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Welcome to Pasadena Public Library
Greetings!
This is the first opportunity I have had to address the community of Pasadena since becoming the new director of the Pasadena Public Libraries. I am honored to have been chosen for this position by Mayor Johnny Isbell, and the library board, and I pledge to do my very best to make the Pasadena Public Libraries one of the best and most user friendly libraries in the area. I believe there is no better guide to making a good library a great library than to listen to what the people in the community want of their library. The library is funded by the community's tax dollars and should reflect the interests and needs of the people who are paying for it. As I meet people in the community and those who serve the community in elected office, or on the Friends of the Library and Library Boards, I will listen carefully to their suggestions and advice. Whether you find me at the library or out in the community, I encourage you to let me know your views on the library and how it can best serve your needs and that of your family and associates. In the future, I will be looking at other ways to gauge your opinion and seek your advice on how to make your library even better.
When I arrived here in Pasadena, I was pleased to find a library whose staff was hard-working and dedicated to making the library succeed during the tough financial times that have affected so many of America's institutions in the last few years. I salute them and Wayne Holt, ''my predecessor in this office'' whose efforts to maintain a fine library in the face of economic adversity was remarkable. What was even more remarkable was that Wayne, who is the publications manager for the City, had no special training as a library director and yet did a bang up job. Many kudos to Wayne. I also want to thank him, all of the library staff and Mayor Johnny Isbell for making me welcome in my new job. I come to Pasadena from Cleveland, Ohio where I have lived most of my life. I know I am going to have to learn a new language, like y'all speak here, and perhaps trade my tie for a cowboy hat, but the warm welcome I have received will make those tasks not only easy but fun.
I have had the good fortune to have worked in and with some of the best libraries in the country. I hope that my experience in those libraries will benefit our Pasadena libraries. I know that I want everyone in the community to find the things that they are looking for in our libraries. I want them to find knowledge, fun, entertainment, relaxation and a place to get away. I hope to provide the tools to help them enrich their lives and to succeed in their endeavors. Libraries are places where people gather and exchange information, meet other members of the community, and tap into the world's resources through the Internet.
Come join me and my wonderful staff at the Pasadena libraries, and let us help you explore our world.
Thomas C. Simiele
Library Director, Pasadena Public Libraries
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Free Summer Entertainment
SUMMER IS JUST AROUND THE CORNER AND THE LIBRARY IS THE PLACE TO BE!
Summer entertainment doesn't always have to leave your pockets and your gas tank empty. Stay in town this summer and take advantage of the wide range of free library materials and services. If you've missed the latest episode of your favorite TV series or would like to catch up on a season, just come to the library or click here to browse through our wide array of TV series on DVD ''in our collection''. Want to read the latest books or magazines? Need to brush up on your computer skills and internet searching? Want to learn a new language? Need WiFi access? You get the gist--the library is a one-stop shop!
And don't forget about our Summer Reading Program coming up in June.The program is available for children, teens and adults. There will be various programs and performers throughout the summer and plenty of reading materials! The more you read, the more you exercise your brain. Not to mention, there are perks that come with all the reading...like prizes, prizes, prizes! So if you want to save big but also have a great summer, come to the Pasadena Library for some free entertainment. There is something for everyone. And don't forget to tell your neighbors and friends!
Our Summer Reading Program will be available from June 11 through August 4. Children, all the way from newborn to 11 years old, may participate in the Summer Reading Club "Get a Clue...at the Library." Teens between 12 and high school age can join the Texas Teens Read Summer Reading Program "TSI: The Realm of the Unknown." Finally, the adults can participate in the Adult Summer Reading Program.
If you would like more information on the Summer Reading Program, please call 713-477-0276 or visit www.ppltx.net
Click on the links below for Summer Reading Program Schedules: Children's Summer Reading Program,Teen Summer Reading Program
Print versions of the calendars will be available at both library locations by May 21.
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AMNESTY AT THE LIBRARY FOR OVERDUE ITEMS AND FINES
In the spirit of a good old spring cleaning, the Library has announced an immediate program of amnesty for those folks who return their overdue books by June 1. You'll be able to reduce your total fines to just $10 per overdue account when you get those books, CD/DVDs and other library materials out of your closet and back on our shelves where they belong for others to enjoy. And if you don't have any unreturned materials but just outstanding fines, we'll drop them to $10 too, regardless of their actual total.
It's all part of our library policy spring cleaning, and you'll want to learn more details about how to take advantage of this amnesty, as well as other changes in library policies. Remember: June 1 is the absolute deadline to bring in those library materials and get your materials checkout and computer use privileges back immediately. Want to learn more? You can read policy highlights here--en español, aquí---or for you studious types, here's the complete updated circulation policy. Come by and talk to us about it at Central (713-477-0276) or Fairmont (281-998-1095) library locations. Now start digging out those overdue items!
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Holiday Closings
IN OBSERVANCE OF MEMORIAL DAY, THE LIBRARY LOCATIONS
WILL CLOSE THE FOLLOWING DATES:
Central Library will be closed on Saturday, May 26 thru Monday, May 28.
Central Library will re-open Tuesday, May 29 @ 10:00 a.m.
Fairmont Branch will be closed on Saturday, May 26 thru Monday, May 28.
Fairmont Branch will re-open Tuesday, May 29 @ 2:00 p.m.
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Book Club Banter
 "The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can't read them."
-Mark Twain-
While lots of us are still suffering from May's pollen as well as enjoying its many flowers, it is a good time to enjoy the highly filtered air-conditioning and take advantage of all the free things at your Pasadena Library. Come check out our new gardening and landscaping books as well as the new thrillers, mysteries, vampire tales and hot titles for all ages. Be sure and allow some extra time to take a good look at the new exhibit featuring "The Titanic: 100 Years of a Night Forever Remembered," with its many photos and artifacts of the world of ocean liners in 1912. Top off your visit with some nice hot coffee and chocolate treats at bargain rates from our Friend's Bookstore and check out the vintage jewelry and other items up for bids in our Silent Auction-you may find just the spring gift you were looking for.
The Fairmont Branch Library's First Monday Book Club will be reading The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, and will be meeting on Monday, May 7 at 6:00 p.m. in the Meeting Room at the Fairmont Library. Come and enjoy discussing the unusual tale of a "single lady" author and her wildly assorted group of neighbors as they write about and share stories of their lives as they are living under the Nazi occupation of their island of Guernsey in World War II.
The Central Library's Tea-Time Mystery Book Blub will be reading The Cat, the Lady and the Liar by Leann Sweeney, and will be meeting on Monday, May 21 at 3:30 p.m. in the Board Room at the Central Library. Coffee, tea and assorted tasty goodies will be served as the group follows cat quilter (and amateur sleuth) Jillian Hart as she attempts to find the owner of a gorgeous stray cat and ends up in the middle of a decades old mystery with a killer who just won't quit.
Contact Kenya Johnson
(First Monday) at the Fairmont Library 281-998-1095 X 14 or Lucy Turoff (Tea-Time Mystery) 713-475-4984 for more information regarding these two book clubs.
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Staff Spotlight
Name: Thomas C. Simiele Title: Library Director Responsibilities at the Library: Manage all aspects of the library. What you don't know about me: I like to race sail boats. Favorite Author/Genre:
Author - Donna Leon
Genres - historical fiction Last Book Read: Rome by Robert Hughes Why I Love the Pasadena Public Library:
It has wonderful people working here. |
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