November 2014 Newsletter

Welcome November!

As we head into Fall, the Library continues to grow—not physically, but in what we are offering our patrons. Probably the most exciting, and most anticipated, is the addition of eight new computers to our adult computer section.  This now brings the number of public pcs to 15 in the adult area and 3 in the children’s section! We would like to thank both the Milford Board of Education and the City MIS Department for their assistance in making this happen.

We are also expanding the number of programs we offer each month.  Our Children’s Department has begun offering special Saturday Preschool Storytimes for those who can’t make it during the week.  Miss Danielle has reached out to our budding authors by hosting our first-ever Tween Writing Group. It’s amazing to see a packed room full of 9-12 year olds enthusiastically sharing their stories and love of writing.  Our young readers will also be doing some sharing as we welcome our canine friends from Pet Partners!  Brasil, Bogie, Sadie and Scooter are Reading Assistance Education Dogs and children in grades K through 5 can sign up for some one-on-one practice reading time. Many studies have shown that using therapy dogs as reading buddies encourages children to practice reading and lessens their anxieties about their reading proficiency, thus contributing to gains in their reading ability. Cuddling up with one of these gentle dogs will be a highlight of the day for many children.

The Adult Department continues Tuesday movies. This month’s theme is food!  What else during the month of Thanksgiving! Movie titles this month include, Big Night, Julie and Julia and Chocolat. No registration is necessary; drop in Tuesdays at 2:00 for some entertainment and popcorn.  Continuing on the food theme, we are also showing a special screening and discussion of GMO OMG, a film dealing with the issues of genetically modified foods. This topic is sure to raise a lot of questions – come be part of the discussion on Monday, November 17^th.

From food we switch to programs on historical Connecticut. This Wednesday, November 12, Art Historian Amy Trout, will give a lecture on the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the art created under its direction. This lecture is part of the Milford Arts Council’s ADOPT A MURAL effort to restore a discovered WPA mural which will hang in the Library. Our other program focuses on a Connecticut icon, the G. Fox Department Store.  This is a wonderful program sure to make you relive memories of the store in its heyday. Presented by the CT Historical Society.   

Finally, join us in kicking off the holiday season with a concert by the Young at Heart Bell & Chime Choir on Thursday, November 20^th.  If you missed them last year, I can tell you they charmed the crowd with their renditions of old and new songs, played entirely with bells!  Not to be missed!

All of these programs are in addition to our regular story times, book clubs, computer classes, and genealogy and educational workshops. To make this information easier to find, we have redirected the url for our online catalog, www.milfordlibrary.org, to bring you right to our website; from there you can click on the link to be taken to the online catalog.  If this redirect does not work for you, you may have to clear out the cookies or cache in your computer.

As always, if you have any questions, give us a call!

See you in the Library!

Chris Angeli
Library Director