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T h exY a r d a r m
The Yarmouth Port Library Newsletter
297 Main Street (Route 6A), Yarmouth Port, MA 02675
yarmouthportlibrary.org • PH: 508-362-3717 • Fax: 508-362-6739
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Yarmouth Port Library...Where you find more than just books for readers young and old.
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YPL has been busy this winter with numerous programs and events—and patrons just relaxing in the Reading Room (which now has a chess set if you are interested in playing!) in front of the fire. Be sure to check the website for the most up-to-date information on programs and events (live and Zoom) for children and adults. There is a lot going on at your community library. Happy Spring!
Lee Peters, Editor
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“Savvy Seniors:” How to Avoid and Detect Scams
Friday, March 15th
at 2 PM
Presented by Juraci Capataz, community Engagement Coordinator at the Office of the Attorney General in New Bedford, covering Southeastern MA.
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Coastal Studies on Right Whales
Friday, May 17th
at 2 PM (date change)
Presented by Jesse Meckling, Marine Education Director, Center for Coastal Studies
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Sharks
Friday, May 2nd at 2 PM
By leading white shark expert, Dr. Greg Skomal
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Zoom Programs:
A Cape-Wide Community Discussion with Cape Cod Libraries & The New Literacy Project
(Click here for details.)
• Productive
Conversations
Thursday, April 25
at 5:30 PM
• Avoiding Election Misinformation
Thursday, May 23
at 5:30 PM
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Administrative Director’s & Children's Librarian Report | |
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by Carrie Bearse, Administrative Director & Children's Librarian
The Joy of Routine
I recently took a week off from the library for a "staycation" to spend time with my wonderful dog George, try to get my little house organized, do a few of the errands I never seem to get to, and basically relax. Although I appreciated the opportunity to sleep late (but not too late!) and make my own schedule, I was very quickly reminded of how much I thrive on routine and how I need a schedule even when on vacation. Obviously, I have known throughout my life that I am a "routine" person and have managed to accomplish quite a lot by maintaining a schedule and following a routine. That does not mean that I do not have fun...I even try to schedule that too, but quite often it happens serendipitously, imagine that!
On to the point -- I love the routine of work and especially the routine of working at Yarmouth Port Library. So many of our patrons make the library a part of their routine as well. Many patrons stop by at least once a week to check out books and movies. Some patrons come in each morning or afternoon to read the papers by the fireplace. A few patrons use the Gale Reading Room weekly as a quiet space to catch up on remote work tasks.
Many families enjoy coming to storytime every week, our Big Stories once a month, and especially visiting the Mary Burr Thacher Children's room every Thursday afternoon just to read, play with the toys and puzzles, do Legos, and just to relax near the end of the week. There is one special family who actually stops by the library almost every Saturday morning between gymnastics and ballet (tutu attired) just to pick up a few books for the week. I am sure you know that children really thrive on routine, it makes them feel safe and have some control over their schedule, I am so pleased that YPL is part of it all. Routine is actually really important for all of us, and we absolutely love being a part of our patrons' routine. We enjoy seeing and serving our patrons, routinely and without exception.
And talk about routine! Our wonderful volunteers show up every week like clockwork! We so very much appreciate our volunteers because without them we would not be able to serve our patrons as well as we strive to do. We have one volunteer, Nancy MacEachern, who has made YPL part of her routine since 1991! And one of our Tuesday morning volunteers, Peggy Shea, has decided to "retire" after more than 15 years. Thank you, thank you to all of our volunteers!
As much as I thrive on routine, that doesn’t mean I will forgo future vacations! I certainly intend to take my usual weeklong vacations at Periwinkle Cottage in Maine; but as you might have guessed, I always plan menus and activities for each week in advance. George, my dog, also loves routine, which is why after a week of having me home, he was happy to see me head back to work at YPL...and I was, too!
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2024 Cape Cod Hydrangea Festival —
Gardens Needed!
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The 2024 Hydrangea Festival runs from Friday, July 5th through Sunday, July 14th. Gardens are open 10 AM to
4 PM.
YPL has participated in the Hydrangea Festival (HF) for the past three years, and did quite well last year, even making a bit extra thanks to the generous donation of a charming hand-built birdhouse which we were able to raffle off.
The library recruits volunteers to welcome visitors and collect admission. To participate, we need gardens, preferably four of them. Gardeners might love their own gardens but worry they may be HF-unworthy, so here are some suggestions in the hope that some of you might be persuaded to volunteer this year.
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To summarize, any ONE of these gardens might do:
• Lots of flowers in July, not necessarily hydrangeas. Other collections?
• Perhaps a beautiful view.
• A large vegetable or herb garden.
• Creative garden ornaments or interesting outbuildings.
• Huge OR tiny garden.
• Themed, such as native, shade, pollinator, etc.
If you are willing but uncertain, you can contact the library at 508-362-3717, and we’ll arrange for someone to meet with you.
Please consider helping out YPL this year! Dinah Wolff — dg.wolff@gmail.com
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by Les Peat, Membership Campaign Chair
First, the 2024 Membership Campaign is well on its way to achieving our goal of $40,000, with $36,885 raised as of February 15th. Our thanks to all who have already contributed. If you haven’t yet contributed, you have until June 30th to be counted as a 2024 Member.
Please click here to download a Membership Campaign form.
