Library: Town Report

REPORT OF THE OLIVIA RODHAM MEMORIAL LIBRARY 2008

The Olivia Rodham Memorial Library looks forward to continuing to serve the community of Nelson into the future, especially as a source of reading, be it for information, entertainment, inspiration, education or enlightenment. In a time when we have the world at our fingertips, the library is a public place that connects us to each other, as a center and a community gathering place.

CHILDREN’S LIBRARY PROGRAMS

During the summer the children had activities for six Tuesdays, based on the theme “G’day for Summer Reading 2008”. On one July day children learned about wool and spinning with Julie Tilden. July 15 featured a book for all ages, Alabama Moon by Watt Key. The next week we learned about indigenous rock painting and read stories about Australia. On July 29 we read more Australian stories and created collages. August 5 and 12 welcomed back the program Book Art, with Anne Ames, with the goal of each child making a book to take home. One book looked like an alligator.

During the Summer Reading Program sixteen children read 330 books. Those completing the reading program were given official certificates to honor their accomplishments and, thanks to the Friends of the Nelson Library, a gift certificate to Toadstool Books. Incentive prizes such as small toys and paperback books were available for each book read, with ice cream certificates courtesy of Twinkletown Miniature Golf for every ten books read during the program.
At 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, August 13, Wildlife Encounters Traveling Zoo and some of their Australian animals came to the Nelson Town Hall for a presentation of “Creatures Down Under”, as a part of “G’Day for Summer Reading 2008”.  While here, the audience met up close, learned about, and maybe even touched Australian wildlife including birds, tree frogs, goannas, snakes and – best of all – the beautiful marsupials.  This program was supported in part by a grant from the New Hampshire State Library and donations from the Bryne Foundation, CHILIS, Cogswell Benevolent Trust, and the NH Library Association.  The attendance was 112 adults and children. The Nelson Librarian wrote and received the grant, Kids, Books and Arts.

The Nelson Library story time starts in October and continues through May for kindergarten through third grades. Story time includes a light snack and stories read by the Librarian or a guest reader. This Monday after school program welcomes Sara Shepherd and Sandy Ferguson, who volunteer to read and sometimes do a related activity as well.

Library enrichment programs at the library were offered four times this year to the Nelson school.  The whole school attended in three groups.  This happened once a month on Wednesdays during the winter and spring.  The children all learned library skills, including use of the Dewey Decimal system and the card catalog, library layout, parts of a book and how to find items.  A program of bringing books to the Nelson School continues. Teachers can request a topic or genre.

ADULT LIBRARY PROGRAMS

Every year the Library presents a Forum with guest speakers.  This year’s calendar included Frankie Brackley Tolman  (“The Orchids of New Hampshire”),  John Guilbert  (“The Good Earth: How Early Cheshire County Folks Made Use of Their Rocks and Dirt”),  David Millstone (“Is Nelson the Center of the Contra Dance Universe?”), and Allison Aldrich and Hunt Smith (“If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On! Love Songs, Murder Ballads and Beyond”).
On Old Home Day, during the games on the green, the Library was open for business. An extra activity in the Library was a craft table for a make-and- take craft.  The annual Book Sale, organized and run by the Friends of the Library, made sales of over $1,750.
The adult book group meets once a month on the third Tuesday of the month to read and discuss novels, memoirs and biographies.

GRANTS

We received Kids, Books and the Arts grants to present Wildlife Encounters (see above).
We have received the “Picturing America” collection of American art reproductions. Our Library is enjoying a rotating display of the posters. This grant is from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) in cooperation with the American Library Association (ALA).
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Online Opportunity Hardware Grant will enable us to purchase one computer each year with peripherals, and defray the cost of supporting a public access computer in the Library for four years, including set-up, maintenance and tech support.  The grant amount for 2009 is $1950 and the required match is $650.  The grant amount for 2010 is $1300 and the required match is $1300.  The Friends of the Library have agreed to provide the matching funds.

COMPUTER

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation Online Opportunity Hardware Grant will enable the improvements described above. The Town now has a webpage and calendar:  http://townofnelson.com, and the Library now has high speed wireless from Wivalley available during Library business hours.

PERSONNEL

Kristine Finnegan is the Librarian and Jennifer Fraser and Susan Hansel are the Library substitutes. Library volunteers do many and varied tasks that suit their time and talent. Their contributions to the Library are immeasurable and are so appreciated by the Library staff. Several who run programs are mentioned above. Patrons with overdue books are called twice a month by a volunteer, Kathy Schillemat. Regular volunteers are Pamela Tolman, Betsey Church and Susan Hansel.  Terry Mednick has voluntarily maintained our computers, and computer statistics programs are updated by Tom Buttrick.  We thank occasional volunteers Jennifer Fraser, Liza Constable, Margaret Iselin, Jonathan Weis, Iva DeMartelly, Barbara and Jacqueline Roland and Elena Mednick, as well as Dublin School students. Volunteer hours this year totaled 341 hours. Our Library trustees this year were John Zurich, Betsy Street, Linda Cates, Lumina Greenway and Bruce McSheehy.

DONATIONS

Donations to the Library always play a large part in updating our collection. This year we received monetary donations from Rotary Club members, The Friends of the Library, and George and Frances Alderson in memory of Bob and Hallie Robinson. Other Library funds used to purchase items for the collection were the Celia Wiechart Memorial Fund, the Elizabeth T. Hatch Memorial Fund, the Hardie Shepard Children’s Book Fund, the Henry Melville Fund, the Mary Fiske Elliot Fund for Garden Books, the Nelson White Fund, the Professor William Churchill Gerrish Special Fund, the Sidney Plant Special Fund and the Henry Melville Fuller Fund.  Many donations are made of actual books, audio visual materials, and magazines.  Thank you to Pamela and Ethan Tolman, Susan Hansel and Bert Wingerson for their donation of current monthly magazines, to Lumina Greenway for her large donation of the latest best sellers in books, and to many others for their generosity in passing on books, DVD’s and audio books on CD.
Submitted by Kristine Finnegan, Library Director

OLIVIA RODHAM MEMORIAL LIBRARY STATISTICS FOR 2008

Library Collection
Volumes in the Library at the end of  2008  ~  8885
Library book purchases of adult books & audio/visual materials  ~  19
Library book purchases of children’s books & audio/visual materials  ~ 77
Gifts of the Friends of the Library   ~ 75
Books & audio/visual materials donated by patrons  ~  425
Books & audio/visual materials taken out of circulation  ~  198
Total volumes at the beginning of 2008   ~  8,487
Circulation of books & audio/visual materials from the library
Adult non-fiction   ~ 441
Adult fiction   ~ 822
Juvenile and easy  ~  1,340
Adult audio/visual  ~  624
Juvenile audio/visual ~   181
Periodicals   ~ 833
Interlibrary loan  ~  1,690
In house use   ~  567
Total Circulation  ~  6498
Computer use    ~ 718
Reference questions   ~  1,151
Number of patron visits to the library  ~  4,093