Library News

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June 2008 – Read to Mr. Gunny at the Library
Mr. Gunny, a certified Therapy Dog with Therapy Dogs International, Inc. "Tail Wagging Tutors" program, has announced his Summer Schedule at the Mariposa County Library. Keep up your reading skills this summer by reading to Mr. Gunny from 10:30 am to 11:30 am on the following Fridays: June 20, July 11, July 18, and August 1. Mr. Gunny, a five-year-old Australian Shepherd, will be waiting for you in the Children’s Room with his handler, Marilyn Rudzik, a retired Special Education Teacher. As a "Tail Wagging Tutor" Mr. Gunny also works at the Merced County Library, tutored in Room 7 at MES last semester, and also makes visits to J.C. Fremont Hospital once a month. Although Australian Shepherds traditionally do not have tails, you will find Mr. Gunny wagging his whole body in anticipation of hearing a good story from his readers.

April 2008 – Celebrating National Poetry Month Poets, artists, writers, photographers and songwriters of all ages are invited to submit their work for display at the Mariposa County Library during the month of April, which has been designated National Poetry Month. The work will later be bound into a 2008 anthology, and each contributor will receive a copy. This year, a contest is also being held to select a title and cover artwork for the anthology. The winners will each be awarded a prize of a $25 gift certificate to Windows on the World Book Store in Mariposa. The deadline to submit contributions to the anthology and the cover contest is Wednesday, April 30 at 5 p.m. Winners will be announced on May 5. Content must be original and suitable for all age levels to be considered. Written work, including short stories, memoirs, poems and songs, should be limited to 500 words and preferably submitted either by email or on floppy disk or CD, although neatly handwritten material will also be accepted. Scanned artwork is preferred; however, original pieces up to 11" x 17" will be accepted, as well as photographs of original 3-dimensional art. For more information or to submit contributions, contact Katie Hertfelder at katie.hertfelder@sjvls.org or 209-966-2140.

January 2008 – Library Extends Hours
The Mariposa County Library, main branch, is extending its hours. The new schedule will start January 22, 2008. New hours:

Monday	8:30 a.m.	–  4:00 p.m.
Tuesday	8:30 a.m.	–  6:00 p.m.
Wednesday	8:30 a.m.	–  6:00 p.m.
Thursday	8:30 a.m.	–  6:00 p.m.
Friday	8:30 a.m.	–  6:00 p.m.
Saturday	8:30 a.m.	–  4:00 p.m.
Sunday	Closed

December 2007 – Search for Old Photos
The county library staff is searching for old photos of former library buildings. If anyone has any pictures of any of the buildings that were used as a library within the county, we would appreciate a copy. If possible, please include the date and location of the building. Our goal is to create a timeline mural of the history of the library. Any and all donations are greatly appreciated. If you wish, the photos can be mailed to Mariposa County Library; PO Box 106; Mariposa, CA 95338; Attention: Lea Ann Nichols.

April 2007 – Poetry Month at the Library!
Mariposa Teens: Please submit your original poetry for display at the Mariposa County Library during the month of April. All entries will be included in the 2007 issue of the book Mariposa Teen Express and posted on our blog The Open Page. Submit your poems in person or by email to: Katie.Hertfelder@sjvls.org. All participants will receive a copy of the book. The first 10 entries will receive a gift certificate! Poems should be suitable for readers of all ages, please.

February 2007 – Library REOpens on Saturdays
The main Mariposa County Library is once again open on Saturdays.

October 2006 – Library Closed on Saturdays
Beginning Monday October 2, the Mariposa County Main Library will be closed on Saturdays to help reduce expenditures. Unfortunately, Mariposa County must eliminate 1 million dollars from its current budget. All departments must use their 2005-2006 budgets as a baseline and cut 2%. For the library that means a decrease to the library budget by $7,625. The library only has three line items to help reduce this cost: Personnel-Extra Help; books and audio visuals; and, our contract with the San Joaquin Valley Library System (SJVLS). The three Friends of the Library groups have agreed to help make up the difference of $4,350 for the SJVLS contract and the library will be eliminating Saturday hours to save $3,275. Saturday is our least productive day for check-outs and check-ins. Please stop by the library to see the posted data. The County Librarian would like to stress that when the County’s revenues are normalized the library will again be open on Saturdays. Libraries are part of the American dream. They are a place for education and self-help. And because they offer free access to all, they bring opportunity to all. Library patrons and staff are viewing this closure as a temporary solution.

