Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

 Merry Christmas!

Here's wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and a healthy and happy New Year!  Amy will be out of the office most of the week but she will be only a phone call away should the need arise.

We will also have some seasonal help in the form of Anna Pearson and Amy Steadman. 

And remember-- we will be closed on New Year's Eve!


Thank You!
If you were wondering from whence came all the goodies in the break room, we have Carl and Sarah Williams to thank for the first round.  They are wonderful volunteers and library supporters.  Patron BJ Helton brought in all the cookies and cupcakes, and Becky Wilkerson sent her luscious cranberry bread.  Thank you, Carl & Sarah, BJ, and Becky!!

Happy Birthday

Christy H December 28

Selena December 29*

*Sorry about your cookie!

Did you know. . .

 we have a koala on staff?

Important updates: Party & New Year's Eve!

Staff Christmas Party 

Due to the dicey weather forecast, Amy has decided to hold off on the Staff Christmas Party until after New Year's Day.  Parties are great, but getting people home safely is more important.  Stay tuned for the new time and location!

Speaking of Bad Weather...

Amy will be up bright and early on Sunday. If conditions are bad enough to cause any schedule changes, she will notify supervisors who will in turn contact the staff affected.

In addition, Rebecca is changing the due dates of materials so that anything due on Dec. 9-12 will be due on the 14th instead.  We'll be letting folks know through social media, so (cross fingers!) it may cut down on phone calls and frustration.

New Year's Eve

Since the offices of the City of Bristol, Virginia will be closed on New Year's Eve, the Bristol Public Library and the Avoca Branch Library will be CLOSED on Monday, Dec. 31.  Happy New Year! 

Christmas Party, News, and Notes

The Staff Christmas Party will be at Amy's house on Saturday, December 8, starting at 6 pm.  It's okay to come early; the time is meant to make it easier for people who work that day to arrive without having to rush.  BPL will provide turkey, ham, and sodas.  Check the sign up white board near Circulation to see what others are bringing so we don't end up with, say, sixteen bowls of mashed potatoes.  (Mmmmmm, mashed potatoes!)

                                                              

You may bring adult beverages to share if you wish.

 

Reminders

• There will be no Board of Trustees meeting in December
• The JCC will be closing early on on Thursday, December 6 and will be closed Friday, December 7

 Of Note

When leaving a note for Brenda G., Judy, or anyone, really, please sign the note.  It makes it difficult to respond to a request if the recipient doesn't recognize the handwriting.

Patron News

Many of you will know Michael Hooton, an enthusiastic reader and long time library patron.  Unfortunately, he passed away recently.  His obituary is here.

Also, frequent patron Elliott Watson was in an accident and suffered a broken leg. He is recovering but hopes to be back at the library soon.

Happy Birthday

Joan      December 6

Kim      December 8

Staff News

Amy Makes News

Amy reveals her first taste of gainful employment!

My First Job

Thanks!

Thanks to all who worked so hard to make a fabulous "Welcome to the 60s Feast"!  So much good food and so many wonderful cooks.  Take a bow, folks! The taco soup, the chili, the rice and beans, deviled eggs, rice krispie treats, and oh, so much more! 

Brenda's creepy and delicious spider eggs!

See you all tomorrow for Staff Training Day!

Staff Training Day, Staff News

Training Day:  Friday, November 2

Training Day is upon us!  We are asking that people arrive at 8:30; training will start promptly at 9 am.  Arrive early if you intend to take a pre-training bathroom break, have coffee, and/or enjoy a selection of Blackbird doughnuts!

Those who are not usually scheduled to work on Fridays will receive a day of comp time.  Have a suggestion of something you would like to cover during training?  Let Amy know ASAP!

Also, a matter of vital importance:  your lunch choice.  Let Brenda know by noon on Wednesday your preference from the Quaker Steak and Lube menu.  Otherwise, you will settle for potluck.  Or possibly leftover cake.

Staff News

Former staff member Janice Crowe is recovering from hip surgery.  She would appreciate thoughts and prayers.

Congratulations to T.J. DeWitt and Amy Steadman!  They'll be making it official in November.

Also, best wishes to Judy who has some pretty nice new jewelry of her own!

Puzzles, Halloween, Reminders, Birthdays

Puzzled?

