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News about Staff and Libraries in the Region

Emily Classon is the new Community Services Librarian at Memorial Hall Library (Andover) following the retirement of Norma Gammon.

Beverly Public Library offers Genealogy Course

Do your patrons ask you to show them how to do genealogy ? Or to do it for them? Now there is a place you can send them to learn how to do research on their own. The Beverly Public Library is offering a nine session course on how to do genealogy. Starting on Sunday, March 2nd at 2PM, Judith-Ann Fleuriel, a genealogist with over 35 years of experience both here and abroad, will be teaching beginners and mid-level genealogists how to find and do research in the broad variety of records available to them, both online and in repositories. Additional sessions will take place approximately every other Sunday afternoon. For more information, or for flyers, call Beverly Public Library at 978-921-6062.

Mary Gaeta is the Librarian for Our Lady of the Assumption School, in Lynnfield. They are a new member of NMRLS.

Maureen Beattie-Waterworth is the Librarian for Presentation of Mary Academy in Methuen, a new NMRLS member.

Rachel Penner is the Acting Director of Newbury Town Library.

Stevens Memorial Library in North Andover has new staff members. Kathleen Keenan is the new Assistant Director. Irja Finn is the new Head of Reference/YA Services. She replaces Addie Pearson who retired.

Peabody Library Awarded Community Reading Grant

The Peabody Institute Library, Peabody, has won a grant to conduct a community reading program from the federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act, administered by the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners.

The Peabody Institute Library received a $7500 federal IMSL/LSTA grant to be used for "Play By The Book". "Play By The Book" is designed to bring together residents of all ages and backgrounds by fostering book discussions as well as providing educational and recreational opportunities focused on the theme of baseball. Grant funds for "Play By The Book" will be used to build collections at all library locations, provide honoraria for program presenters, and purchase incentives and prizes for program activities. Official program activities are scheduled from Saturday, April 12 until Saturday, April 19 and will be announced separately. Additional program events will be scheduled throughout the 2008 baseball season.

Several book titles have been selected to serve as the basis for discussions throughout the city. For adults, the selected title is "The Natural," by Bernard Malamud. "High Heat" by Carl Deuker is the title for Young Adult readers. For children, four titles were selected for various reading levels: "The Boy Who Saved Baseball" by John Ritter, "Two Hot Dogs with Everything" by Paul Haven, "Players in Pigtails" by Shana Corey, and "Mudball" by Matt Tavares.

Community reading programs are designed to celebrate the written word and to encourage the exchange of ideas evoked by literature. Originally developed by the Washington Center for the Book at The Seattle Public Library in 1998, community reading programs are now held throughout the U.S.A. and around the world. Peabody's current program will be its fourth community reading program since 2002.

For more information on community reading programs visit The Center for the Book at the Library of Congress at: http://www.loc.gov/loc/cfbook/one-book.html. For more information about "Play By The Book" please call the Peabody Institute Library at 978.531.0100, Ext. 25.

Mary O'Connoll is the new Reference/Adult/Teen services librarian of Saugus Public Library. She was formerly the Librarian at Abiomed in Danvers. Natalie Layne is the new Children's Librarian.

Linda Callahan, Reference and Adult Services Librarian at the Wilmington Memorial Library retired in December, 2007. Linda had worked at the library since November 1996. She was instrumental in developing a variety of new services and programs including the successful town wide reading program "Wilmington Reads." Linda was also a creative force in spearheading the makeover of the library. The new Reference and Adult Services Librarian is Katie Huffman. She will begin working at the library on February 12th. Katie received her Master's Degree in Library Science from the University of Alabama and is currently working at MIT's Hayden Library. Charlotte Wood, Technical Services Librarian at the Wilmington Memorial Library, was appointed to the position of Assistant Library Director on December 31st. Charlotte developed the library's technology plan which won her a trip to the 2007 American Library Association (ALA) annual conference in June, paid for by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.