Murray Hill Branch Celebrates Its 50th & A NEW NAME

Legislation was introduced October 9, 2018, by Council Members John Crescimbeni and Jim Love (both pictured below with CM Crescimbeni speaking), and it was co-sponsored by CMs Tommy Hazouri and Joyce Morgan, to change the name of the Murrary Hill Branch Library to honor the late library activist and local attorney Bill Brinton (photos of Mr. Brinton are at left.)

Subsequently Murray Hill Library not only celebrated its 50^th anniversary, Saturday, December 15, 2018; it also celebrated a new name: the Bill Brinton Murray Hill Branch Library.

Over 300 people attended the event, some dressed in their favorite 1960's outfits. Guest speakers for the event included JPL Director Tim Rogers, COJ Director of Community Affairs Dr. Charles Moreland, Friends of the Murray Hill Library President Jay Stuckey, Library Board Chair Ronnie King, and Council Members John Crescimbeni, Jim Love, and Tommy Hazouri. Following the morning dedication ceremony that included a video tribute to the library compiled by FML member and former Branch Manager Daniel Kibler, guests were ushered outside for the unveiling of the new sign dedicating the branch as the Bill Brinton Murray Hill Branch. All in attendance were then welcomed back inside for a celebratory feast donated by Maple Street Biscuit Company, Moon River Pizza, Publix and Walmart.

Other events that day consisted of a car show sponsored by Pugh’s Auto Sales and Service, games and other activities for children and teens, including a balloon maker and 3D printing pens. The Friends of the Murray Hill Library also hosted several raffle drawings for an assortment of prizes donated by local businesses.

 

Enjoy the plethora of pictures of the 50th celebration/dedication here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/dFvrgKmwbSruiHiG6

Thanks to MH Library Associate Douglas Fair for the article.

 

Beaches Friends Give $25,000 For New Landscaping At JB

July 6 took 2nd place only to the 4th for July celebrations at the Beaches Branch today.  The Friends of the Beaches Branch Library made a gift of $25,000 for the landscaping project everyone is looking

forward to seeing completed. Deputy Director Jennifer Giltrop, ready to start this long awaited face lift, was ready to take the first big scoop of dirt but on second thought, she left that task to the contractor.

Pictured below are, L/R, Beaches Friends member Harriet Pruett, Council Member Bill Gulliford, President of the Friends of the Beaches Public Library Josh Messinger, and Director Barbara Gubbin at the groundbreaking ceremony.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH TO THE BEACHES FRIENDS FOR THE BIG DONATION!

Mandarin Branch Celebrates 30 Years

On Saturday June 18, 2016, the Mandarin Library hosted an Open House celebrating 30 years of service to the community.  Library Director Barbara Gubbin welcomed about 80 people and City Councilmen Tommy Hazouri (above) presented the library with a resolution honoring Mandarin's 30^th anniversary.  Library Board Chair Erin Skinner, groups from the library, members of the Jacksonville Gem and Mineral Society and the Mandarin Garden Club were among the honored guests. All enjoyed donations of cake from Publix and sandwiches from Jimmy John’s, along with door prizes.

Beaches Branch Celebrates 30 Years of Service

Beaches Branch Library celebrated its 30^th Anniversary on Saturday, May 21, 2016, with a Community Open House. Library customers visited with the many elected officials and representatives from local community organizations.  Kathleen Krizek from Special Collections did genealogy database demonstrations and also showed off the newly digitized portions of The Florida Times-Union indexes. CAL Manager Katie Devanny and JB staff also manned tables. E-Specialist Randy Manapoo did 3D Printer and tablet demonstrations.

JB Manager Theresa Rooney said, "We were amazed at the support for the Beaches Branch by elected officials. Library Director Barbara Gubbin provided opening remarks for the noon program. Katie Ross, Regional Director, Senator Bill Nelson’s Office, read a letter from the Senator. Jackie Smith, District Director, U.S. Representative Ander Crenshaw’s Office, also spoke enthusiastically about the many things the library offers. 

Brian Sexton, former Voice of the Jaguars, was the keynote speaker; however, the hit of the program was 94 year old Scotty Thornton, who shared some of her experiences, beginning in 1979, in mobilizing support from elected officials and community organizations to replace the 3,000 sq. ft. library in the old Jax Beach City Hall with a new branch. These experiences were documented in a timeline lovingly prepared by  FOBBL members Pam and Steve Ubl, based on primary sources contained with several early Friends scrapbooks, and installed on the Community Room wall to celebrate the anniversary. In addition to Ms. Thornton, Special guests included: Sallie Pickard and Ann Winfree, the librarians who opened the Beaches Branch in 1986, and the family of Eloise Claiborne, a Beaches resident appointed to the Board of Library Trustees in 1979, who served as President from 1983-84.

