Wolf Teacher Presentation April 24, 2008

Tompkins County Public Library Media Release
Date: April 24, 2008
Contact: Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248

LIBRARY TO HOST PRESENTATION ON WOLVES

ITHACA—The Tompkins County Public Library will host “Wolf Teacher”, a DVD presentation and discussion by Pamela Brown, Thursday, April 24, 2008 at 6:00 PM in the Thaler/Howell Programming Room.

Brown, an Upstate New York native, has dedicated nearly three decades to Wolf Teacher’s mission of enhancing wild wolf survival through education. She shares her program at schools, libraries and festivals throughout the country, and coordinates the annual Mission Wolf educational tour of the Northeast each fall.

This program is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248.

Library Will Open at Noon on Tuesday, April 29

LIBRARY TO OPEN AT NOON ON TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 2008

ITHACA—Due to construction related to the Cayuga Green Project, the Tompkins County Public Library will not open until noon on Tuesday, April 29.

The delayed opening is a result of a planned, short-term power outage, which will allow NYSEG to provide energy service to the building being constructed to the east of the Library.

During the power outage, the Library’s telephone system will be out of service. Should the outage be extended, the Library will provide updated information to local radio stations.

For more information, contact Assistant Library Director Rosie Rice at (607) 272-4557 extension 233.

Award-Winning Author Offers Earth Day Inspiration!

Award-winning author Lee Welles will offer advice on inspiring the next generations through the power of story at the Tompkins County Public Library, Tuesday, April 22 at 6:30 PM in the Library’s Thaler-Howell Programming Room.

Welles, a writer for the Elmira Star Gazette and a blogger for Green Option Media, is the author of the critically-acclaimed series, Gaia Girls. During her visit to the Library, she will share her own personal stories of inspiration for the series and provide fun take-home materials. She will also read an excerpt from the yet-to-be-released third book in her series about young eco-heroes, Gaia Girls Air Apparent.

Copies of Welles books will be available for purchase during the program and Welles will sign copies following the discussion.

For more information about the series or to learn more about Welles, visit http://www.gaiagirls.com/.

This Library program is free and open to the public and has been made possible by the Tompkins County Public Library Foundation through a grant from the Brooks Family Foundation.

Contact for this program is Adelle Leise (607) 272-4557 Ext. 276 or 277.

Library to Host Poet Laureates

Tompkins County Public Library Media Release
Date: April 7, 2008
Contact: Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248


LIBRARY TO HOST POET LAUREATES

ITHACA—Join the Tompkins County Public Library as we celebrate National Poetry Month with a reading by County Poet Laureates past and present Michelle Courtney Berry and Paul Hamill, Thursday, April 17, 2008 at 6:30 PM in the Ezra Cornell Reading Room.

Hamill, director of academic funding and sponsored programs at Ithaca College, was named Tompkins County Poet Laureate in 2007. His published works include long poems, meditations, monologues, multi-page narratives, three chapbooks: Sainte Ariadne, Last Things and Night and Winter Ming and a collection entitled The Year of Blue Snow.

Hamill served as the first board chair of the Community Arts Partnership and is a founding board member of the Ithaca City of Asylum.

Berry served as Tompkins County Poet Laureate from 2004 through 2006. She is a nationally-recognized speaker. She has opened with original poetry and song for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Maya Angelou, Howard Zinn, Nikki Giovanni and Gayle Danley. Her sold-out, one-woman shows at the Kitchen Theatre, The Month of Not Speaking (2003) and Labor (2006)—explore the overlapping themes of identity, work, silence, oppression and love. Over the past decade, she has been a featured performer at venues throughout the nation. She owns two businesses Reiki Goddess (www.reikigoddess.org) and Courtney Consulting.

This Library program is free and open to the public and will be held in the Ezra Cornell Reading Room.

For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248.
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ACCLAIMED STORYTELLER TO PERFORM AT LIBRARY

Much-loved storyteller and puppeteer Melanie Zimmer will perform “Favorite Folk Tales From Around the World” Wednesday, April 16th from 2:00 to 3:00 PM in the Borg Warner Community Meeting Room of the Tompkins County Public Library.

Zimmer is the founder of Dancing Bear Puppet Theatre, an itinerant theatre based in Central New York. She travels to schools, libraries and festivals throughout the Northeast to share her love of and talent for storytelling and puppetry.

Her “Favorite Folk Tales . . .” program includes an assortment of classic folk tales from around the world sure to bring a smile to children of all ages!

This program is free and open to the public and is made possible by the Tompkins County Public Library Foundation through a grant from the Brooks Family Foundation.

Contact: Youth Services Department at (607) 272-4557 Ext 275 or 276

Library to Host Author Alex Sanchez

The Tompkins County Public Library will host nationally-recognized author Alex Sanchez Monday, April, 14, 2008 at 7:00 PM in the Ezra Cornell Reading Room.

Sanchez writes novels about love and friendship for teens and adults, including The God Box and the popular Rainbow Trilogy. His novel Rainbow Boys was selected as an American Library Association “Best Book for Young Adults” in 2002, and he was a finalist for the prestigious Lambda Literary Award.

Books will be available for purchase at the event, and Sanchez will be signing copies following his presentation.

This program is sponsored by the Ithaca LGBT Task Force, Ithaca College’s Center for LGBT Education, Outreach and Services, Youth Guardian Services and the Tompkins County Public Library.

For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248.

Learn, Love, and Laugh with the Library’s Mother–Daughter Book Club

The Tompkins County Public Library invites all girls ages ten through 13 and the special women in their lives to join the Library’s Mother-Daughter Book Club.

