Imagine - a radio production studio in the heart of a public library. Local citizens using the studio to spread the word about their civic organizations, charities, churches, school events and other community activities. The radio station benefiting from the flow of community members and information that passes through the library each day. More people visiting the library and listening to local radio. A win-win for all.

One might think this dream scenario could only take place in a big city, if at all. In fact, it is about to happen in the town of Hillsboro in the Hillsboro Library, thanks to a collaboration between Pocahontas County Free Libraries and Allegheny Mountain Radio.

It all started more than a year ago, when AMR's Gibbs Kinderman, director of special projects, Cheryl Kinderman, general manager, and Drew Tanner, then-community coordinator, held a public meeting at the Hillsboro Elementary School to solicit help from area residents in raising funds for a transmitter tower for WVMR-FM, 91.9 Radio Hillsboro. The response from the community was enthusiastic: a local committee was formed, funds were raised with concerts, raffles and dances, and late last year Radio Hillsboro went on the air.

During the course of the fundraising, numerous meetings took place at the Hillsboro Library. Librarian Elwood Groves states, "I believe the positive relationships which developed during the fundraising activities provided fertile soil for possible future collaborations to take root." Groves remembers conversations with Tanner about the possibility of locating a small production studio in a library office area. Kinderman took the idea to Library Director Allen Johnson, who endorsed the concept, which was subsequently approved by the PCFL Board of Trustees.

Kinderman explains,"In the fall of 2010, AMR applied to the Snowshoe Foundation for $3,000 to build a minimal level mini-studio (in the Hillsboro Library). The foundation decided to grant $1,500, with the condition that the remaining $1,500 be raised from the community."

Hillsboro community members are again stepping forward to assist in raising the needed funds. The Hillsboro Library Friends plan a Silent Auction at the library on Friday, February 18. Blair Campbell, owner of the Pretty Penny Cafe in Hillsboro, will host an "Open Mic Day" at her restaurant on Sunday, February 27.

"The PCFL library system and AMR are both dedicated to informing and involving the communities they serve. Locating a radio production studio in the Hillsboro Library will help both institutions to better fulfill these goals," Kinderman stated.

Groves added, "What could be more natural or more beneficial than a partnership between the public library and the local community-based radio network, working together to strengthen the community and to provide a reliable source of news and information for the citizens of the area?"

ﾠ

LIBRARY LINES

The Snowshoe Foundation gave us the good news last Tuesday that it was awarding $5,000 for the Linwood Community Library at Snowshoe. Besides granting a much-needed and appreciated $5,000, this award moves both of us forward and together.

Last week's edition of The Pocahontas Times reported on our PCFL's board meeting on the topic of the name of the library nestled in Snowshoe Resort's former Welcome Center. The discussion at the board meeting was positive. All parties want the best for the community. By raising more than $11,000 from local contributions, one of the grant requests was met. The second request, changing the name of the Linwood Community Library, was something that the library party was uncomfortable with so we modified our request to half of the original amount. Certainly, the name is not set in stone, but for now we are happy to be the Linwood Community Library at Snowshoe.

Pocahontas, Randolph and Webster counties are blessed to have the local Snowshoe Foundation. The foundation is still just getting its legs, being now in its seventh year. While the big August raffle event has significantly increased its funding capacity, more worthy organization hands are stretched out to the foundation. The members of The Snowshoe Foundation should be commended for their organization's support of local entities. The foundation's own success will be amplified many fold as it benefits local organizations that bring a higher quality of life to our communities.

For example, for the second year, the Snowshoe Foundation generously awarded $2,500 for the Durbin Library Building project. These funds coupled with other generous contributions and grants will enable groundbreaking this spring. We are looking to the second or third week in May for a weeklong "barn raising" under the direction of Habitat For Humanity. Volunteers who can help a couple of days or all week are welcome. More details forthcoming soon.

I went to the World Vision Storehouse in Philippi recently to certify PCFL for the privilege of accessing their construction materials for the Durbin Library construction. World Vision distributes materials to nonprofits and needy people at very low prices. Since I was in Philippi, I drove out to the nearby People's Chapel and New Vision Community Center to see the solar panels that members are making. I was quite impressed. Ruston Seaman, the founder, showed how solar panels are assembled by volunteers for about one-third the cost of fully-assembled units. The church has 36 of the panels. They are planning to build their own solar hot water heating systems. Currently they heat their several buildings with a furnace burning recycled cooking oil. I left for home dreaming of solar panels on our libraries.

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

Newscaster Tom Brokaw once said, "It's easy to make a buck. It's a lot tougher to make a difference."