 

Mayor Harriet Pruette declared Saturday, May 21st as “Beaches Branch Library Day” by Mayoral Proclamation. Other elected officials who spoke during the program were Councilmember Bill Gulliford and State Representative Aaron Bean. Bryan Sexton was the Keynote Speaker and Tim Anderson, Secretary, Board of Library Trustees, gave closing remarks. Also attending were: State Representative Lake Ray, Kara Tucker and Scott Wiley from the Neptune Beach City Council, and Phil Vogelsang and Bruce Thomason from the City of Jacksonville Beach City Council, as well as  Mitch Reeves, Mayor of Atlantic Beach.  

The event was also well attended by JPL Administration, including Deputy Directors Jennifer Giltrop (Public Services), Mark Merritt (Administration), Assistant Director of Public Services Julie McNeil, Assistant Director of Support Services Gretchen Mitchel, Regional Supervisors Sara Roberts (PCR), and Keli Likins (SE), and Karen Walker, Manager of E-Services & Digital Access, as well as others.

Beaches Watch, Jacksonville Beach Life Guards, Sea Turtle Patrol, BEAM, Beaches Museum & History Park, Bennie Furlong Senior Center, Beaches Photography Club, Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of Jacksonville and  the “Seams Beachy”chapter of the American Sewing Guild were some of the local organizations represented.  

 

FOBBL raffled 18 book-themed gift baskets and the Children’s Department offered face-painting, balloon sculptures, and two “beachy” crafts. The event wrapped up around 2 p.m. and staff estimated that 500+ patrons had walked through the gate and most had participated. Everyone enjoyed Italian Ice from Rita’s, which donated 25% of their profits to the Friends of the Beaches Branch Library, and special beach-themed cookies provided by Cinnoti’s Bakery and Publix.  

                                     Barbara Sperbeck, FOBBL                    

Look Who Won the Battle of the Bands Contest

The 10^th Annual Teen Battle of the Bands was part of the Main Library’s 10th Anniversary celebration on Saturday, November 7.

Ten bands competed. American Idol finalist, Tyanna Jones, kicked the event off with a live performance of the hit, “Wings.” Local band Tomboi emceed and performed while the judges deliberated.

First prize winners, Tone Revival, received $500, three hours studio time at Green Team Media, and gift certificates from George’s Music. Second prize winners, GFM, received $250, and third prize winners, Limitless, received $150.

Shawn Pfaffman, Owner/ Director of First Coast School of Music, sent us the following email after the event: “Thank you all again for an incredible event.  Everything was so well planned and executed.  I was very impressed.  I have judged many Battle of the Bands, including colleges and yours was by far the most professional that I have experienced in the past 20 years.”

Many thanks to Laura Minor, YS Librarian III, for the article and Cranston Burney who took these pictures.  

Main's 10th Anniversary Photo Contest & A Kiosk Full of Kudos

 
Main Library Manager Lynne Baldwin designed this beautiful cake for the photo contest, which Marie Myers and Marsha Collins organized. Library Associate Myers said, "We invited our customers to participate in a photo contest featuring the Main Library. Children 3 - 12, teens, and adults submitted a total of 47 photographs. The contest was in conjunction with Main's 10th anniversary and culminated November 4, 2015 during Art Walk. A photo contest reception was held in The Lounge at Main where Director Barbara Gubbin presided and awarded several prizes. The photographs will be on display on the 3rd floor until November 30, 2015."

              One of the winner's photos -- an entrance door at the Main Library.

Mandarin Branch's PT Library Clerk Jessica Jones and Library Clerk Sara Peretzman created this 10th Anniversary display seen at left, using the Reading Owl symbol as the focal point for customer comments that were made at the grand opening of the Main Library, November 12, 2005. Sara and Robert Moseley assembled this eye catcher on the ground floor.

A JOB WELL DONE BY ALL WHO PARTICIPATED IN MAIN'S 10th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION!

