Newsletter - Port Townsend Public Library

Friends of the
Port
Townsend
Library
Summer
Newsletter
Into the (Endensaw) Woods
with Charlie Moore
by Linda Martin
(This story is reprinted from the Friends Newsletter, Summer
2009. A Celebration of Charlie’s life will be held on June 15 at
the NW Maritime Center.)
The young man, new to the Alaskan wilderness, needed
to build a house -- and fast. Winter was approaching. But
what little he knew about houses came from living in one
for 21 years, his entire life. How would he learn the
diverse skills necessary to achieve such an ambitious
endeavor? That was the question. Charlie Moore found
the answer at the Fairbanks Public Library. He learned
everything he needed to know about building a weathertight single-family home in the “Union Carpenters’
Apprenticeship training Manual.” Her refers to that book
today, his personal copy, not the library’s, at Edensaw
Woods of Port Townsend and Kent, WA.
“That experience made me realize that I could complete
almost any task I undertook with access to a free library
collection,” he says from a spacious office on Seton Road
in Port Townsend.
“Libraries really support
democracy.” According to
Charlie, young people
with few resources, can go
to a library and learn
enough to launch
themselves in life. “Isn’t
that what democracy’s all
about?”
The newly elected
president of the Port
Townsend Library
Foundation came to PT to
2013
learn wooden boat building more than 30 years ago. He
became hooked on the community and the friendly folk
he found here. Charlie’s fascination with wooden boats is
obvious – Wooden Boat Festival posters line the office
walls. Then there’s a curious print featuring a stunning
inlaid guitar used by Madonna’s lead musician, a
reflection of Charlie’s diverse wood-related hobbies.
After retirement, he hopes to build custom guitars from
the exotic woods he stocks at Edensaw, exotic and
domestic woods prized by carvers and boat builders,
alike. The Edensaw name is a tribute to Charles
Edenshaw, “the most accomplished Haida wood carver
who ever lived.”
Charlie Moore’s roots run deep in Jefferson County.
Many family members followed him here from the Upper
Midwest, settling in Seattle or the immediate area. He
remembers taking his children, now young adults, to
story time at the Carnegie Library. “I love the comfortable
atmosphere of that old building, and the way the staff
makes you feel welcome.” Charlie, his business partner
Jim Ferris, and members of their staff, have been giving
back to the community since they started Edensaw Woods
in Jim’s backyard. The business, which began with a used
J.C. Penny truck, some blue tarps and a few thousand
dollars, has grown to employ more than 40 workers today.
When an employee was diagnosed with cancer, the
partners established the ECCF Edensaw Community
Cancer Fund to help families of East Jefferson County
cancer patients with basic living expenses, such as food,
gas, and car repairs. The Edensaw partners and staff also
support other locally based community service non-profit
organizations.
While sitting in front of his flat-screen PC monitor, an
iPhone at his side, I asked Charlie if he thought the
Internet would ever render public libraries obsolete. “Not
a chance,” he replied. “I love my iPhone,” he says,
laughing, “but I could never have built that house with a
laptop perched on a stump.”
From the Library Director
Theresa Rini Percy
was funded by a Washington State
Heritage Capital Projects Fund grant.
Our original plan called for the next
phases of the project to expand the
Library with a 2-level annex and
basement, as well as to perform
detailed exterior site work. However,
economic realities facing both the
City and the Foundation lead to the
Preferred Alternative, which is a
worthwhile, and financially prudent,
plan for the renovation, restoration,
and expansion of our Library.
Photo by Barney Burke
T
he Port Townsend Public Library
expansion and improvement
project has been a journey of
celebration and challenges. We
celebrate the 2012 restoration of the
1868 Charles A. Pink House/Library
Learning Center with its 1,815 square
feet of library program and meeting
rooms and offices. This was achieved
with funding by individual and
business donations and grants to the
Port Townsend Public Library
Foundation Capital Campaign. We
also celebrate major progress on the
renovation and restoration of the
1913 Carnegie Building: the 2012
seismic upgrade funded by the
Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) and the City, as well
as numerous 2012 non-seismic
repairs. The latter include stucco
repair/paint, exterior doors and
windows repair/replacement,
window sills repair, wall plaster
repair/paint, new storm windows
fabricated and installed, metal
shelves removal and salvage, and
electrical outlets reset. All this work
On May 6, 2013, the Port Townsend
City Council voted to put a $3 million
library bond measure on the August
6, 2013, ballot to partially fund
construction of the Preferred
Alternative, which includes
1) enlarging our Library
from 8,290 square feet to 13,425
square feet (62% increase),
2) completing restoration of
the Carnegie Building, including the
Reading Room, and
3) providing for essential
repairs to the exterior stairs and
retaining walls.
