Courtesy of the Legislative Planning Committee, Washington Library Association Library Related Legislation. The Washington Library Association (WLA) tracks state legislative activity that will potentially affect Washington Libraries. Their tracker is posted to the WLA web site and we will also post it weekly on this blog.

For information on the legislative process or becoming involved, see the WLA site referenced above.

Kathleen Benoun has worked at the Western State Hospital (WSH) Branch Library for over 30 years. She is a tireless advocate for libraries and the rights of the mentally ill. Her value to the hospital and the library is described by the WSH Director of Consumer Affairs in this way:

  “Kathleen is the consummate librarian – resourceful and always aiming to satisfy her customers at the library. WSH patients have very few places to go on their free time, and the library is their haven for learning, socializing, and feeling welcomed by fellow patrons and especially Kathleen. Kathleen redefines the word dedication. She goes the extra mile for patients and has even served as an informal advocate as she tries to make life a bit better for persons served by the hospital. Kathleen communicates the joy of accessing the library and that was most evident when she recently spoke at the I CAN meeting. But most importantly, Kathleen understands patient issues and is a role model for others on how to co-exist with persons with severe mental illness. She exemplifies spirit of giving by pointing out the path of learning for all patients to benefit. Kathleen is a soldier who respects patients and the illnesses they bear, only she does it with absolute grace, dignity, and from the bottom of heart.”

She is a joy to watch in action, working alone and serving as many as 40 patients at one time. Her interactions with her customers are delightful and were described by Acting State Librarian Rand Simmons as “performance art.” Laura Sherbo, Branch Library Services Manager says “There is always a note of panic in a patient’s voice when I answer the phone in the WSH Library. Nobody can take Kathleen’s place, even for a simple phone request.”

In addition to her work in the library, Kathleen helped create the Western State Hospital Museum and she acts as a docent for tour groups. In September she hosted an open house in the museum in honor of both National Recovery Month and the Pierce County “Heritage Happens” Month.

Thank you, Kathleen, for your years of dedicated service to WSL and the patients at WSH.

Link to ILS blog posts about the WSH Museum: https://blogs.sos.wa.gov/library/index.php/category/ils/. Enter WSH Museum in the search box.

Image courtesy North Pend Oreille Heritage collection

Library News
The North Olympic Library System has started offering e-readers for checkout. The devices are Barnes & Noble Nooks and they will be pre-loaded with 10 popular fiction and nonfiction titles for adults. The devices will be available at all four NOLS libraries: Port Angeles, Clallam Bay, Forks and Sequim. (The Sequim Gazette, 12.14.11)

Ritzville Public Library has expanded its services with audio books and eBooks available to download from the Washington Anytime Library website. Funding for this service, powered by OverDrive, comes from a donation from the Ritzville Friends of the Library and from federal Library Service and Technology Act (LSTA) dollars granted through the Washington State Library. (Ritzville-Adams County Journal, 12.15.11)

Superlatives do no justice to Quincy’s new public library, a part of the North Central Regional Library System. “It’s a dream come true,” said head librarian Schiree Ybarra. The library opened to the public Monday, Dec. 19. (Photos) (Quincy Valley Post, 12.15.11) http://www.qvpr.com/articles/library-prepares-opening-day

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From the desk of Sean Lanksbury. PNW & Special Collections Librarian

Have you ever wanted to learn more about Pacific Northwest and Washington State History?  Perhaps you moved here later in life and hear faint murmurings of arduous emigration, political intrigue, land dispute, and subsequent prosperity, but know little of the stories or characters involved?  Maybe you vaguely remember those early Washington State History lessons you had in school and want to brush up on the details?

Whatever the reason might be, a fine way to start your reading selection is to consult The Washington 89, a standard bibliographic reference authored by Boeing executive and respected antiquarian George Tweney.  Mr. Tweney selected and annotated 89 essential Pacific Northwest Americana titles that were published before 1959, in honor of the 1989 Centennial of Washington Statehood.  In 2002, The Washington State Library set upon a project to unify all Washington 89 titles highlighted by Mr. Tweney into a curated collection that spans multiple library collection areas.  The result became the Washington State Library Tweney 89 Collection.

A first-class article describing the library’s Tweney 89 project appears in the Fall 2011 issue of The Journal of the Book Club of Washington.  Written by retired Special Collections Librarian Kathryn Hamilton-Wang, the article details the project from soup to nuts.  Starting with identifying what the collection already held, Ms. Hamilton-Wang describes the acquisitions process, the extensive cataloging description and record cleanup, the establishment of a unified author to establish the link to Tweney’s work.  She concludes with an analysis of the collection’s many facets and highlights representative selections throughout the story.

The Book Club of Washington was founded in 1982 and “is a non-profit organization of book lovers and collectors who have a special interest in collecting and preserving printed materials. Its mission is to further the interests of book collectors and scholars and to promote an understanding and appreciation of fine books.”