Willowbranch Reopens For A Happy Crowd, 11/14/15

After being closed for over a year for much needed, many faceted renovation, Willowbranch Library reopened Saturday, November 14, 2015, to exuberant customers waiting to revisit a favorite hub. Boys and girls quickly found their points of interest, whether it was a book, face painting, or hobnobbing with  Board Trustee Sybil Ansbacher (first pic below).   

Region Manager Marshelle Berry welcomed everyone and introduced local author and historian, Wayne Wood. He told how the land where WB is was formerly a plantation and City Council overruled a mayor to purchase the property.  Much later, the oldest still-open branch in the system, the Mediterranean Revival-style library, opened November 17, 1930.

Council Member Jim Love read a Resolution from City Council; Director Barbara Gubbin spoke and told the crowd of about 300 that the father of a former Library Board member, Meridith Tousey, had done the building's stonework.  Board Trustee Sybil Ansbacher and Freinds of WB President Roxanne Henkle also welcomed everyone.

To view the opening ceremony, you can view three separate videos of the event on JPL's You Tube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYlvFMy-PMs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqLhjKmJ83A&feature=youtu.be

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bECWmxPt70s&feature=youtu.be

Thanks to the senior administrative team and other employees who helped make this a memorable time for all the customers.

JPL appreciates Roxanne Henkle and the Friends of Willowbranch for planning this very successful event.

Main Library's 10th Anniversary A Big Hit

November 7, 2015, the Main Library celebrated its 10th anniversary with 3724 customers enjoying the Navy honor guard who opened the official ceremony with the Pledge of  Allegiance, the fantastic Navy musical quintet, a dance group, the Orange Park/Jacksonville English Country Dance Group performing 16th and 17th century dances to the delight of young and old alike.  Customers and employees consumed the huge anniversary cake (to the last crumb) and refreshments and children, teens, and adults enjoyed the many programs and displays.

A Resolution recognizing Main's 10th anniversary was delivered by one of the Mayor's staff and Council Member John Crescimbeni (above) read the Resolution from City Council and presented it to Board Chair Erin Skinner and Library Director Barbara Gubbin and made a congratulatory speech, as did Chair Skinner and Director Gubbin. Joy Korman, who was Library Board Chair when the Main Library first opened was there, spoke briefly and was happy she could return for this occasion.  

Many JPL employees volunteered and contributed greatly to this smooth sailing event.  Pictured below are Deputy Director Jennifer Giltrop and Eric Soriano flying high with the owl. 

Michael Sullivan, Main/Urban Region Supervisor did the same:

To say a good time was had by all would be an understatement.

Congrats to DU For 30 Years Of Service

Kristi Dorney, Highlands Branch Manager, recaps DU's big day, "Highlands Regional Library celebrated 30 years of service, October 24, with the theme 'Preserving Our Past, Forward to the Future'. Guests were greeted at the front door by friendly scarecrows who complemented the library's fall decorations.The celebration included a ribbon cutting for DU's new E-classroom, face painting, clowns, balloon twisting, crafts, and door prizes. Everyone enjoyed delicious sweets (including the 30th anniversary cake) and drinks served with a background of 1980's music. 

L/R are Board Trustee Mario Payne, CM Katrina Brown, Board Chair Erin Skinner, Director Barbara Gubbin, and DU Branch Manager Kristi Dorney are pictured at the E-classroom ribbon cutting. Region Manager Jane Harris and Executive Assistant Andrew Herron also attended,. 

"Councilwoman Katrina Brown presented the branch with a resolution of service from the City Council. After remarks from Board Chair Erin Skinner, she and CM Brown cut the ribbon for the E-classroom. 

"I wish to thank my staff at the Highlands Branch Library for the success of the 30^th Anniversary event. Everyone pitched in to help in some way. I wish to particularly thank Mia Brack for assisting the custodian in cleaning up the huge mess our dumpster diver made just hours before the celebration. The event would not have been so successful but for the incredible vision and hard work of Felecia Battle and her team. Felecia created the theme and vision for the day and Farryn James and Barbara “Bunny” Fritz helped her to realize it. I am so fortunate to have had such a great team for the anniversary. Thank all of you so much."

Thanks to  Deputy Director Jennifer Giltrop for the pics.

EB Celebrates 10th Anniversary of Jumpstart

Sharon Whitt, Library Associate Lead at Brown Eastside, sent this recap of a milestone, "October 22, 2015, EB participated in the 10^th anniversary of Jumpstart’s Read for the Record global campaign to generate public support for high-quality early learning and encouraged 32 patrons (accounting for 13% of visitors to EB that day) to read Not Norman: A Goldfish Story. The readers were able to post a signed picture of Norman the goldfish on the promotional poster after reading. 