A
new two-story annex will
replace the existing one-story
annex. This will provide a 57%
increase in linear shelving for
collections, a significant increase in
computer space, and will allow the
entire ground floor of the original
Carnegie Building to be used for the
children’s library, with adequate
space for early learning programs.
The annex will be designed so that it
may be enlarged in the future.
The Port Townsend Library
Foundation entered into an
agreement with the City, specifying
that the Foundation is obligated to
provide $1.2 million for Preferred
Alternative construction costs if the
$3 million bond passes—resulting in
the total estimated $4.2 million cost of
Preferred Alternative construction.
Much, but not all, of this $1.2 million
is already in hand or pledged from
individual and business donations
and grants to the Foundation Capital
Campaign.
Capital Campaign fundraising
continues, and is of utmost
importance at this time. The
Foundation has received National
Endowment for the Humanities
(NEH) Challenge Grant CH-51077,
which offers up to $500,000 in
funding for the renovation and
expansion of the Library at the
Carnegie site. All donations, pledges,
and applicable grants to the Capital
Campaign will be used to meet the
fundraising match required by the
NEH Challenge Grant.
Once the $1.2 million is raised for
construction of the Preferred
Alternative, Foundation fundraising
will continue to provide furniture,
fixtures, and equipment for the
renovated, restored, and expanded
Library.
TYour first-time or additional
his is an exciting and critical time.
donations to the Capital Campaign
for constructing and equipping the
Preferred Alternative are needed
now. Thank you for your support
and we look forward to a new and
improved library that will continue to
serve Port Townsend now and into
the future.
Ardent Spirits
Leaving Home, Coming Back
A memoir by Reynolds Price
Commentary and review by Dick Conway
A
mericans have always been eager to tell the story of
their lives. It started with Ben Franklin’s
autobiography and the genre gained momentum as the
country grew. Perhaps this was an early and enduring
example of American exceptionalism: we have always
assured the world and ourselves that we were special. As
Reagan put it, "I've always believed that this blessed land
was set apart in a special way."
Despite the plethora of memoirs today—I expect to see
soon “My Life as a Widget Counter”—we have three
expectations for an autobiographical account: it should be
by someone who has done something interesting, or
someone who has known interesting people, or someone
who writes a lucid, crisp, evocative prose. The best
memoirs, of course, fulfill all three.
Perhaps the most common example of the American life
story today is the book “written” by recent politicians
recounting (read “inventing” or “just plain lying about”)
their deeds in office. Here is the conundrum of the
memoir writer made plain—men and women of action are
seldom able to articulate their deeds with the power and
the personality that distinguished them in public life; and
writers are persons who spend most of their time alone in
a small room peering at a computer screen.
The subject of this review, Reynolds Price, has spent a
typical writer’s life, alone in his house in the woods near
the Duke University campus. However fulfilling such a
life may be—the joy of finding one’s vision in prose; the
triumph of seeing that vision published and read—
it does not lend itself to an exciting narrative. And so
Price has published memoirs of his life as a boy and of the
harrowing details of spinal cancer in his forties, which left
him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Ardent Spirits (the title is taken from Thomas Jefferson’s
wine cellar, where Bordeaux and Burgundies abounded
but only a few “ardent spirits” were kept “for those few
friends who required them”) is a fond recollection of the
good friends of Price’s youth who brought him a
happiness never attained in later years that brought him
fame and fortune instead.
This memoir fulfills my second criterion above, for Price,
as an ardent young man himself, had a way of meeting
and charming an array of
well-known interesting
persons. (His experiences as
a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford
are interesting too,
especially to Anglophiles
like me.) In his pages we
meet W. H. Auden, Stephen
Spender, John Gielgud,
David Cecil, Neville Coghill;
we tour a still war-torn
Europe in 1954 and sit with
Price in an empty, sunbathed Coliseum “on a seat
occupied no doubt by the butts of many generations of
bloodthirsty Romans.” Later we meet precocious Anne
Tyler, first his student and then his peer.
O
n a transatlantic liner, Price even manages to meet
and swap stories with Alan Campbell, husband of the
legendary Dorothy Parker. And so Price has a Dottie
anecdote, one he believes has never seen print before.
When Parker and Campbell had sat through a tedious
movie based on the Kinsey Report, a studio hack asked her
for a few (hopefully complimentary) words. “In my
opinion,” Dottie shot back, “this film will set [effing] back
fifty years.”