June 2006 – Read, Baby, Read: Books for Babies
The Mariposa County Library is pleased to announce Books for Babies. The library has a gift for every newborn resident of Mariposa. New babies will be given a gift bag containing: a bib, the booklet Babies Love Books, a brochure with reading tips, a sturdy board book, a bookmark, family reading tips from the Barbara Bush Foundation, the booklet Raising a Reader, Raising a Writer and an application for baby’s first library card! It is never too early to read to your baby and it is never too early to get your baby a library card. The library has the tools parents need to help their newborns develop language and literacy skills. Books for Babies is being sponsored by the Mariposa County Friends of the Library. For more information please contact Janet Chase-Williams at 209-966-2140.

April 2006 – April is National Poetry Month
Mariposa teens age 12-19: Please submit your original poetry for display at the Mariposa County Library during the month of April. All entries will be included in the 2006 issue of Mariposa Teen Express and posted on our new blog The Open Page. All participants will receive a copy of the book Mariposa Teen Express, a collection of original poetry by local teens to celebrate poetry month each April. The first 10 entries will receive a gift certificate! Poems should be suitable for readers of all ages, please.

August 2005 – Teen blog
Local teens have a blog on the Web. The Open Page is written and maintained by young adults, and published by the Mariposa County Library. Local teens submit their own articles, poetry, book & movie reviews, photo essays, jokes and other stuff. And teens can email in their submissions. Check out the blog to find out what's going on at the library for young adults and to read some great original material.

August 2004 – Online Business Directory
The Mariposa County Library has added yet another service for library cardholders. Reference USA, a nationwide business and residential directory, is a powerful informational database. This Internet-based reference service is an index of public, private, small, medium, and large companies providing addresses, sales information, and executive's names for over 13 million U.S. and Canadian businesses. The database is updated monthly, and is searchable by state, city, zip code, SIC code, and yellow page headings. Searches can be customized by company size, sales volume, geographic location, industry, etc. – making it easy for business owners to get information about potential new customers. Many of the listings are for small businesses. Information on more than 12 million U.S. businesses; 102 million U.S. residents; 683,000 U.S. health care providers; 1 million Canadian businesses; and 11 million Canadian residents is currently contained in ReferenceUSA.

August 2004 – ebooks collection available
The Mariposa County Library and public libraries in the Central and South San Joaquin Valley are pleased to announce the availability of electronic books, or eBooks, through a cooperative purchase of the San Joaquin Valley Library System (SJVLS). Adding to a growing array of services that library cardholders can access from their home computers, the eBooks collection currently offers a selection of more than 700 books to be read online, or downloaded and read offline on personal computers or PDAs running the free Adobe Reader software. Titles in the collection include a wide variety of children's and adult fiction and nonfiction works. Among the nonfiction topics are cookbooks, computer repair and programming, do-it-yourself legal guides, personal self-improvement, health and fitness, sports, travel, and more. Library users can browse the available titles from any computer, but must register for a free eBook account at an SJVLS library before books can be checked out or downloaded at home.

January 2004 – Library Hours and days change
The Mariposa County Library is always trying to improve service to its library patrons. The Mariposa County Main Library will change the hours and days of operation for a six (6) month trial period beginning January 5, 2004 through July 3, 2004. Tuesday through Friday hours remain the same, Saturday hours change, and Monday hours are added. Changes are as follows:

FROM:
Tuesday 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Friday 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

TO:
Monday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Tuesday 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Thursday 9:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
Friday 9:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Before the trial period ends a survey will be given to library patrons to see if the new hours and days conform to their needs. Additionally, usage statistics will be gathered to see if Monday is a better day for library services to be provided. This will then be reported back to the Board of Supervisors. Additional benefits include better use of staff time, as well as salary savings because Extra Help hours would not need to be used as heavily for Saturdays. And patrons have requested that we be open on Mondays. If you have questions or concerns please contact Jacque Meriam at 966-2140.