Need to get rid of some old puzzles?  Ambrea would like to do crafts with puzzles!  Win-win! Condition doesn't matter, whether or not pieces are missing doesn't matter, just bring 'em in!

Halloween

Remember, there will be a staff potluck on Halloween--that's next Wednesday for the chronologically impaired.  Ambrea is bringing taco soup and peanut butter rice krispies (yum!), Kristin will bring something (yum!), Brenda G. will bring something (yum!), and Jeanne will bring cake because we just have not had enough cake lately. Also it will be store-bought cake which is infinitely preferable to anything she might attempt to make.

Also, that's the day we're asking folks to dress up in 60s garb, so break out the peace signs and the tie-dye!

Reminders

Friday, November 2 is Staff Training Day

Fall back to Standard  Time on Sunday, Nov. 4! 

Happy Birthday

Ashley October 25

Judy  October 27

Halloween!

Halloween!

Those who like to dress up in costume will have ample opportunity the next couple of weeks!  Michelle will host the children's Afterschool Halloween party on  Tuesday, October 23, starting at 6 pm.  There will also be two Halloween storytimes in which the children can trick or treat upstairs:  Monday, October 29 and Tuesday, October 30.

There isn't anything scheduled in the library on October 31, so I would like to suggest that those so inclined dress up as hippies, flower children, and other 1960s things.  Yes, break out the tie-die shirts, the bell-bottomed pants, and the Nehru jackets!  Put on your Beatles wigs (I'm looking at you, Kristin) and your go-go boots! This isn't mandatory, but I think it might be fun to have a "theme" Halloween.

Frankenstein Events

The programs on October 29 and 30 both revolve around the 200th anniversary of the book Frankenstein.  We are only providing the space for these programs; both presenters are from King University and King is sponsoring the one on the 29th. There is an article with some information here. 

And by the way, Tinseltown at Exit 7 will be showing the theatrical production of Frankenstein starring Jonny Miller and Benedict Cumberbatch on Monday, Oct. 22 and on Oct. 29.  The one on the 22nd has Cumberbatch as the Monster and Miller as Dr. Frankenstein; on the 29th, the roles are reversed.  I have seen both and highly recommend seeing both.

Happy Boss's Day, Amy!

 

We appreciate all the hard work you put in our behalf.  You rock!

Christy L. October 20
Brenda G.  October 21

Staff News, Universal Class

Condolences

As some of you may know, Selena's mother passed away this week.  Please keep Selena and her family in your thoughts and prayers this week. 

Here is a link to the obituary: Mary Alice Honaker Artrip

Universal Class

If you have checked out the library's homepage in the past couple of weeks, you may have come across an exciting new offering: Universal Class, which offers over 500 different courses, all for free.  Some of the courses will qualify for Continuing Education, providing that the course pertains to your job here. 

And if you haven't checked out FindItVirginia for awhile, you will be surprised at all the new items they have to offer!

Belated Happy Birthday!

Garry (JCC)      October 2

                    

Staff Training Day, Canvas Class, Happy Birthday!

Staff Training Day

The library will close on Friday, November 2, for a Staff Training Day.  This will count toward your Continuing Education hours, so it's a good way to get a number of them in! If you are not scheduled to work that day, you will be given comp time for attending. 

Canvas Class

Ambrea says that the October 17 Canvas Class is already full.  Please take the name and number of anyone interested and Ambrea can contact them in the event of a cancellation.

Happy Birthday

Lisa  October 6

Flu Shot, R&R, Happy Anniversary!

Last Call For R&R!

Remember, if you are going to work Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, you  should  sign the sheet by the time clock.  We will try to reserve spaces for those coming in to work, so we need a count.

Flu Shots

Yes, it's that time again! If you wish to take advantage, make arrangements with your supervisor as to what time and day. 

Details, per City Hall:

As part of the City’s wellness awareness, the seasonal flu clinic for employees again this year will be administered by Mount Rogers Health District.  As always, receiving a flu shot is voluntary.  Only active employees and their spouses are being offered a vaccination.  At-Work employees are ineligible. 

All participants must have a copy of their current insurance card (front and back) attached to the completed flu encounter form before they get the vaccine.  If you are unable to meet the schedule requirements as set forth below, then you may present your insurance card and get a vaccination from any participating pharmacy with The Local Choice/Anthem BC/BS or your physician at no cost.   See attached list of pharmacies or visit www.anthem.com/tlc.