I think of this quote often when it comes to the group of volunteers across Pocahontas County that not only love libraries, but love our local libraries enough to give us that most precious commodity: their time. Each of our five branches relies heavily on volunteer help, especially when it comes to keeping the libraries open in the evenings. We all have a group of dedicated folks who, quietly and without fanfare, donate their time in the evenings so that the rest of the communities in the county can have access to the library and its services.
What does evening volunteering entail? Our volunteers can check books out (or back in), operate the copy and fax machines, and keep the building open for evening meetings. At closing time, volunteers are responsible for locking up. It may not sound like much, but every hour of volunteer service makes a huge impact for our communities.
Perhaps you have some other talents that you would like to share; don't hesitate to call and discuss other possibilities with us. We have folks that help cover new books with plastic jackets, or help make sure the shelves are in the correct order. If you would like to do a story hour for children, or a craft class for adults-the possibilities are endless! Contact any one of the people below and discuss your ideas with us.
McClintic Library-Vicky Terry at 304-799-6000
Hillsboro Library-Elwood Groves at 304-653-4936
Green Bank Library-Jane Mospan at 304-456-4507
Durbin Library-Tara Bauserman at 304-456-3142
Linwood Library-Cree Lahti at 304-572-2665
We couldn't accomplish nearly as much as we do without our volunteers' cheerful, unfailing help. You all do make a difference.
"Volunteers don't get paid, not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless." ~ Sherry Anderson.

ﾠ

Writers value libraries. For one thing, writers are voracious readers themselves, a practice invariably developed as children. As every parent who has a book-hungry child knows, libraries provide lots of books that would be unaffordable to buy. Authors have not outgrown their childhood fondness for libraries. Moreover, libraries purchase books, and introduce readers to authors' works. Finally and importantly, writers use libraries for much of the research that goes into their works.

Writers typically avail large city public libraries or university libraries that have the large scale and scope of materials for their research. For example, former U.S. Congressman Ken Hechler does some of his research at the state library in the Culture Center that is across the street from his home. The 96-year old Hechler is currently working on two book projects.

Of course, Pocahontas Libraries has neither the space, budget, nor population-driven demand to develop the capacity for extensive research. Yet, even in our smallness, we offer important research niches. Genealogists frequent our libraries to develop their family histories. Numerous folks appreciate researching Pocahontas County history and especially our primary source materials. Our libraries also have extensive collections on our region's logging and railroad era, our local ecology, small-scale agriculture and on West Virginia and Appalachia.

About two weeks ago, Chris Hedges called my home. I was surprised, to say the least. Hedges is a Pulitzer-Prize winning, former New York Times foreign correspondent who spent two decades in violent maelstroms in the Middle East, Central America, the Balkins and Africa. Hedges has a reputation for ethics, strong controversy and independent thinking.

Hedges, along with an acclaimed illustrator friend, Joe Sacco, is working on a book project on the roots of why some communities go from boom to bust. They had just been in Camden, New Jersey. It had been suggested they go to Welch in McDowell County, West Virginia. Hedges and Sacco were looking for personal interview contacts in that area as well as for materials for their background research. Hedges called me due to recommendations by Charleston clergyman Jim Lewis and West Virginia author Denise Giardina.

To cut to the chase, Hedges and Sacco are now utilizing about a dozen books and audiovisual materials selected from PCFL's extensive West Virginia/Appalachia Collection as they interview in McDowell County. On Saturday, I had the privilege of listening in on conversations while Hedges, Sacco, Giardina, and others discussed their writing styles, their research approaches, their challenges working with market-driven publishers, as well as background on West Virginia. I smiled to myself as I thought, "Pocahontas Libraries has the capability to provide valuable resources to these top-flight, renowned authors. Our materials will benefit them as they write their book."

In appreciation, Hedges and Sacco are donating to PCFL a number of their own-authored books. As I stated at the beginning of this article, authors value libraries. Writers who challenge our minds, stretch the horizons of our knowledge and spark our own creativity are grateful. They remember their own lifelong debt to other writers who they continue to encounter in public and school libraries.

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday is trivial if we do not pause to reflect upon the heart and soul of our nation. "Liberty and justice for all" with hand clasped over heart, gazing at our flag can be trite rhetoric if our actions speak contrariwise.

Supporting lifelong learning is an important goal of public libraries, just as equipping and motivating students for lifelong learning should be a goal of school systems. Learning includes acquiring technical skills, having access to resources, expanding creativity, and shaping moral development. Hopefully, we adults are continuing our growth trajectory in all of these categories. MLK Day should focus our attention on our nation's moral development and creative ways to improve. I have written in the past of my own journey from bigotry. In February 1968, I sat in a packed auditorium glowering with disgust while Martin Luther King, Jr., addressed my fellow college students at a required assembly. I was a racist. Two months later King was assassinated.