BOOK THE DATE!
The weekend of October 14, 2013 is the 100th
anniversary of the Carnegie Library on Lawrence
St. The weekend will culminate in a Grand
Celebration in the Carnegie Library Reading Room
on the Second Floor. Other special exhibits and
events will be announced and held throughout the
year in recognition of the important year for the
Port Townsend Library.
To review the Library Expansion options to be
President’s Letter
By Geralynn Rackowski
Continued thanks to all Members of the Friends and
others who contribute so generously of their time,
energy and dollars.
Our annual meeting is June 11 at 5 pm. Please join
us at Siren’s for a nibbles and “no host” bar for an
update on current Friends activities, plans and
election of officers.
T
he Encore jobs retooling workshops, offered in March
and April, 2013, have been successfully concluded.
Targeted for those in our community between the ages of
50 and 69, this multi-leveled program involved basic
computer training; an introduction to the Internet; two
classes on social media; and four local speakers discussing
what motivates them to continue re-inventing their
careers. Well received by the attendees, the program
consistently proved useful to those wanting to get back
into today's changed job market, and increased their
knowledge about incorporating technology into the job
search. It was funded by a grant from the Washington
State Library as well as funding from the Institute of
Museum and Library Services, and generously supported
by the Friends of the Port Townsend Library.
Adult Reading
Program begins
June 15
This summer we will
continue our popular
Adult Summer Reading
Program on June 15. Every entry of a book review
will receive a coupon for a pot of tea or special
iced tea at Pippa’s Real Tea on Water Street. At
the end of the summer we will draw from all the
entries for a Friends of the Library tote bag full
of literary gifts donated by the Friends of the
Library. Thank you Friends!
The Friends mission is to provide services, programs
and materials for the library that are beyond the
means of the city budget, for the cultural and
educational enrichment of the community.
The librarians and volunteers provide frequent
programs, many of which are funded by your
contributions to Friends of the Library. Donations
come from member dues, the tri-annual Book Sales
and special events. The Friends have an ongoing
bookstore to the left of the front door -- pay at the
checkout desk.
In 2012 the Friends funded the following:
Community Read – Craig Lesley’s Winterkill; Summer
reading programs for kids, teens and adults; Teen
Community Read; Arts and crafts projects; Story hours
for babies, toddlers, and children; Books for Babies;
Adult programs --- author readings, knitting
programs, book clubs, surfing program; Hard Times
and Transition Yourself workshops; Cultural Literacy
In 2012 Friends of the Port Townsend library again
raised over $20,000 from membership, book sales and
special activities which fund 2013 purchases and
activities. In addition we received almost $4,000 in
grants for programs in 2012. Grants and Designated
Donations may be given to sponsor specific programs
or special purchases requested by the giver. In
addition, individual Friends Board members continue
working hard to support the Library Capital
Campaign; giving time, money and energy to this
needed project.
Friends of the Port Townsend Library is a 501(c) 3
non-profit. Donations are tax deductible as allowed.
What we are reading…
Macy Mullarky read Round House by Louise Erdrich,
winner of the 2012 National Book Award. She says it is
both a compelling mystery and coming of age story of Joe,
a 13 year old Chippewa boy on the reservation in North
Dakota. A crime is committed and complications that
ensue around issues of tribal versus nontribal laws and
beliefs carry the reader on a rollercoaster ride with humor
and honesty. Beautifully written and character driven,
Erdrich’s latest novel is a treasure to read.
Renee Bush just finished Drinking Water: a History by
James Salzman. Climate change is exacerbating problems
of access to clean water, but Salzman's book shows it's
"Deja vu all over again." Empires have fallen because of
their inability to provide clean water; removing a pump
handle from a filthy well in 19th century London stopped
a cholera epidemic and led to improved water
sanitation. Is clean water a commodity to be sold or a
basic human right? This interesting and well-written
book looks at how issues around water have been solved
in the past (or not) and how we should begin to face these
issues before we're left "without a drop to drink."
Merliee Clunis just read Quiet by Susan Cain.
In a highly readable style, Susan Cain clarifies what it's
like to be an introvert in a culture that idealizes
extroversion. Interweaving research and stories of real
people, she untangles the complicated inter-relationships
between introversion, shyness and sensitivity. And she
provides practical advice for introverts and parents of
introverted children about how to thrive in an extroverted
world.
snowfields, and missed connections with food drops. She
is also taking an inner journey to heal from her mother’s
recent death, a divorce, and the other issues that arise
from significant losses. You may have seen Cheryl when
she came to PT for a talk at the library last July.
