News from Sacramento Public Library

From the Director

Photo by Kevin Andrew Jones

The best card in your wallet

I get by with a little help from my friends.

~ The Beatles

It's the Year of the Dragon and Sacramento Public Library is gearing up for a great year that will offer something we want everyone to enjoy. Looking for something a little different? Think about attending some of our alt+Library events. Whether your taste runs to quirky books to discuss, or punk rock yoga, alt+Library is a great way to have fun and meet some new people. We realize sometimes our events start too early for busy people. That's why our North Sacramento Library will begin to feature some Friday evening events, including a Bollywood Spectacular on March 2 from 7 to 9:30 p.m.

The Library's ability to provide these outside-the-box programs depends on having a talented and flexible staff (we do) and a willingness to try new programming ideas (we will).

Of course 2012 will be filled with more than 5,000 OTHER programs for your enjoyment (last year more than 133,000 people attended library programs offered in our 28 locations). We're pretty sure we have something to offer for almost everyone, and we're able to offer our amazing programs thanks to the generosity of our Friends of Sacramento Public Library and the Sacramento Public Library Foundation.

We're beginning 2012 filled with optimism that great things are happening at the library and that the books, programs and services we offer will make you glad you have a library card. After all, it's the best card in your wallet.

Rivkah K. Sass
Library Director

News From the Library

Maria Nemeth, Ph.d.

Whether you are looking at how you use money, time, or any other source of energy to achieve your goals, Maria Nemeth, Ph.D., has discovered a way for you to do it. Dr. Nemeth will lead a financial workshop on Saturday, March 24 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Robbie Waters Pocket-Greenhaven Library.

Dr. Nemeth encourages people to think of money as another kind of energy and then consider how they handle each kind of energy--such as physical vitality, enjoyment and creativity. She stresses this is not an investment manual, nor a collection of tips on how to save money. Instead, it is a guide that lays Energy of Money out 12 principles for personal fulfillment that will help individuals decide what it is they really want in life and how to use their money to achieve their goals.

Nemeth has authored numerous articles and three successful books, including The Energy of Money for which she was featured on Oprah. Her nine-hour audio recording of The Energy of Money won the 1999 Audie Award for Best Personal Development Series.

There is a $85-per-person cost to attend the seven-hour workshop. The fee includes study materials, lunch and a copy of Dr. Nemeth's book. Registration is required by calling the library at (916) 264-2920, and payment will be collected at the door.

Dr. Seuss' birthday celebrated

Dr. Seuss

Theodor Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss, spent his lifetime dreaming about different creatures and silly ways to name them. The Sacramento Public Library will honor Dr. Seuss' 108th birthday by hosting numerous family-friendly programs at selected library locations in early March that include:

Arcade Library, Thursday, March 1 at 4 p.m.: Listen to Dr. Seuss's books, take the challenging Seuss quiz, play games related to your favorite Seuss characters, and, as at any birthday party, enjoy yummy treats and exciting prizes!

North Highlands-Antelope Library, Thursday, March 1 at 4 p.m.: Read and listen to favorite Seuss' stories such as The Cat in the Hat, Green Eggs and Ham, The Lorax and many others. We'll enjoy many activities, drawings for prizes, cake and refreshments. Teen and parent volunteer readers are welcome.

Elk Grove Library, Friday, March 2 at 1 p.m.: The afternoon festivities will be highlighted with a special appearance by NFL player and Elk Grove native Lance Briggs. Plus, children can read to a Dog, meet Scooter the Safety Dog, make Dr. Seuss crafts, and enjoy face painting and refreshments.

Fair Oaks Library, Friday, March 2 at 4 p.m.: A Dr. Seuss Party!

Ella K. McClatchy Library, Friday, March 2 at 4 p.m.: Special guests will share beloved Dr. Seuss stories.

North Natomas Library, Saturday, March 3 at 2 p.m.: Crafts and birthday cake to celebrate Dr. Seuss and your favorite Dr. Seuss books.

South Natomas Library, Saturday, March 3 at 3 p.m.: Meet one of our favorite children's book authors and enjoy cake, games, and crafts.

Camellia Symphony Orchestra performs free family concert

Allan Pollack

The Camellia Symphony Orchestra will present a free concert designed to introduce children and their families to the world of classical music on Sunday, March 25 at 2 p.m., in the Tsakopoulos Library Galleria at the Central Library. The orchestra is under the direction of Music Director and Conductor Allan Pollack.