King was highly controversial in his time. King's strong leadership to break "apartheid-like" inferior conditions for African-Americans landed him in jail. Millions of angry white Americans cursed King. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover launched a vendetta against him. Yet King resolutely refused to use violent rhetoric or action, and taught his followers to respect the intrinsic humanity of those who opposed them. King, a Christian minister, took seriously Jesus' teaching to love and pray for one's enemies.

King wrote, "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that." As I write this column, six people have died in a shooting in Arizona that has left others wounded, including Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Whether associated to this tragedy or not, our nation is torn up by divisive, angry talk radio and mean-spirited blogs. King's attitude stands sharply in contrast.

King had the courage to face unpopular challenges. His strong denouncement of the Vietnam War brought him criticism from many black leaders who felt they would lose ground they had gained. In 1967 King declared, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death." What would King say about our national priorities today as our nation fights two wars, maintains 700 bases in 130 countries, yet slashes domestic programs? At the time of his assassination, King had launched the "Poor People's Campaign" to address systemic injustices that locked certain segments of our fellow citizens in poverty. Jobs with sufficient income and decent affordable housing were the campaign's primary end goals. We might reflect upon this during our present recession.

King said, "The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

One of the great honors and challenges in my own life is knowing men and women who exemplify this truism. A memorial service will be held this Saturday in Beckley to honor the life of Judy Bonds who died January 3. A number of years ago, Bonds' grandson asked why there were dead fish in the creek by her home in Raleigh County. An employee of a Pizza Hut, with only a modest education and little political knowledge, Bonds did not resign herself to apathy and inability in the face of coal industry pollution. During the past decade, Bonds' fierce determination and relentless courage chiseled her into an effective and inspiring community organizer.

Martin Luther King Day can be just another day on the calendar, perhaps a day off from school and work. It can just be a "feel good day" about our progress against racism-after all, we now have an African-American president. Or, this special day can be a day to challenge ourselves to actively confront the moral justice issues of our time, trusting that truth will overcome falsehood, that love will conquer hate, that justice will usher in peace, and that light shall overcome darkness.

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

ﾠ

The New Year brings about all sorts of lists, whether reflections on the past year or resolutions and predictions for the upcoming year. Here are some reflections on Pocahontas Libraries.

Linwood Community Library was launched in April at the former Welcome Center at the base of Snowshoe Mountain Resort. This remarkable project had been conceived the previous July, and went "live" with the hard work of local people, generous donations of money, equipment, books and support and collaborations from entities such as Snowshoe Resort, Snowshoe Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield, the County Commission, and Pocahontas Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Cree Lahti is our young, talented librarian. Vicky Terry, a Masters level librarian who lives in the area, contributes her extraordinary organization and training talents. Sarah Eilers, a young woman who returned to her home community, became a VISTA volunteer to keep the startup rolling. Mentioning all the names of people who have significantly helped with this project would take up the rest of this column. Suffice to say, the new library has an excellent startup collection of materials, is hosting programs and community meetings and is stunningly attractive. Challenges ahead are considerable but surmountable, primarily involving raising sufficient operational funding and developing a plan for future quarters when the Snowshoe lease expires. In the meantime, the welcome sign is out for all.

A new Durbin Library/Community Center should rise from the ground this May. For years, the Durbin Library has bounced around in various rented quarters. Having its own design with ample space will boost programs and services to significantly higher levels. Importantly, this facility will provide much needed community-strengthening infrastructure. This past year the Durbin Library Building Committee has magnificently stepped up to the plate on their fundraising initiative. The Upper Pocahontas County Community Cooperative has taken on the building project as its primary goal. Support has come from the County Commission, West Virginia Legislature, NRAO, and a number of other local entities and individuals. Come mid-May, volunteers are invited to help for a few days with a "barn raising" coordinated by Habitat For Humanity. This will get the building under roof along with momentum for the interior construction. In the meanwhile, all are welcome to visit the present library quarters located on Main Street. Librarians Tara Bauserman and Nancy Egan will be delighted to assist you.

I will not use as many words to describe the other three branches since they are well established. Green Bank Librarian Jane Mospan celebrated her 30th year of service last September. Mospan and her able assistant, Mary Ann Alonso, are always hospitable and eager to take the extra step to serve their library users. A capable cadre of volunteers keep desk operations perking in evening hours and keep the grounds sparkling. The front entrance during the warmer months always has stunning floral displays. NRAO is especially helpful in clearing the parking lot of snow.