The vaccines will be administered in City Hall near the Council Chambers and the schedule is as follows:

            Thursday, October 4, 2018                          1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

            Monday, October 22, 2018                           9:30 am – 11:30 am

All participants will be required to sign a consent form at time of vaccination releasing the City of Bristol Virginia and Mount Rogers Health District staff from any liability which may arise as a result of taking the vaccine.    

No appointment necessary.  Please contact HR with any questions

Brenda G. & Gary:  Fifty years together! Congratulations!

Welcome, Jaden! R&R, birthdays, & good wishes

Welcome, Jaden!

We are so pleased to have Jaden join the BPL staff as the new Teen Librarian!  Jaden's previous job was with the Washington County, Tennessee library system in Youth Services.  If you haven't had a chance to meet her yet, stop by and introduce yourself!

Rhythm and Roots

The annual music festival is almost upon us!  If you plan to work Friday, Saturday, or Sunday, please add your name to the list beside the time clock.  If you do not plan to work on one of your scheduled days, you will need to fill out a leave slip and use vacation or comp time.

September Birthdays

Patrick September 8

Nicki September 12

Laura September 14

A Message for Ambrea & Justin:

 (Also congratulations and best wishes!)

Computer Shut Downs, Kudos, & Congrats!

Leave the Computers ON!

From Holston IT: Please leave your computers on at all times.  When you leave, save everything and logoff, but do NOT turn the computers off.  They need time afterhours to run updates and backups.  This is easier if the computers are already on.  

Kudos to Brenda G. & Kristin!

This dynamic duo presented research on local artist Rhea Wells at a meeting of the Heritage Alliance.  Check out the article here!

Congratulations, Ambrea & Justin!

Joyce's hats were a definite hit with the happy couple!

Best wishes to you both!

Vote, Happy Birthday

Vote For Bristol's Promise Twin City Reads!

 If you are able, please sign up and vote for a project near and dear to our hearts. You may see some familiar faces in the video, too!

Register and VOTE for Bristol's Promise Twin City Reads video with First TN Bank Foundation Video Competition.

https://25yearsofgiving.submittable.com/gallery/c5b1cf78-1e44-4e41-a56f-49080b1efd25/10838015/

 Please Vote Daily!!!  Top 30 videos move on for the change to win up to $25,000 for their projects!

PLEASE share with everyone for voting!  And keep sharing!  

Twin City Reads is the organizing force for Grade- Level Reading that uses a collective impact model to focus on reading across our community with the shared goal of reading on grade level by the third grade.  

Data will be collected and shared between community partners working on reading throughout Bristol TN/VA.  This group shares the ideals and goals of a network called “The Campaign for Grade-Level Reading” (CGRL).

The current steering committee for Twin City Reads consists of representatives from the United Way of Bristol TN/VA, Bristol Public Library, Bristol’s Promise: Youth Networking Alliance, Reading Buddies TN/VA and business community representatives.   This larger effort is designed to be a collective impact approach with foundations, nonprofit partners, business leaders, faith groups, community service organizations, schools and government agencies across our community to ensure that children succeed in school and graduate prepared for college, a career, and active citizenship.

The effort focuses on an important predictor of school success and high school graduation, which is grade-level reading by the end of third grade. 

Margaret Feierabend

Bristol's Promise

 

Happy Birthday

Brenda D. August 15

Justin  August 16

Kristin August 21

T.J.  August 24

BPL in the News, TEL, and a Sad Farewell

Hooray for Michelle!

Michelle's stellar children's program got the BPL a mention at CNN!  Read the article here. Also, here is the article from the Bristol Herald Courier's story about the Summer Reading Program:  Bristol Public Library Summer Reading Program

Which brings us to another favorable piece from the Herald Courier:
Take a New Look At the Bristol Public Library 

 Bristol in the Washington Post

We did print off a copy of the recent Washington Post article about Bristol and have a copy available at the Reference Desk if anyone wants to read it off line.

Thanks for the Yums!

Many thanks to all of those who made our staff lunch memorable!  So much good food! Everything was delicious.  The Kitchen Witch was impressed with the clean-up help as well as the good folks who help day in and day out to keep the kitchen in shape. She has some small treats in the kitchen for Judy, Christy H, Brenda G, Candess, Ambrea, and Joyce.  If she missed rewarding someone, it was because she was too dazzled by the sumptuous feast to keep proper track.  Leave her a note with the name of the overlooked, and she will rectify the situation.