November 2003 – New Library Circulation System
The Mariposa County Library, in conjunction with other member libraries of the San Joaquin Valley Library System, will be installing a new automated circulation system the week of November 10, 2003. During the transition there will be some disruption of library service, with the circulation system being limited November 10-13. All libraries will be closed Tuesday, November 11 for Veterans Day. The Mariposa Main Library will also be closed Friday and Saturday, November 14 and 15 in order to bring the new circulation system online and check in all items and return them to the shelves. Library staff will endeavor to minimize any inconvenience this transition may present, but customers should be aware that there will be some limitations on service. During the transition the library will only be able to check items out. Patrons must have their library cards to check out materials, no other form of ID is required. Also, there is a 5 item limit, and no renewals or new hold requests are permitted during this period of transition. The library will continue to accept library card applications during the downtime. However, no new or replacement library cards can actually be issued during this time. The automated system provides many functions to library staff and customers, including the circulation of library materials, the registration of library patrons, the acquisition and cataloging of library materials, and the online catalog. Through the automated system, library customers have open access to the facilities of all nine member libraries of the San Joaquin Valley Library System. The current automated system, Dynix of Provo, Utah, has served the San Joaquin Valley Library system for thirteen years but is based on outdated technology. This new system, Horizon, developed by the same company, will provide greater flexibility to meet our expanding needs. The Mariposa County Library System apologizes for any inconvenience to its patrons.

July 2003 – Homebound delivery program
The Mariposa County Library's new Homebound Delivery Program brings library materials to homebound residents of Mariposa County each month. Trained volunteers visit homebound residents to deliver or pick up library materials. Library staff selects books and other materials according to the preferences of the homebound library users. If you're a homebound resident interested in the program, or if you'd like to be a program volunteer, read more about Homebound Delivery.

June 2003 – TEENS – Read for the Rewards
New in 2003 — a Summer Reading Program for teens! Sign up today if you are age 13-18. The program runs from June 18 to August 20 at the Mariposa County Library. Prizes include a delicious treat for every 300 pages you read; a paperback book for reaching a total of 1000 pages; and a movie pass for reaching a total of 2000 pages. And the Grand Prize is a portable CD player! To enter the Grand Prize drawing, fill in a Book Review form for each book you read. The Grand Prize drawing and Pizza Party will be held on Wednesday, August 20 from 3:00-5:00 p.m. at the Mariposa County Library, main branch. Hope to see you there!

October 2002 – New Fee Schedule
The Mariposa County Library System updated the fee schedule effective October 1, 2002. The last time a fee or fine schedule was implemented was September 1996. Fees and other charges are penalties for not returning borrowed items on time, and for damaged or lost items. Full list of fees and charges. The new fee schedule eliminates hold fees on items borrowed from within the San Joaquin Valley Library System. However, the interlibrary loan fee of $1.25 per item borrowed from outside the San Joaquin Valley Library System remains the same. The library system offers a variety of services without charge, but without fee-based services the library does not have the ability to charge for damaged or lost items. Everyone can avoid charges by returning items undamaged and on time. Items can generally be renewed without charge before they become overdue. The new fees for books, magazines, audiocassettes, and CDs rise to 25¢ per overdue day, to a maximum of $4.00 per item. Fees for new books and videos are 50¢ per overdue day, to a maximum of $5.00 per item.

October 2001 – New Library Hours
On October 29, 2001 the Mariposa County Library changed its hours of operation as follows: On Tuesday through Friday, the library opens at 9:30 a.m. (thirty minutes earlier). On Tuesday and Thursday, the library closes at 6:00 p.m. (one hour earlier). The total number of hours the library is open remains the same. These new hours allow the library to be used more efficiently since circulation statistics show that there is little activity after 6:00 p.m. Children's Story Time remains the same, Wednesday mornings at 10:00 a.m. We hope the benefits of these changes outweigh any inconvenience to library users. Full schedule of hours

October 2001 – Million Penny Project Benefits Library
Funds from the Million Penny Project are now being used to purchase new books, audios, videos, and magazines for the children and young adult sections of the library. In the spring of 1996 the Mariposa Elementary School Student Council started this project to raise funds for the library, and elementary and middle school students of Mariposa carried it out. By the spring of 1998 a million pennies – $10,000 – had been collected in classroom jars and donation containers located at local businesses. By the spring of 2001 the funds had grown to $13,000. In the fall of 2001 Mariposa Elementary School gave the money to the new library.

June 2001 – Red Cloud Forms New Friends Chapter & Plans Expansion
A new chapter of the Friends of the Library has formed to support the Red Cloud Library, our branch in Greeley Hill. This new group has voted unanimously to support the expansion of the Red Cloud Library from the current 550 square feet to 2,500 square feet. A nearby site has been leased and the group is now planning the move. They have also begun raising funds to construct a new building for the library.

December 2000 – New Library Opens
After about 30 years of fund raising and planning by the Friends of the Library and community leaders, the new Mariposa County Library opened on December 19, 2000. With more than three times the space of the former library, this is the fourth building the main library has occupied in the library's 107-year history.