McClintic Library bustles at times as community groups use its meeting rooms. McClintic also has high book checkouts, including checkouts by the many elementary school students served each week. Librarian Vicky Terry, assistant Pam Johnson (who celebrated her birthday on New Years Day), and children's librarian Debora Johnson, stay busy serving the public. Pat Gatens helps a day or two at the desk as our Experience Works person, and he operates our webpage. Kathy Henry substitutes at any of our branches as needed.

Hillsboro Library is in many ways a community center almost as much as it is a library. All sorts of meetings are held, including special library-initiated programs. Librarian Elwood Groves, development specialist and teacher Ginger Must and Nancy Egan all contribute their skillful hospitality. As with all our branches, Hillsboro volunteers are extraordinary in their helpfulness and capabilities. This past year the Hillsboro Library Friends group raised funds to roof the side entrance and heat pump, contributed toward the new heating system and repaired the front door.

ﾠ

ﾠ

Good books make travel possibleﾗwithout leaving your chair

There is nothing I enjoy more than a good book that pulls me into another time and place, and makes me forget to take anything out of the freezer for dinner! I love rich stories full of interesting characters, and so I thoroughly enjoyed "The Good Thief," a first novel by Hannah Tinti.
We meet young Ren, a boy without a left hand, living in the orphanage run by the monks of St. Anthony's. It's bleak, cold and comfortless. Ren doesn't remember why or how he lost his hand; all he knows is that he is always passed over for adoption because of this handicap. People coming to the orphanage to find a boy need one who can work; they don't want one who will surely bring bad luck to their family. Ren's future looks frightening, as the army will be his only option when he comes of age.
But miracle of miracles, a stranger arrives one day, and chooses Ren. In fact, he claims to be Ren's brother. And so begins Ren's new life, with a family of sorts: Benjamin Nab, the alleged older brother, and his friend Tom, a former schoolteacher. The three are bound together by a strange combination of con artistry and companionship, and Ren knows he can hardly expect more.
As time goes on, Ren despairs of ever learning of his past; he tries to put it all behind him and look to the future. The men try con after con to earn money, selling snake oil, the teeth from corpses, and finally, entire corpses to a doctor who wants to dissect them, which turns out to be both dangerous and quite profitable. In the midst of this, Ren and his fellow grave robbers meet up with a chimney-dwelling dwarf, girls who work making mousetraps in a factory for a miserly rich man, and one night, while digging up bodies, an assassin who has been buried alive and who becomes part of their "family," once he has been unearthed and cleaned up a bit.
The narrative flows along as we follow the three on their journeys. The characters are finely drawn, and while not always likable, they are always fascinating. The author was obviously inspired by Charles Dickens and Robert Louis Stevenson: orphan boys, colorful characters, dramatic situations, and a pace that keeps you reading to find out what happens next. The Good Thief was the winner of the John Sargent Senior First Novel Prize, and named a New York Times Notable book, and given an Alex Award (Best Adult novel for young adults) by the American Library Association. Awards are nice, but the best praise is the fact that "The Good Thief" is simply a rousing good story!

ﾠ

ﾠ

We quite often get questions from patrons concerning how and why we do certain things in the library. I thought it might be helpful to list a few of those questions, and the explanations, in this week's column.
If Reference books cannot be checked out of the library, why do they have barcodes in them?
This is a very common question. The sight of a barcode does imply that the book should be available to circulate. But Reference books are designed to stay in the library so patrons can always ﾑrefer' to them. The barcodes are added to the books in order to make inventories easier. Even though the books remain in-house, we still need to track them.
Would you sell me this book? No one has checked it out in years!
We get this request quite often. First, I need to point out that just because a book has not been stamped does not mean that it hasn't circulated. (We sometimes forget to stamp.) Taking this one step further, just because a book does not circulate doesn't mean it isn't used. You would be surprised how many people come to the library, read and do research, and then leave without taking any books with them. So while a book may not circulate, it can certainly be used in-house. We don't sell our books off the shelf, but I would be happy to keep your name, and if the book is ever weeded, I can let you know that it is available.
I took my DVD home, but there was no disc in the case!
This does happen, so let me apologize up front to everyone who has suffered this inconvenience. We no longer keep the discs in the cases on the shelves because they were being stolen on a fairly regular basis. So I decided to move the actual discs into my office, and keep empty cases on the shelves. This has solved the theft issue.
What is the system for shelving West Virginia books?
Books that are either about West Virginia, or Appalachia in general, and/or books that are written by West Virginia authors, all have a small spine label on them that looks like a blue quilt square. We thought it would be helpful to indicate a West Virginia connection this way. If the book is fiction, we just shelve it with the other fiction titles. But if the book is non-fiction, we have a special section for them. I think it makes it easier to do local research if you don't have to go through our entire non-fiction collection.
If I missed a burning question that you have about the library and our procedures, please let me know. I'd be happy to answer more questions. But no advice about love or taxes, please.

