
The big reason for me moving to Jacksonville is the St. Johns River. I intend to live in waterside.  Good view make me pleasant and relax.  St. Johns River is also a busy channel for ships coming and going.  I feel like the St. Johns River becoming vivid. It is alive. - Thursday a.m. class- Mei Long-China

Finally, the classes looked at the economic and industrial impact of the river on Jacksonville.

May was a great month for “Reading on the River” at CAL.

Important Events To Promote To Customers

We have the Summer Learning Program in progress and that's a biggie; however, there are two other important programs that your customers need to know about.  CR&M has apprised you of them, too:

Small Business Resources @ Your Library
Wednesday, June 10 @ 4:30 pm
Main Library, Conference Center, Room G4

Great Decisions: Human Trafficking in the 21st Century
Thursday, June 25, 6:45-8:30 pm
Southeast Regional Library

Staff Profile - June 2015

Sharon Kirkes has managed Webb Wesconnett Branch since 2009 and has been with JPL 13 years. She is married to a retired JPL librarian and they have two daughters.    

Sharon is not one to toot her own horn; however, she was chosen to head up the team to develop the Economic Success exercises, rounds 1 and 2, and recently made a presentation concerning the results of those exercises at the Library Round Table (LRT) meeting.  (If you are not familiar with LRT, that is a JPL meeting held bimonthly where senior administrative staffs and department and branch managers share their initiatives, get updates and future plans for JPL's direction and budget.)  We thought it would be of interest to you to know a little more about Sharon Kirkes' adventure with Economic Success exercises, which is part of JPL's Strategic Plan.

Q: What necessitated the Economic Success exercises, rounds 1 and 2, and when were they held?

A: Basically, Objective 6.2.2 stipulates that, by the end of FY 15 all adult reference staff will demonstrate knowledge of economic success resources. Round 1 was held over several weeks going into the Summer of 2014; Round 2 was shorter, and covered many of the same resources in a different format. My focus for these exercises was to ensure that staffs had some exposure to, and an increased comfort level with, a variety of resources. It was personally a challenge for me as well—I was not comfortable at first navigating through some of these areas and using them appropriately.

Q: What improvements have you observed since these exercises were implemented--in employees and customer service?

A: It’s hard to quantify—I would say it’s more of an increased awareness of the resources that are out there, including some we didn’t originally have listed; and possibly getting more confident in using the resources that were initially intimidating.

Q: Will these exercises, or modified versions, continue to be used?

A: The exercise phase of this objective should be pretty much over.  The next phase should probably involve getting or designing training to enhance staff skills in using the resources.  The training that is coming up in August for some of the Gale databases is a good example.

Q: What did you and management learn from this process?

A: One thing that was encouraging was how well many of the Library Associates did with these exercises. We also learned not to initiate an exercise in late spring or early summer. Moving from a precise Q & A exercise to a more flexible format was part of the learning process as well.

Q:  What is one of the funniest stories you can tell about an experience in JPL?

A: When it comes to the Dress Code, I am more of a stickler regarding footwear than anything else. So one day several Webb staffers gathered in the workroom and held my attention until I noticed they were all wearing flip-flops. After my initial coronary, they changed and wore their “real” shoes. 

Digital Photography Classes At Main Well Received

Pictured is Cranston Burney, Library Assistant in Reference & Periodicals at Main, who lead a new digital photography class at the Main Library.  These classes are part of the initiative to provide more computer skills classes.  Two classes were held in May with a total of 22 staffs in attendance.