Get published! with Espresso Book Machine

Welcome to the brand new I Street: A Community Press & Writing Center! Thanks to a generous grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the California State Library, Sacramento Public Library is creating the first Sacramento-area community based publishing center!

What does that mean? It means that we will inspire you to write, help you to write and help you to produce your very own book. We will have writing and publishing classes taught by professionals and a variety of topics will be covered, from cookbook writing to poetry to graphic novels.

And once you've written the Great American Novel, we can print it for you on our brand new Espresso Book Machine. An amazing new piece of technology, the Espresso Book Machine can take your words, bind them together and produce a beautiful paperback book! You can print five copies or 500 copies, it's your choice!

I Street will debut at the end of November at the Central Library. For the most updated information about pricing and classes, visit www.saclibrary.org/istreet.

National Coming-Out Day observed with Punk Rock aerobics fun

In celebration of National Coming-Out Day, the Sacramento Public Library will present a special two-part adult program on Wednesday, October 12 at the South Natomas branch.

A Sacramento PFLAG chapter representative will discuss the significance of the observance at 5:30 p.m. At 6:30 p.m., there will be a special fabulous GLBT version of Punk Rock Aerobics with a dance party soundtrack. All adults are welcome to attend, no matter their orientation.

Deposit Stations: Libraries on the Frontier

Editor's note: The Sacramento Public Library is pleased to regularly feature a snapshot of its 154-year history. To learn more about the library and the greater Sacramento region's history, please visit the Sacramento Room archives at the Central Library.

In 1908, the Sacramento City Library system, under the leadership of Sacramento City Librarian Lauren W. Ripley, became the first city library in California to extend service to the entire county. Eager to get going, the library didn't wait for a law providing county service, but entered into a compact with the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors to open equal borrowing privileges to county residents for $3,500.

The City Library extended its service geographically to rural residents through the establishment of small deposit stations (also called contract stations). These library outposts were run by "custodians" and set up at accessible locations; many opened in post offices, fire houses, homes, general stores and gas stations.

An interested county resident or community could apply to host a deposit station if they agreed to provide free and open library service at a convenient location. The City Library would start a station with a core collection of 50 to 100 books, which grew as patrons requested books from the Central Library. Stations would eventually become county branches, be subsumed by a neighboring branch; or, if circulation fell below 2,000 per year, lose their status.   Deposit stations spread throughout the county. At the height of their service in 1928, the Sacramento city and county libraries had a combined 121 points of distribution in Sacramento County, including branches, deposit stations and contracted school libraries.

In some cases, stations persisted for decades at the same location thanks to the dedication of the custodians who hosted them. The last two contract stations of the Sacramento Public Library were the Fruitridge station, which was in Audrey Bryant's converted double-car garage for over 30 years (1949-1980), and the Wilton station, which Lulu Fleming operated from her enclosed front porch from 1944 to 1978.

One of the most important functions of a foundation is to build endowments that will provide continued support. Currently, we have two endowments: The Friends and Foundation Books and Materials Endowment and the Sacramento Room Endowment. Despite the downturn in the economy, these endowments have grown in total from $1 million to $3.5 million because of a few generous bequests and ongoing professional financial management.

Endowments can help provide support to institutions during the lean budgetary years we are experiencing. Support for library materials creates more opportunities to integrate the many technological delivery systems we can now use to access books and materials. Greater support would provide a more current collection of materials (our children's collections are much older than the people we want to serve). Finally, growing support would allow all of us today to secure our libraries for tomorrow.

In the early 1900s, Andrew Carnegie secured the free public library by building buildings. Let's do our part and secure the future of our stories and information at our library!

The Library Foundation is continuing to host a series of estate planning workshops presented by Generations, Inc. We learned recently that only eight percent of estate plans in our area include charitable gifts. Leaving something for an endowment is a permanent legacy for the community in which you have lived. Check out this newsletter to find out when and where the remaining workshops will be held. Whether you are considering leaving a legacy to the library or just need help in thinking about your estate plan, you will find the workshop enlightening.

Nancy Lawrence,

Sacramento Public Library Foundation Board president