Prior to the concert, children can enjoy the Instrument Petting Zoo starting at 1 p.m. in the library's West Meeting Room. Children will see various musical instruments and meet musicians who will demonstrate how the instruments are played.

Also at 1 p.m., in the library's first-floor lobby, children can create rain sticks, rumba shakers and musical note cards at various art and craft stations with artists from Very Special Arts - I Can Do That!

The concert is presented in partnership with the Sacramento Public Library and through grants from the James Irvine Foundation, Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission, The Sacramento Bee and Wells Fargo Foundation.

Music to be performed includes a variety of classical music selections, including movie scores such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Spider Man, as well as highlights from the Season Concert Series.

Teen Tech Week library programs scheduled

Being a "teen geek" is fun at the Sacramento Public Library with local Teen Tech Week celebration programs scheduled March 4 - 10 at many library locations. With this year's theme, Geek Out @ your library, Teen Tech Week encourages teens to use their community libraries' nonprint resources for education and recreation, and to recognize that librarians are qualified, trusted professionals in the field of information technology.

"This year, more Sacramento Public Library branches than ever before will be participating in Teen Tech Week," said Lori Easterwood, programming supervisor. "We are offering an array of special teen programs that week including video games, the creation of videos using the library's Flip video cameras, making crafts and fashions from discarded technology items, and more."

"These events are all designed to be highly interactive, helping build a community of teens given the opportunity to use technology in fun and innovative ways at the library," Easterwood continued.

A listing of fun and free Teen Tech Week programs are available on the library's Events webpage.

Sacramento Public Library staff author Mather Field history book

Sacramento Public Library staff members Tom Tolley and James Scott have written the book, Mather Field, covering the nearly 100-year history of Mather Air Force Base. The book includes historic photos dating back to

when it opened as a World War I military flight training site; then known as Mills Field.

Born from America's need to train aviators for the Great War (World War I), Mather Field has sat sentinel to the east of Sacramento for nearly a century. Overnight, the base transformed a lonely domain of cattle and vineyards into an aerie where fledgling "man-birds" were taught to fly and kill. Although readapted during the interwar period to concerns of fire control and mail delivery, Mather still inspired, as evidenced by the 1930 Air Corps maneuvers.

World War II renewed Mather, as training bomber crews and repatriating veterans of the Pacific War were primary responsibilities for what was becoming a self-sustaining city of churches, schools, and burgeoning neighborhoods.

Scott, a Central Library librarian, and Tolley, a library technician of the Special Collections of the Sacramento Public Library's Sacramento Room, have tapped a variance of library and archival resources to provide this far-ranging array of base imagery and lore.

Through two world wars and the tense years of the Cold War, Mather Field has changed along with the times, and now reflects today's mixed-use suburban mélange of aviation, business, and housing in the shadow of California's capital city.

Published by Arcadia Press, a portion of the book sale proceeds will benefit the Sacramento Public Library. The Mather Field book may be purchased through the Amazon web site.

Library patrons can check-out electrical power-use monitors

SMUD and the Sacramento Public Library have teamed up to offer power-use monitors. Borrow one just like you would a book for 21 days and see how much energy and money you can save. If you have a Sacramento Public Library card, you can check out a Kill-A-Watt EZ power monitor to learn which appliances in your home are using the most power and costing you the most money to operate.

The monitor is simple to use. Just plug the device into an electrical outlet, and then plug the appliance into the device. Enter the cost per kilowatt-hour, and the device displays the kilowatt-hour usage and the cost of electricity to run the appliance. Customers can monitor the energy cost of any 110 or 120-volt appliance such as refrigerators, freezers, televisions and computers.

The monitor helps customers understand how individual appliances can impact their energy bills and determine if those appliances should be unplugged or plugged into a power strip that can be easily turned on when the appliance is needed. The monitor even calculates cost and forecasts costs by the week, month or year.

SMUD and the Sacramento Public Library see the program as a tremendous way to engage their customers on a grand level. "This service is one more way Sacramento Public Library can fulfill its mission to provide valuable information to the public - information that can impact their lives for the better," said Library Director Rivkah K. Sass. "The library is thrilled to partner with SMUD to help Sacramento residents lower their energy use," she added.

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.

What are they now?: Branch library buildings today

Since the Sacramento Public Library first established branch libraries in 1908, well over 100 branches and deposit stations have come and gone. Many of the buildings used to house these branches are still standing today and are used for myriad purposes. Here are just a few examples:

Mabel R. Gillis Branch Library
Dates: 1922-1989
Location: 4001 60th Street (1957-1989)
Then: The Mabel Gillis library moved into its 60th Street location in 1957. Named in honor of a beloved State Librarian, this library served area youth for

Mabel R. Gills branch building, then and now

decades. The library closed in 1989 and its collection was incorporated into the new Colonial Heights branch.
Now: After extensive remodeling in the 2000s, the building has transformed into a retro-modern private residence.

