JEANNE PETTA HONORED BY THE LIBRARY TRUSTEES ASSOCIATION
On May 4, long-time Floral Park resident Jeanne Petta was honored with the “Outstanding Friends” Award by the Library Trustees Association of New York at their annual Institute. This year, the event took place in Nassau County at the Long Island Marriott Hotel. Ms. Petta is the second person to have won this award. She received the award from Bola Majekodunmi, PhD, Secretary of LTA (left) and Mary Ellen O'Connell, President of LTA (right).
Ms. Petta was chosen for her work with The Friends of the Floral Park Library over the past 25-plus years. She served in many positions on the Friends board, including President. When she was President, she spearheaded the push to purchase a state-of-the-art audio/visual system for the Library’s meeting room, which greatly expanded the types of programs the Library could offer. She was also the driving force behind the Friends Book Club, which grew from 12 to 36 members over the past eight years. In addition, she devoted time to the Friends biggest fundraiser, the annual book sale, which enables the Friends to purchase furniture for the library, funds the children and teens Summer Reading programs, and supports social, historical, and cultural programs for adults. Ms. Petta is also an advocate for all libraries, making the annual trek in March to Albany to meet with local and state legislators.
The Library Trustees Association of New York State is a statewide organization that represents, assists, educates, and honors public library boards, and their trustees are providers of free and universal library services.
Talking Book Update
Nassau residents are eligible for talking books and braille books through the New York Public Library's Andrew Heiskell Braille and Talking Book Library. The Heiskell Library delivers thousands of recorded and braille titles postage-free to those who have one or more of the following:
- blindness
- visual impairment
- a physical disability that limits the ability to hold a book or turn pages
- a reading disability, such as dyslexia, resulting from organic dysfunction
If you or someone you know qualifies to receive these services, see www.nassaulibrary.org for details. Click on the "Talking Books" logo. Questions may be directed to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . You may also call 516-292-8920, ext. 237.
In fall of 2010, the Library sat down with a committee of more than 20 community members, library staff, and members of Village government, past and present, to discuss where they’d like to see the Library five years down the line. Over the following months, recommendations were discussed and prioritized, and the resulting long-range plan was accepted earlier this year. Not one to let grass grow under our feet, the Library has already begun to fulfill those directives, nearly all of which we are making happen without using taxpayer money. One of the first priorities was to make the library a safer, more welcoming, and accessible space. To date, we have installed two additional Internet terminals to reduce waiting time, and we are about to do some rearranging of the Adult Reading Room/Reference Area to improve traffic flow, create more comfortable areas for reading and working, and enhance security. We have purchased a new Reference desk and Children’s Services desk through the generosity of the Friends of the Library. The new desks, which we anticipate will be delivered early next year, will be positioned so that they have a better view of their respective rooms, and in the case of the Reference desk, of the Circulation area. In addition, the internet computers will be moved into the Adult Reading Room so that the reference librarians can better monitor their usage. The Friends of the Library have also purchased 20 folding chairs so that more people can take advantage of our programs, which are growing in popularity. Among our future plans is a dedicated Teen Space. Since we can’t do everything at once, we have spruced up our existing teen area on the mezzanine with artwork created by our teens. We invite you to check out the bold graphics and Keith Haring-inspired montages. Another goal is to improve communication between the Library and the community. So far, we have improved our website. You’ll have easier access to our research resources, information about the library and upcoming programs, and more. You can also sign up to have our bi-monthly newsletter and other news sent directly to your email box. Please let us know what you think. We’ve also put up bulletin boards to accommodate information about upcoming library programs and community news. In other library news, if you don’t know by now, Kindle owners can now take advantage of free downloadable e-books from the Library, just as those with Nooks, IPads, Sony E-Readers, and others have been doing for over a year. Go to our website, click on “E-Books and Media,” and you’ll be taken to the Nassau Digital Doorway. Click on “MyHelp” and learn how to get started. Changes Coming to the Library
Calendar of Events and Newsletter
Looking for ways to keep you and your family busy and entertained now that the weather is getting colder? Look no further than the Library. We have movies, crafts, cooking classes, lectures, music, and more. Our Bi-monthly newsletter and Calendar of Events is available to you now in a number of ways.
You can subscribe to our online newsletter, which includes the calendar of events, by entering your email address in the subscription box on our homepage. Every two months, our newsletter will be delivered to your email box. Printed copy of the newsletter, courtesy of the Friends of the Library, may be found at the Rec Center or Village Hall, while supplies last.
For our calendar, click on "Event Calendar" on the lefthand menu. Just scroll through the dates to find what interests you. If you see something you like, click on "register." (Remember, preference is given to Floral Park Library card holders.)
If you have any questions regarding any of our events or how to access our calendar if you're having difficulties, please feel free to call the Reference Desk or the Children's Desk.