Beautiful West Regional Library Celebrates 10th Anniversary

WST's Manager Kathy Tekin recounts their big day, "A fun time was had by all who attended the West Regional Library’s 10^th anniversary party, August 29, 2015.  Despite a bad rainstorm, we were honored with 200+ guests and we commenced with the reading of an official proclamation by the Jacksonville City Council recognizing West Regional’s 10th anniversary. Library Director Barbara Gubbin welcomed everyone and recognized Melodie Bishop, architect for West Regional, and her husband, former Council member Bill Bishop. Representatives of the Maxville Friends of the Library and Friends of JPL were also there.

"Festivities included storytelling by Northside Storytellers, music with Al Poindexter and adult crafts by Elise Fare.  The children were encouraged to participate in craft activities relating to the St. Johns River and pretend fishing in the river to win prizes.  Refreshments of cake, chocolate dipped strawberries, popcorn, and punch were served by our local Girl Scout Troop 607. 

"Party attendees were afforded the opportunity to meet City Councilman Doyle Carter and Board of Library Trustees Vice Chair Guy Anderson (pic at top), who addressed the gathering.  Guests also had an opportunity to ask questions and learn from our community partners, Duval County Cooperative Extension Office, AquaJax, and our own Talking Books and Special Needs Librarian II, Chris Easton (pic below)."

Maxville Branch Celebrates Ten Years

Director Barbara Gubbin welcomed 125 guests to Maxville Branch Library’s 10^th Anniversary celebration, July 18, 2015.  An official proclamation by the Jacksonville City Council was read recognizing Maxville’s anniversary. 

Festivities included face painting by Elizabeth McConney, a puppet show by Eve Harm, adult crafts by Elise Fare, a visit from the Jacksonville Fire Department, and balloon animals from Balloons R 4 Twisting.  All children in attendance received a new book, and refreshments were served.

Guests had the opportunity to meet City Councilman Doyle Carter, Friends of the Maxville Branch Library President Kim North, and Board of Library Trustees Vice Chair, Guy Anderson.  (Thanks to Mia Brack, West Region Youth Services Librarian III, for the blurb and pictures.)

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.

Argyle's 10th Anniversary Celebration: March 28

Libraries lovers will celebrate 10 years of Argyle Branch serving their community on Saturday, March 28, 2015.  From  3-5 pm,  attendees will be treated to a violin concert and door prizes, and kids can enjoy a puppet show and crafts. Everyone can meet community groups and Council Member Jim Love while enjoying refreshments donated by local businesses.

George E. Miller, Florida's featured artist for Black History Month, who displayed his work at the governor's mansion after being selected by Gov.and Mrs.Scott, will display some of his art.

Argyle Branch Library is small (15,000 s.f.)  but mighty in service and popularity in the Argyle area.  Director Barbara Gubbin and Argyle Branch Manager Janet Ducat welcome you to join the festivities next Saturday and enjoy a beautiful branch with special employees.

Here's a drum roll for Part-time Clerk Laura Norman, who did a good job getting Publix to donate a cake and lemonaide (thanks to Peterbrook) for the celebration.

UPK's 10th Anniversary - A Community Event

UPK Manager Theresa Rooney recovered from University Park Branch's 10^th Anniversary Celebration and reports on this successful event, October 4., "We wanted to celebrate not only our 10 years of community service but invite the organizations – some of which are our community partners -- that serve many of our Arlington customers, so we developed the idea of a Community Open House for our 10^th anniversary program. It proved to be useful to the community, as well the community organizations themselves, gathering as many of the organizations as possible in the same room and encouraging them to network, learn about what other organizations were doing and developing connections among themselves while also doing outreach with the public. Ten organizations staffed outreach tables: Arlington Community Services, Arlington Family Resource Center, CareerSource, Arlington Senior Center, Friends of the JPL, Greater Arlington/Beaches CPAC, Learn to Read, Old Arlington, Inc., Tree Hill Nature Center and U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services. Katie Devanny opened the CAL classroom and E-Specialists Randy Mapanoo and Luis Terron manned a table and conducted demonstration classes in the computer classroom.
 