Colleen Friedberg has been reading Margot Livesey:
first Criminals, now The House on Fortune Street. Of the
latter Geraldine Brooks wrote “Structurally daring and
compulsively readable, The House on Fortune Street
illuminates the complexities of love in some of its most
difficult guises, and of loss in all of its immensity.” Both
novels are set in contemporary Scotland, birthplace of the
author, now a Cambridge, MA resident. The narratives of
the characters are woven ingeniously as the author shows
us how much luck -- good and bad --plays a vital role in
our lives.
Anne Holman shares her thoughts on Luncheon of the
Boating Party by Susan Vreeland. She says this book is a
bit of paradise for a plein aire painter. To see French
landscapes, the River Seine, the women, flowers and food
through the eyes and thoughts of Auguste Renoir was
delicious! The marvelous way that Vreeland fills in the
gaps from her imagination makes the characters and the
painting come to life for me. I hated to finish the book.
June is Membership month!
Gillian Flynn. She says it’s a good read with an
interesting twist from “who done it” to “what was
done?” All the characters lie or tell half-truths. It was fun
to try to figure out where the truth lives. About the time I
started getting bored everything changed, twice! It is well
written and the characters are nicely drawn. Everyone I
know who read it has different feelings about the
ending. A fine summer page turner.
It’s a great time to join or renew your
membership to the Friends of the Library. Our
membership year runs from June 1st to May 31. There
are several ways for you to pay your membership: fill
out the paper form in-person at the library, renew
while at the June 8th Used Book and Media sale,
download a renewal form on the library website and
mail it in, or try out our new option of paying by
credit card online. You can find the Friends page on
the library website by clicking on “Support Your
Library” on the menu along the left side, and then
clicking “Friends.”
www.ptpubliclibrary.org
Ellen Dustman read Wild by Cheryl Strayed. She says
Your membership dues make a difference.
Geralynn Rackowski’s latest read is Gone Girl by
that whether you are an armchair explorer or an
inveterate backpacker, you'll enjoy reading about Cheryl's
challenges as this 27 year old hikes the Pacific Crest Trail.
This is her first ever time backpacking! But it's not just a
predictable tale of severely stressed feet, critters,
We all need Friends. Our public library
appreciates and values its Friends, too.
We’re Celebrating
our 100th Birthday!
The Port Townsend Public Library’s
2013 Summer Reading Program
How does the Summer Reading
Program work? Participants keep track
of the books they read in a special
reading log. Being read to or listening
to audio books counts, too. Read books
that are interesting and challenging,
keep track of the titles, and when you
have read 8 books, come in to choose
your FREE BOOK and enter a drawing for a new BIKE! This
summer we are celebrating our 100th birthday!
Our programs will take place in many locations this year, so
please read the calendar carefully.
Opening Day Celebration!
Magician Louie Foxx kicks off the Summer Reading program!
Friday, June 21, 2:00-3:00pm Carnegie Library 1220 Lawrence
St.
Baby Lapsit
(Library Learning Center)
Thursdays 1:00pm
Stories, songs, fingerplays, and puppets .
Ages birth-12 months
Toddler Storytime (Library Learning Center)
Thursdays 10:30am
Stories, songs, fingerplays, movement, a very active time.
Ages 12-36 months
Preschool Storytime
(Mt. View Children’s Library)
Tuesdays 10:30 am
Stories, songs, and activities
Ages 3 -5
Read to Rover (Mt. View Children’s Library)
July 11-Aug 1st
Thursdays 10:30 -11:45 am
Young readers are invited to improve their reading skills by
reading aloud for 15 minutes to one of the specially trained dogs
in the R.E.A.D. program.
“Just Right for You” (Grant St. School Library)
July 10th-Aug.14th
Wednesdays 10:30-11:30 am
For children entering Kindergarten and 1st grade. Special fun
literacy enhanced storytimes and activities.
Special Events at the Library
Robot Garage! Mt. View Gym
Ages 9 & up 2:00-3:30pm.
Monday, July 8th
YES, build your own robot! Museum of Flight instructors will
provide assistance as you use a robotic kit to explore the basic
engineering required to build a successful terrestrial rover. A
picture will be taken of you and your robot.
Class size is limited to the first 35 to arrive!
Mathblast ! Mt. View Gym
Ages 9 & up
11:00-11:45am.