And Speaking of the Kitchen Witch. . . 

 She left Jeanne a Pusheen! Totally undeserved but very much appreciated! Thank you, KW!! 

Tennessee Electronic Library

TEL has a new look and some new offerings!  Take a few minutes to check out what's new.
Tennessee Electronic Library

Continuing to Learn...

Here is an interesting article from Entrepreneur magazine with the headline "The most successful people on the planet are also the people likeliest to devote an hour a day to reading and learning."

The Five Hour Rule

We'll Miss You, Amber!

Sad but true:  Amber will be leaving us this month.  She's been a wonderful co-worker and Teen Librarian as well as a bright and shining light for BPL.  We wish you the best of luck moving forward, and hope you will keep in touch.

  
Happy Birthday

Don  July 24

Janice H  August 8

Joe (Main Volunteer) August 9

Pam Neal August 9

Condolences, Continuing Ed, Birthday

Condolences to Janice & Family

For those of you who haven't heard, Bill Hoelscher passed away this week. He will be missed by so many, but especially by his wife, Janice.   You can read the obituary here.

Continuing Education

Welcome to a new fiscal year!  Tennessee has instituted some new rules for CE, one of which is that the training session must be at least one hour to count.  This means that a 50 minute webinar can NOT be counted for CE hours.   Check before you invest your time; even though it may be worthy and useful, a program may not earn you CE hours.

Happy Birthday

Bill (Avoca)  July 6

Security questions, birthdays, more

Security and Camera Questions

Remember, no one can view security footage without permission from Amy.  All such requests should be directed to her. If anyone (such as a lawyer or someone from law enforcement)  has questions about a past incident, send them to Amy first. This is to try to keep the library from getting tangled unnecessarily in legal proceedings. Do not give out any names other than Amy's.

If anyone asks which guards were on duty on a specific day, give the name of our Security Company, 3D.  If the person persists, give them Amy's contact information.

Mount Readmore

We're getting in votes for the American authors who should grace Mt. Readmore.  Staff may vote once a day, and please encourage patrons to do so as well.  So far Shirley Jackson, Mark Twain, Harper Lee, Emily Dickinson, and John Green have multiple votes.   We have a very diverse list going on, including one vote for Neil Gaiman. . . hmmm.  Lives in the U.S., but generally considered a British author. We'll cross that bridge when and if we need to.

Janice H.

We have heard that there are some health issues in Janice's family.  While we don't know any details, we're sure that prayers and good thoughts would be appreciated.

Happy June Birthdays!

Michelle  June 4

Susie  June 7

Candess  June 17

Rebecca  June 29

And just in case you didn't see Tammy's cake....

Condolences, Recycling, Board Meeting, and More

Library Board of Trustees Meeting

The May Board Meeting has been changed to Thursday, May 24, one week later than usual.  Ambrea has put it on Facebook and changed the posted notice.

Condolences

We extend our sympathies to Brenda G. and her family on the passing of her husband's brother.  From Brenda G.:
  

"Stanley Jackson G’Fellers, 66, Gary’s middle brother, left this Earth Monday, May 14 at 2:00 p.m.  Stanley attended Steed College and ETSU, earning a B. S. degree. He was a long-term employee of Williams Electric in Johnson City. He requested that no obituary be published and no service be held. Despite the absence of these marker events, there is much to be done. Please keep Carolyn, Stanley’s wife of 26 years, his daughters Nikki and Stacye, and his two brothers Gary and Homer in your thoughts and lift them up as you feel called to do. Thank you."

Recycling Batteries

Nicki is our recycling champion!  She wanted everyone to know that if you have batteries at home to be recycled, just bring them to Reference and Nicki will take it from there.  Thanks!

A Visit from Chantelle!

Melba, Tommy, and Marva brought along the latest addition to the Peters clan, baby Chantelle! She is Heather's daughter and looks to be a very happy baby.  

Happy Birthday

Tammy May 15

Quoth the Melon, "Happy Birthday!"

Found Reviews
We thought this one was so funny we just left the book alone!  Click on the image to enlarge.