There are other fine bibliographic references for researcher of Western and Pacific Northwestern history.  A selected list of Indexes, Union Lists, Catalogues, and Bibliographies for Western Americana and Pacific Northwest Research, available at the Washington State Library is available to you for download here.

Volume 8, January 12, 2012 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) WHERE WILL YOU BE ON JANUARY 28?

2) BE PREPARED FOR EBOOKS – COME TO THE ACADEMY

3) DO YOU HAVE HIDDEN COLLECTIONS?

4) PRESERVATION TRAINING COMES TO YOU

5) MOBILE TECHNOLOGY SURVEY

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

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On November 18, 2011 at 9:50 am the Airway Heights Corrections Center Inmate Book Club met for the first time. It was a wonderful experience for the inmates and for me as well. Our first book was Cannery Row, by John Steinbeck. There were 13 inmates who read the book and participated in the discussion. On December 2, 2011 at 8:00 am we met again to view the movie. Only 7 inmates were able to make the viewing. Afterwards we discussed the differences between the movie and the book. We were lucky enough to have someone who had actually lived near Cannery Row in Monterey California so it livened up the discussion. Of course the movie was not filmed there, and all of us noticed the change in and addition of some characters between the book and the movie. The book discussion and the movie discussion were both very interesting and I was happy with the range in personalities we had who attended both sessions.

Our next book will be The Sky Fisherman, by Craig Lesley. We have not set the date yet for the discussion but it will be sometime in January. The books are being passed out now and it will be interesting to see if we get more or less participation this time.

The result of the Special Legislative Session held in November and December 2011 was a cut of nearly $1.4 million to the Washington State Library’s 2011-2013 biennial budget, a 12.5% reduction. $498,000 was directed by the Legislature and the remainder is the State Library’s portion of the cut to the Office of the Secretary of State.

The cuts will be addressed in the following ways: 1) implementing 8 days of furloughs, January 2012 – June 2013; 2) closing the Evergreen Radio Reading Service (Washington Talking Book & Braille Library) and a library branch at the Washington State Penitentiary and reducing service to half-time at the Eastern State Hospital library branch; 3) reducing staffing through full and partial layoffs, voluntary reductions, and not filling budgeted vacancies; and 4) reducing or eliminating travel, training, equipment, and materials budgets and money set aside for a new integrated library system.

During the recession that began in 2008, the State Library’s budget has fallen by 30% and staffing, now at 67 FTEs (full time equivalents), has decreased by 35%. Since 2001, operating budgets have declined by 46% and staffing by 58%.

Symbolic of the effect of budget reductions during the recession (2008 to present), our lobby is now unstaffed. Signs direct customers to the second floor which is now our only service point. Traditionally we have had three service points, reference, genealogy, and circulation.

In the current 2012 session the Secretary of State is introducing legislation that will allow the State Library to charge out of state customers for research services, particularly obituary lookups. We have sponsors in both the Senate and the House for SB 6047 and HB 2222. We ask that our supporters  continue to monitor our progress through the 2012 session. More cuts may be in store for state agencies as the Washington economy struggles to recover.

Image courtesy North Pend Oreille Heritage collection

Washington State Library News
Going digital will help the Washington State Library adjust to leaner times. The Legislature approved $498,000 in cuts from the state library’s operating budget for next year, continuing 10 years of reductions. “It will be more cost effective to be digital,” state librarian Rand Simmons said. (Photo) (The Spokesman-Review, [Spokane] 12.28.11) http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2011/dec/28/libraries-boost-devotion-to-digital/

Library News
For 2012, the Enumclaw city budget will call for library money to be taken from Fund 180, a pot of cash built through property sales and lease collections. It is seen as a one-time expenditure as the city moves toward placing an item on the April ballot asking voters to annex into the King County Library System. (Enumclaw Courier-Herald, 12.7.11)

More than two dozen handheld electricity monitoring devices are now available for checkout through the Fort Vancouver Regional Library District. Wells Fargo donated 26 “Kill a Watt” devices to the library district, which are available to cardholders in the district. (Columbian, [Vancouver] 12.8.11) http://www.columbian.com/news/2011/dec/08/fort-vancouver-library-district-offers-energy-moni/

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Volume 8, January 5, 2012 for the WSL Updates mailing list

Topics include:

1) FIRST TUESDAYS – CONNECTING WITH YOUR COMMUNITY

2) SEEKING FINAL COMMENTS ON EARLY LEARNING GUIDELINES

3) GRANTS FOR NATIVE AMERICAN LIBRARY SERVICES

4) REWARDING EXCELLENCE IN YOUTH-FOCUSED PROGRAMS

5) DOING MORE WITH LESS

6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK

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