Council President Clay Yarborough, Councilmen Bill Bishop and John Crescimbeni and BOLT member Dr. Brenda Simmons-Hutchins spoke to over 300 attendees at the short noon program, moderated by Director Barbara Gubbin, and 222 participated in door prize drawings. Forty-five children participated in the craft project, a refrigerator magnet covered in tin foil and decorated, which was facilitated by Children’s Librarian Mary Calcagni.

We discovered during our event planning that tin is a pliable material and the traditional symbol for a 10^th anniversary, and tin symbolizes the ability to weather life’s ups and downs and to bend but not be broken -- skills at which JPL staff excel.

 

The fun part of getting ready.

 

Visitors consumed 20 dozen donuts from The Donut Shoppe and gallons of coffee and apple cider. Library Associate Mina Figuerrez, assisted by PT Library Clerk Zavonna Robinson and volunteers Angel de la Torre, Stephen Gonzalez and Josh Schuz, did an awesome job of decorating the Community Room and the entire lobby. Library Clerk Roz Smalls was our Mistress of Ceremonies/Announcer and kept the event moving smoothly and gave away all of the door prizes with style. Leona Cain, David Humphries, Midge Roton, Sandra Smith and Tony Williams were great team players who helped the day go smoothly.  Gretchen Mitchell and Lynn Jacobson were a great help during the planning stages, getting prizes donated from our contractors and suppliers, including a pair of Jaguar tickets from TC Delivers and a beautiful fall-themed gift basket from Midwest Tapes.  Margaret Fishback provided beautiful banners, posters, flyers and special coloring pages for the kids. Marsha Blasco and Kathy Lussier were great partners during the planning stages and beyond. Bob Silkett and Julie McNeil were very supportive in helping us to keep the branch running during the day. The whole event, from the earliest planning stages to event cleanup, personified JPL teamwork at its finest and would not have been so successful without the contributions of everyone.               THANKS EVERYONE!

No library celebration is complete without a book and Theresa's granddaughter, Rivers, two years old and Emily Matchett's daughter, took a book break.

You can view some of the photographs taken by Theresa’s daughter, Emily Matchett, at: 

https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B3B-CPBprCBFSFZpUlhPcmpMUUk&usp=sharing

PCR's 10th Anniversary Celebration

PCR's 10^th Anniversary Celebration was  held October 9, 2014, and Branch Manager Sandra Ostroski gives this report of the successful event:

"Library Board of Trustees Vice Chair Guy Anderson (2nd from left above) opened the program.  Director Barbara Gubbin followed with a few remarks highlighting Pablo Creek’s accomplishments during the last decade.   State Senator Aaron Bean (left)  echoed her remarks and spoke about the importance of libraries in our communities.

"City Councilman At-Large, District 3, Stephen Joost, (far right) then presented Director Gubbin with a City Council Resolution commending and congratulating the Pablo Creek Library on the occasion of its 10^th anniversary.  Mr. Anderson followed with an introduction of Jimmy Orth, Executive Director of the Riverkeeper organization, who spoke about the  future of the St. John’s River and how one could be a good steward of its resources. The program concluded with several drawings for gifts donated to the library and refreshments."

UPK's 10th Anniversary Party - Come One, Come All!

University Park Branch Library Manager Theresa Rooney and staff offer this personal welcome to all JPL employees, friends and families to attend UPK's 10th anniversary celebration.  UPK is located at 3435 University Boulevard (about eight blocks north of JU, on the right).  :

"The staff of the University Park Branch Library would like to invite all  JPL staff to visit and help celebrate our 10^th Anniversary on Saturday, October 4^th. We are having a Community Open House from 11-2 with free coffee and donuts from the Donut Shoppe (an Arlington institution since 1962 and winner of the “Best Donut in Jacksonville” poll by The Florida Times-Union in 2012). We expect the branch to be a beehive of activity with approximately 14 community organizations doing outreach (see flyer for participating organizations) and our CAL and computer classrooms open for demonstrations. Tree Hill is bringing a snake and JFRD will have a fire truck in the parking lot outside the branch."

"Our program with elected officials will begin at noon with a welcome by Brenda Simmons-Hutchins, Library Board Chair, and remarks by Director Barbara Gubbin, Councilman Bill Bishop and Councilman John Crescimbeni, the presentation of a City Council Resolution to the branch and a Florida Library Award presentation to Senator Audrey Gibson. We will have some great door prizes, including gift certificates from the Donut Shoppe and area restaurants, donations from several of our vendors and two Jaguar tickets. Winners must be present to win."