If the reason you haven’t given is that you didn’t receive a solicitation letter, please let us know; we had to convert our mailing list to a new software system this year and we suspect that some members and potential new donors may have been omitted from the new list.
Second, we have received a generous unrestricted bequest of $10,000 from the Mary D. Herberich Family Trust. It will be added to the library’s endowment at the direction of the Trustees. Such bequests and lifetime capital gifts are greatly appreciated, and we would be happy to assist any donor, lawyer, or estate planner in making the arrangements for such a transfer.
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YPL Book Group
Led by Leslie Altman, the YPL Book Group meets the third Thursday of the month at 2 PM.
March: Thursday, March 21st at 2 PM
The Wager by David Grann
April: Thursday, April 18th at 2 PM
Lucy by the Sea
by Elizabeth Strout
May: Thursday, May 16th
at 2 PM
Judas by Amos Oz
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Neighborhood Book Group
Led by Rick Woods, the group meets the second Thursday of the month at 4 PM.
Thursday, March 14th at 4 PM
”Not the End of the World: How we can be the first generation to build a sustainable planet"
by Hannah Ritchie
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Book and Plant Sale Updates
Heads Up!
Book Sale:
Summer Book Sale Donations: While a definite Book and Plant Sale date in June hasn’t yet been selected, it’s not too soon to plan ahead. We are once again accepting donations of books for the 2024 summer book sale. These are being accepted each Monday between 1 and 3 PM. Use the East Side door. Please call YPL at 508-362-3717 to make an appointment.
What we accept:
Children’s and adult books in clean salable condition.
DVDs, music CDs, audio books
Books on local and Cape Cod history
Please don’t bring:
Clearly outdated books, if on subjects such as travel guides, financial advice, diet, medical, technical manuals, etc.
Encyclopedias or textbooks
Damaged, soiled or mildewed items
“Under the Spiral Staircase Book Sale:” If Mondays don’t work for you, we continue to accept 2019—2024 titles for our book sale area during regular library hours. You will find a selection of “almost new” 2019 to 2024 titles: bestsellers, children’s books, oversize adult books, cookbooks, and more. We add new titles weekly with donations from our generous patrons. You can even pick up a puzzle for those indoor winter days!
Plant Sale:
In late March and April, when people start working in their yards, some may want to donate plants in advance of the sale. Lucky for us, Sally Hockenbury will visit and dig up and pot whatever you would like removed from your garden and tend to it in her own garden until June. This is a win-win opportunity for everyone, while increasing plant inventory for the sale. Please contact Sally at 508-362-6045, and leave a message.
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Genealogical Research Course | |
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Are you interested in researching your family history?
Join this six-week course to learn genealogical research methods from Cape Cod Genealogical Society educator David Martin. To offset the cost to YPL, students are asked to pay $30 for the six-session course. All six classes will be held at the Yarmouth Port Library on Monday afternoons from 2 to 3:30 PM beginning April 1.
April 1—Overview; Use of laptops; Standards and Citing Sources; illustrating how to use Census with computer; coordinating census and City Directory data; quick review of software for organizing data.
April 8 —Date Change; Relationship chart; defining Vital Records; Church records; how to use Familysearch.org and Ancestry.com for inputting vital records.
April 15—Immigration; Migration; using the internet for obtaining immigration records; naturalizations.
April 22—The Courthouse: using Probate Records, Land Deeds, and other records (tax, divorce, etc.) to fill in the family tree.
April 29—Death records: Obtaining death certificates, newspaper obituaries, cemeteries.
May 6—In-Depth information on computer software; details on internet researching.
In each session, 15-20 minutes will be reserved for group or individual consultations.
A few spaces remain. Please call 508-362-3717 to add your name to the list.
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We have perhaps six dozen next-to-new jigsaw puzzles just waiting for someone to assemble them a second time. These often come in along with book donations and could be sold for $2 at the summer book sale, but…we thought you might prefer working on one on a cold winter day when there isn’t much tempting you to go outside, or when you’d like to keep a houseguest occupied.
The majority are 1000 pieces, but there are many 750 and 500 boxes, and even simpler ones for kids. We plan to display them on the spiral staircase near the book sale under those stairs, so do take a look next time you visit the library.
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Board of Trustees
Officers and Trustees
President: Brian Dudley
Vice President:
Everett Wilson
Treasurer: Michael Poissant
Ass't Treasurer: Les Peat
Secretary: Susan Bonnell
Karen Alexander
Michael Kiehnau
Dinah Wolff
Members of the Corporation
Leslie Altman
Brian Fulton
Donna Fulton
Dorothy Halmstad
Sally Hockenbury
Susan Kiehnau
Ralph Menconi
Carol Oliver
Duncan Oliver
Jean O’Toole
Lee Peters
Elvira Reynolds
Mary Smith
Pat Tafra
Melissa Wilson
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Library Staff Administrative Director & Children's Librarian
Carrie Bearse:
cbearse@clamsnet.org
Circulation, Marketing & VolunteerCoordinator
Carol Riley:
criley@clamsnet.org
Circulation Assistant
Susan Saposnik:
ssaposnik@clamsnet.org
Adult Collection Development, Book Group
Leslie Altman: laltman@clamsnet.org
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Did you know?
YPL is a privately funded, public library.
Click here for ways to give.
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