Libraries have been around a long time. The earliest surviving library catalog dating back to 2000 BC was found in Iraq and consists of a list of Sumerian works of literature on two clay tablets. Fast forward to today and there are now more public libraries (16,568) in the United States than there are Starbucks Cafes (14,606).
While most people still think of books when they think “library,” libraries today have become centers of information, entertainment and, most importantly, community. Public libraries played a key role in the success of the 2020 Census. In preparation for the census, public libraries (including PCL!) worked with government officials to ensure an accurate, fair, and inclusive count for their communities.
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During the COVID-19 Pandemic, libraries have stepped to the forefront with online services, curbside delivery, and creative no-contact programming. Who would have ever thought that takeout craft bags from your local library would become a lifeline for patrons looking for things to do at home?
Here at Peninsula Community Library, we give out almost 250 craft bags per month! During the shutdown, we gave away over 1000 books through our Little Free Libraries, as well as our entire puzzle collection via a bin on the porch. All libraries are the heart of their communities!
Books at the Boathouse – Re-Imagined
For 15 years, Doug and Erin Kosch have supported PCL through our Books at the Boathouse Dinner. While it has been tough times for restaurants, the Kosches and their amazing staff will be offering this special fundraiser as Books With the Boathouse as a takeout meal on April 19.
Tickets are available now at $150 for a dinner for two, which includes your choice of a bottle of red or white wine. The menu features the Boathouse Salad, two 4-ounce Filets, one 6-ounce grilled salmon, new potatoes and grilled asparagus, and apple cobbler.
Pick up of your prepaid meal will be in the Library parking lot that day between 5 and 5:30 p.m. That evening at 7 p.m., we will invite patrons to a Zoom program featuring the Story Of Peninsula Community Library with your director and a live virtual auction with the talented and humorous Jack Olson as host.
A limited number of tickets are available for dinner. You may pick one up at the circ desk beginning this week during regular library hours. Please make checks out to Peninsula Community Library. Note that one ticket is for a meal for TWO.
Many thanks, as always, to the Kosches and their incredible Boathouse staff! We are ever grateful! Get your ticket soon!
In the ZOOM
During this time of distancing, we offer ongoing programs virtually. Story Stew for kids is offered the 2nd and 4th Fridays at 10 a.m. Chapter Chicks Mother Daughter Book Club will meet on April 17 at 10 a.m.
Pageturners Book Club meets on the 3rd Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Book club picks are available on a first come basis. (The Pageturners book for April is The Yellow Bird Sings by Jennifer Rosner. – ed.)
French Conversation Group calls all language Francophiles the 3rd Saturday at 11 a.m. PCL’s Men’s Group gathers the 3rd Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m. The Men’s Group invites all to join them for Chef Brit Eaton’s class April 14. On the menu? Beef Wellington! Call PCL to RSVP for all programs!
Pick Up and Take Out – Craft Bags!
Grade school kids may pick up bags with crafts and activities the 1st and 3rd weeks of each month. Adults craft, too! The materials you need to create are available in a takeout bag the 2nd week of the month with DIY instructions.
Story Stew bags are offered the 2nd and 4th week of the month to those who register. Available while supplies last!
Cheery Wreaths, Cinco de Mayo & a Silent Auction
Think spring with a cheery wreath for your front door. Kits are available for pickup beginning March 22 while they last. Everything you need is in the bag except the hot glue gun. One per household please! First come first serve! Be sure to send us a pic of your finished craft for Facebook!
Families may join PCL’s Senora Cruz on Wednesday, May 5, at 5 p.m. via Zoom to celebrate Cindo de Mayo! Learn the history and Mexican traditions behind this holiday with stories, crafts, snacks and music. Call to give us your email for login info to be sent closer to the program.
A virtual Silent Auction is being planned by Friends of PCL for April 8-16. Details to participate will be shared at a later date.
PCL At Your Service
PCL offers books, movies, puzzles, games, large print books and more. Our Little Free Libraries are filled with books for the taking – adults out front and kids in the Children’s Garden out back.
Printing, faxing, copying, iPads for parking lot use? YES! We are excited to announce that we now have stem kits for kids thanks to a grant from Newton’s Road and the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Wireless service is accessible in the parking lot 24/7. Notary service is available on a limited basis by appointment.
According to the State of America’s Libraries 2020 Report, the “best proof that public libraries are about more than just books is their evolution into libraries of things, offering nontraditional collections that are community-specific and imaginative.”
These items run the gamut from telescopes to musical instruments to cooking equipment and more. The Redwood City Public Library in California even has two beehives on its roof!
We are in the process of developing our own Library of Things here at PCL – but probably not bees on the roof! Look for more on this soon. And YES! We are still all about BOOKS, too!
SUPPORT YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL NEWSPAPER: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers and magazines like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So I started my own newspaper.
Because Old Mission Gazette is a "Reader Supported Newspaper" -- meaning it exists because of your financial support -- I hope you'll consider tossing a few bucks our way if I mention your event, your business, your organization or your news item, or if you simply love reading about what's happening on the OMP. In a time when local news is becoming a thing of the past, supporting an independent community newspaper is more important now than ever. Thank you so much for your support! -Jane Boursaw, Editor/Publisher, Old Mission Gazette
To keep the Gazette going, click here to make a donation.
[…] spring has sprung, there is a lot going on here at PCL. I still have two tickets left for the Books at the Boathouse takeout fundraiser April 19. The $150 ticket gets you a meal for two, including salad and dessert, as well as your […]