Oak Park Branch Library
Dates: 1896-1989
Location: 3301 5th Avenue (1930-1989)
Then: The Oak Park Free Library, established in 1896, was one of the first to join the Sacramento County Free Library system in 1908. In 1930, a neoclassical library building and clubhouse were constructed at the corner of 33rd Street and 5th Avenue, near McClatchy Park. The Oak Park branch, like Mabel Gillis, closed in 1989, and its collection was sent to the new Colonial Heights branch.
Now: McGeorge School of Law purchased the location in 1989, and it continues to serve as a library for the school.

Branch G
Dates: 1911-1918
Location: 2030 H Street (1911-1915)
Then: In 1911, the Sacramento City Library experimented with a series of lettered (A through H) deposit stations within Sacramento city limits. Branch G, like most of the others, was located in a drug store - the Boulevard Pharmacy at the corner of 21st and H streets. The lettered stations all closed by the time the new Carnegie Library (now called the Central Library) opened at the corner of 9th and I Streets in 1918.
Now: 2030 H Street is currently home to a yoga studio, Yoga Shala.

From the Foundation

Authors on the Move - the Sacramento Public Library Foundation's primary fundraiser and Sacramento's premier literary event - celebrates its 10th anniversary with an evening of excitement, entertainment and just a little bit of mystery. Authors on the Move; The Plot Thickens, the Future of Libraries will be held from 5 p.m.to 10 p.m. on Saturday, March 3 at the Hyatt Hotel in downtown Sacramento.

Featured speakers, The New York Times best-selling thriller and mystery authors John Lescroart and Lisa Lutz, will host an engaging, laugh-out-loud discussion about e-books, writing and the future of our libraries. The 10th annual event will also include more than 42 local authors who will regale attendees about the writing process and their books.

The evening begins with a complimentary champagne reception and book signing, followed by a four-course gourmet meal (including a bottomless wine glass of wine!), and the opportunity to talk with local authors at your table. The live auction features several exclusive author experiences, providing one-of-a-kind opportunities for guests to indulge their literary passions.

If you ever wanted to talk to an author and find out what makes them tick, this is your chance. Participating authors have dinner with the guests, rotating tables with every course and discussing their writing experiences and latest work.

Tickets to Authors on the Move are $200 each ($1,500 for an eight-person table). The event sells out every year, so be sure to reserve your tickets today. For more information on Authors on the Move, including the current list of participating authors, or to purchase tickets or make a reservation, visit www.saclibraryfoundation.org or call (916) 264.2711.

April Butcher,

Sacramento Public Library Foundation

From the Friends

Find great bargains at Friends of the Sacramento Public Library and branch Friends' book sales

Friends of the Sacramento Public Library Warehouse Book Sale

The Friends host book sales at their Book Den's warehouse six times per year at 8250 Belvedere Avenue, Suite E, Sacramento (off Power Inn Road, and one block south of 14th Avenue). There is a wonderful selection of books and other materials, sorted by category. Prices range from 50 cents for pocket books to $2 for hardbacks. Become a member of Friends of Sacramento Public Library and enjoy the benefit of early-bird shopping opportunities at all book sales.

Saturday, April 14, 9 a.m. to 12 noon (Friends members only
Saturday April 14, 12 noon to 4 p.m. (for everyone)
Saturday April 21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. (for everyone)

The Book Den store will be open during the Warehouse Sale and Preview. At the Book Den, shoppers can select from individually-priced books, including collectibles, and other materials, with most books priced at $3 and up. The Book Den is regularly open Thursday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. For more information call (916) 731-8493.

Other Friends book sale dates include:

Carmichael Library: ongoing, during the branch's open hours.
Del Paso Heights Library: ongoing, during the branch's open hours.
Fair Oaks Library: Saturday, February 18, Preview sale for Friends members only, 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. Saturday, February 18 through Saturday, February 25 (for everyone during the branch's open hours).
North Highlands-Antelope Library: Friday, March 23, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, March 24, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Robbie Waters Pocket-Greenhaven Library: ongoing, during the branch's open hours. Special sale: Tuesday, March 27 through Saturday, March 31 during branch's open hours.

Find the Friends on Facebook