In addition to reading and discussing wonderful books each month, participants will have the benefit of being led by acclaimed children’s author Emily Rhoads Johnson. Roads Johnson is the author of Spring and the Shadow Man, A House Full of Strangers and Write Me If You Dare.

“What a bonus to have an author of children’s literature offer insight into the selected novels,” Adelle Leise, youth services librarian, said.

The Mother-Daughter Book Club provides a wonderful opportunity for participants to learn about themselves and others by discussing literature. There is no right or wrong answers during Club meetings, simply open discussions where all input is valued.

The group will meet once a month for seven months in the Thaler/Howell Room. The final meeting will be held on April 13, 2008 from 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM.

The title to be discussed for April is Our Only May Amelia, by Jennifer L. Holm. A complete list of the titles selected for the group can be found online at: www.tcpl.org/youth/programs/motherdaughter.html.

Registration for the Club is appreciated but not required. For more information, contact Adelle Leise at (607) 272-4557 extension 277.

The Mother-Daughter Book Club is made possible by the Tompkins County Public Library Foundation through a grant from the J.M. McDonald Foundation.

LIBRARY TO HOST LECTURE ON STRUGGLE FOR ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

Why do the poor and people of color disproportionately face environmental harm? This question will be examined Saturday, April 12, 2008 at 1:00 PM as the Tompkins County Public Library presents: The Struggle for Environmental Justice: Cases from NYC and Beyond, a lecture by Sherrie Baver.

Baver, a professor of Political Science and Latin American Studies at City College and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, will discuss the impact of race and class on environmental challenges and examine the history of the Environmental Justice Movement, including the special contributions of women and the Latino community.

This lecture is free, and it is open to the public. It will take place in the Library’s Borg Warner Community Meeting Room.

Contact: Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248

Streetscapes Exhibit Opening at Tompkins County Public Library

ITHACA-- Streetscapes, an art exhibit curated by British graffiti artist Jay Potter, will open April 5 at the Tompkins County Public Library. An Opening Reception for the exhibit will be held Thursday, April 10 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM.

Streetscapes will feature a collection of work which draws on creativity and inspiration from our urban surroundings. Using a mixture of diverse media, artists will explore the influence of the urban environment through color, energy, movement and personal experience culminating in sincere straight-from-the-gut expression. Streetscapes is an inherent appreciation of urban culture, in all its dangerous, poetic, authentic - and sometimes rebellious - glory.

Featured artists include blacksmith Durand Van Doren; painter, designer Kevin Dossinger; mixed-media artist Tara Finlay; cartoonist Jim Garmhausen; designer, goldsmith and lecturer Rebecca Hannon; designer and letter press printer Joe Lamarre; and graffiti artist and designer Jay Potter.

The reception is free and open to the public, and will include a power-point presentation of images too large to display inside the library. The exhibit will be on display from April through May 30, 2008.

The exhibit is made possible in part by the Tompkins County Public Library Foundation through a grant from the Community Arts Partnership.

For more information contact: Sally Grubb at sgrubb@tcpl.org or call 272-4557 ext 232

MATH IS NOT THE ENEMY: Learn how to Help the Children in Your Life Learn Math with Two Free Workshops at the Library

Exciting and informative workshops plus your attendance equals math success for your children and students.

The Tompkins County Public Library and Dani Novak, director of Ithaca College’s Math Learning Center, will present two workshops designed to alleviate the fears associated with and explore creative, fun ways to empower children to learn math.

Dr. Novak’s first workshop will be held on Sunday, April 6 from 1:00 to 2:30 PM. This workshop is best suited for parents and teachers of kindergarten through fifth-graders. It will focus on ways to make math fun by relating it to the child’s world.

Volunteers will be available to help supervise children while parents attend the workshop.

The second workshop will be held from 1:00 to 2:30 PM on April 20th. This workshop is specially-designed with the older student in mind. Parents and teachers of middle and high school students will learn about resources available to help kids who dislike math or get frustrated and discouraged by the subject. Novak will offer tools for combating these frustrations through learning and exploring. Students are also welcome to attend.

These programs are free and open to the public and will be held in the Library’s Thaler-Howell Programming Room. Reservations are appreciated but not required.

For more information contact the Youth Services department at (607) 272-4557 extension 275.

Art, Science and You: A Program for Families at the Tompkins County Public Library

ITHACA—Be a part of art at the Tompkins County Public Library.

Children ages 7 through 13 are invited to help local artist Josh Sperling complete the sculpture he has on exhibit at the Library.

Sperling has created a large geodesic structure, a truncated icosahedron, based on the work of Buckminster Fuller, and he invites area families to help assemble the geodesic, or soccer-ball-shaped, models which will fill the sculpture.

During this April 5 program, families will learn about the science behind the sculpture, an infinitely complex object which relates to unspecified scales of magnification, and they will be a part of the Library’s newest art exhibit.

This program is being co-sponsored by Cornell’s Center for Materials Research. It is free and open to the public, and it will be held in the Library’s Borg Warner Community Meeting Room beginning at 2:00 PM.

For more information, please contact Adelle Leise (607) 272-4557 Ext. 276 0r 277

Skorton Program Available for Web Viewing

The Tompkins County Public Library has announced its March 9, 2008 program, Books in Our Lives, featuring Cornell President David Skorton and Dr.Robin Davisson is now available for online viewing.

If you missed this inspiring program, which featured Drs. Skorton and Davisson sharing the books which have touched their lives, or if you attended but would like to hear the program again, logon to the CornellCast website at http://www.cornell.edu/video/.

For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler at (607) 272-4557 extension 248.