ﾠ

Library FAQ
We quite often get questions from patrons concerning how and why we do certain things in the library. I thought it might be helpful to list a few of those questions, and the explanations, in this week's column.

If Reference books cannot be checked out of the library, why do they have barcodes in them?

This is a very common question. The sight of a barcode does imply that the book should be available to circulate. But Reference books are designed to stay in the library so patrons can always ﾑrefer' to them. The barcodes are added to the books in order to make inventories easier. Even though the books remain in-house, we still need to track them.

Would you sell me this book? No one has checked it out in years!

We get this request quite often. First, I need to point out that just because a book has not been stamped does not mean that it hasn't circulated. (We sometimes forget to stamp.) Taking this one step further, just because a book does not circulate doesn't mean it isn't used. You would be surprised how many people come to the library, read and do research, and then leave without taking any books with them. So while a book may not circulate, it can certainly be used in-house. We don't sell our books off the shelf, but I would be happy to keep your name, and if the book is ever weeded, I can let you know that it is available.

I took my DVD home, but there was no disc in the case!

This does happen, so let me apologize up front to everyone who has suffered this inconvenience. We no longer keep the discs in the cases on the shelves because they were being stolen on a fairly regular basis. So I decided to move the actual discs into my office, and keep empty cases on the shelves. This has solved the theft issue.

What is the system for shelving West Virginia books?

Books that are either about West Virginia, or Appalachia in general, and/or books that are written by West Virginia authors, all have a small spine label on them that looks like a blue quilt square. We thought it would be helpful to indicate a West Virginia connection this way. If the book is fiction, we just shelve it with the other fiction titles. But if the book is non-fiction, we have a special section for them. I think it makes it easier to do local research if you don't have to go through our entire non-fiction collection.

If I missed a burning question that you have about the library and our procedures, please let me know. I'd be happy to answer more questions. But no advice about love or taxes, please.

I have recently developed a real passion for memoirs. Not biographies: a person's entire life story told by someone else...and not autobiographies, someone's life story told by themselves, usually after they feel they have lived long enough and done enough important things to write it all down for posterity, but memoirs: a small, significant slice of a person's life, as reported by the one who lived it. A memoir can revolve around an incident, the choice of a career, a relationship, or even a cherished pet (think "Marley and Me").

Haven Kimmel wrote her memoir "A Girl Named Zippy : growing up small in Mooreland, Indiana" because she wanted to capture small town America during the mid-60s. It's a love letter of sorts to Mooreland, Indiana, and to the people who lived there in 1965, and who helped to shape Haven's childhood. But don't for a moment think that this is a serious, somber look back at a time long gone. Not in the least. The most charming part of Haven's memoir is her humor. She obviously appreciates the irony in life, and sees humor everywhere.
Haven acquired the nickname Zippy from her father; he named her after a cute, energetic chimpanzee he once saw roller skating on television. Haven shares with us her baby book, where her mother wrote the typical entries all mothers record: how many teeth, first steps, favorite toy, and of course first words. But Haven's baby book entries for "first words" remained empty at her first birthday...at her second birthday....until this entry by her mother, just before Haven's third birthday:
"This weekend we went camping. After dinner little Zippy was running in circles around the campfire, drinking from her bottle, and Bob decided she'd had it long enough. He walked over to her and said, "Sweetheart, you're a big girl now, and it's time for you to give up that bottle. I want you to just give it to me, and we're going to throw it in the fire. Okay?" The baby looked at us, back at her dad, and then pulled the bottle out of her mouth with an audible pop, and said, clear as daylight, "I'll make a deal with you." Her first words! Bob didn't hesitate. "What's the deal?" She said, "If you let me keep it, I'll hide it when company comes and I won't tell nobody." Now that we know she can talk, all I can say is: Dear God. Please give that child some hair."
Zippy remembers her third grade teacher as the meanest woman in the history of Mooreland Elementary School, but she loved the druggist, Doc Holliday, because you always knew where you stood with him, which was too close and making too much noise. She fondly remembers the day it became completely impossible for her to live without a pet chicken and she discusses all her adventures with her best friend Julie Newman, who lived on a farm where Zippy learned some very shocking things about life.
"A Girl Named Zippy" will make you laugh out loud and bring a lump to your throat. Everyone can use a fun read once in a while; Zippy delivers!

ﾠ