Monday, July 15th
How do we use math in our everyday lives? This interactive
show uses volunteers, games and a thrilling chemical reaction to
demonstrate that math truly is a blast. Instructors are from the
Pacific Science Center.
Volts & Jolts! Mt. View Gym
Ages 9 & up
1:00-1:45 pm
Monday, July 15
Electricity is illuminated in a series of shocking experiments!
Explore the properties of electricity with our hair-raising Van de
Graaff Generator and Tesla Coil. Instructors are from the Pacific
Science Center.
Super Cool Science Show!
Mt. View Gym
Ages 9 & up 11:00-11:45 pm
Monday, July 22
Discover what happens
when things get super cool
with liquid nitrogen! Watch
as gases become liquids,
liquids become solids and
matter fizzes, freezes and
flies. Instructors are from
the Pacific Science Center.
Radical Reactions! Mt.
View Gym Ages 9 & up 1:00-1:45p.m.
Monday, July 22
Chemistry explodes onto the scene with radical reactions, where
flames ignite in blue and green and rainbows exist in glass tubes.
Instructors are from the Pacific Science Center.
Lego Mania! Mt.View Gym Ages 6 & up 11-12:30p.m.
Monday, July 29
Everyone is a winner in this LEGO challenge. We will supply all
building materials; you bring your creativity and good humor!
Tears of Joy Puppet Theater presents
“20,000 Leagues under the Sea”
Carnegie Library on Lawrence St. Friday, July 12
2:00pm
Ages 6 up
Family friendly show combines humor with the science and
technology imagined by Jules Verne.
Harmonica Pocket Celebrates the Library’s Birthday!
Carnegie Library
Friday, July 26
2:00p.m
All Ages
Summer Reading Field Day Party Mt. View Commons
Friday, Aug. 9 1-3pm All ages
Join us for an afternoon of fun fitness activities and healthy
snacks! We will also announce the winners of the bikes.
All events are free thanks to our generous Summer Reading
sponsors and partners: Friends of the PT Library, PT School
District, Masonic Lodge #6, JeffCO Parks and Rec. and YMCA.
For more information call 379-2980 or 385-3181.
Please become a FRIEND of the Port Townsend Library TODAY!
NAME______________________________________
□ NEW MEMBER □ RENEWAL
ADDRESS___________________________________
____________________________________________
PHONE_____________________________________
E-MAIL_____________________________________
Amount of donation $___________________
(tax deductible)
□ Individual……. $10
□ Family………..$20
□ Supporting…..$50
□ Sustaining.…. $100
□ Patron……. ...$500 or more
□ Business……$100 or more
(Your business card will be featured in each newsletter for the
membership year.)
□ Additional Gift $______
Total of your tax-deductible donation $_______
FOPTL is qualified for tax exemption under
Section 501 (C) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and your
contribution is tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
If you would like to volunteer, we’d love to have you. Please
indicate your area(s) of interest:
□ Book sales
□ Membership drives
□ Fundraising events
□ In-library service
□ Newsletter / publicity
□ Special events/Advocacy
□ I have an idea, call me!
Annual membership runs from June 1st until May 31st.
Dues may be paid at the library, at the book sale or by
completing this form and sending it with your check, made
out to “FOPTL” or, “Friends of the Port Townsend Public
Library,” to:
Friends of the Port Townsend Library
1220 Lawrence St.
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Friends of the
Port Townsend Public Library
1220 Lawrence St.
Port Townsend, WA 98368
www.ptpubliclibrary.org
Friends of the Port Townsend Library (FOPTL)
provides services, programs, and materials for the library that are beyond the means
of the city budget, for the cultural and educational enrichment of the community.
FOPTL publishes three newsletters each year -- spring, summer, and fall. Members
may receive their newsletter via email or post. Everyone can read the publication at
www.ptpubliclibrary.org or pick up a printed copy at the Port Townsend Library.
Everyone is welcome to attend an FOPTL Board meeting, held on the second
Wednesday each month, 4:00 pm, at the Library Learning Center (at the corner of
Lawrence and Harrison). If you are interested in any volunteer activity of a Board
position, please phone Geralynn at 385-1206.
Board Members
President: Geralynn Rackowski
Vice President: Renee Bush
Secretary: Merilee Clunis
Treasurer: Phyllis Marckworth
Hospitality: Gwen Lovett
Membership: Ellen Dustman
Newsletter: Linda Martin
Programs: Anne Holman
Public Information:
Kathleen Hawn
Book Sales: Macy Mullarky
Members at Large:
Colleen Freidberg
(Open seat)
(Open seat)