The day was Wednesday, March 11, 2020. I was at New Dawn Retirement Center getting ready to present one of my travel programs about Italy, when the activities assistant came up to me to inform me that they would not be allowing visitors until further notice. Since I was already there and set up I was allowed to go ahead with my presentation. That is when the severity of this Covid-19 Corona Virus really set in.
When I got back to the library I was told by one of the Outreach Department’s volunteers that Hennis Care Centre also was implementing a no visitor policy. I knew then it was just a matter of time before all of the care facilities would be closing down to visitors. Since the majority of my job as the Outreach Librarian centers around these facilities, I knew things were going to be changing.
Before I left for the day, I was informed that the Outreach Department would be shut down until at least the 1st of April.
On Monday the 16th we had a meeting at the library and were notified by our director Jim Gill that the entire library would be temporarily closing. Since I knew that we could not make any deliveries nor do any programs, so I asked if I could work from home. The managers and a few of the rest of us would be doing the same.
My new office has a great view!
This is something that I have embraced.
Some of you may not be aware but, I do travel programs at all of the care facilities and the Senior Center. I put together the PowerPoint programs myself, doing all of my own research. This is something that takes some time.
Now it appears that I have an abundance of time.
Normally I make one new program every month. So far I have been able to finish the program about Canada, create a new one for Fiji and start one for Peru, and today is April 10th. Since we’ve been shut down, I’ve also learned how to record PowerPoint presentations, so everyone can see my Madagascar presentation on YouTube! I have also been giving Liz Strauss, my supervisor, daily fun facts about different countries for her to post on Facebook. That has really been fun.
We have since then been told we will be shut down through April. Oh, to think of all that I can accomplish between now and then!
This disease has affected all of us in some way or another. We may not be able to go shopping or have coffee with a friend, or visit our loved ones, but what we can do is make the best out of a bad situation. I hope that you are all able to get something positive out of the changes that have been happening around us.
Bummed that your Easter celebrations are postponed this year? The Dover Public Library has you covered with a fun activity happening on our website.
This Digital Easter Egg Hunt challenges players to find all 12 of the Easter Eggs hidden on the Dover Public Library website – that’s any page that starts with www.doverlibrary.org.
Usually, I get my social fill at work. As a public
employee, I see and talk to people all day, every day. By the time I get home,
I’m peopled out. I’m ready to play video games and just chill.
Now that I don’t see anyone except my cats all day… I
basically jump at any chance for interaction with another human being.
On top of that, a lot of what I’m working on at home is through my old frenemy, Facebook.
1st Picture of Me on Facebook (posted by a friend)
I was on Facebook back when it was just college kids. Back
then, I never put real photos online or posted anything that might be deemed
inappropriate by a future employer. An overabundance of caution, maybe, but I’ve
always kept Facebook at a distance.
Since then, that distance has done nothing but grow, to the
point where I was only on Facebook for work and often went several days without
checking.
Now, I’m back to checking multiple times a day, scrolling through my feed looking for interesting posts, making sure the world is still spinning, and watching Jack Black dance (click with caution).
And somehow, that’s led me to reconnecting with three people
who, though they’ve had a great impact on my life, I haven’t spoken to in months
or even years.
The first is a friend from Middle and High School. She’s in
another state now and doing what she calls “Quarancrafts” every day to keep her
sanity during this crisis. Her creations are inspirational, and I look forward
to seeing them every day.
The second is a sorority sister who was bummed because she couldn’t read a book she’d been looking forward to because her library was closed. Well, I helped her find it digitally. It’s called The Family that Couldn’t Sleep, by the way, and you can put a hold on it on the Ohio Digital Library.
The third is a good friend who I just haven’t spoken to in a while. We caught up and have been having great conversations, mostly about creative writing. Jane Austen, and board games.
While I hope to never have to go through something like
this again, these reconnections are a silver lining that I’m very grateful for.
Facebook. Who knew you’d be helping me keep my sanity one
day? Certainly not me.
Stay safe and healthy, everyone! Until we meet in person, find me on Facebook!
Each year, the Dover Public Library has a call for submissions of art, poetry, nonfiction, and fiction from teen creators across the county for publication in Tornado Alley, the Teen Literary Magazine of Dover High School and Dover Public Library.
In the six years we’ve been doing this, I’ve seen a lot of things. Horror stories and fantasy stories. Essays on being a vegetarian and political viewpoints. Limericks and comical haiku.
I’ve also seen some pretty seriously dedicated teen editors. From the beginning, teen editors have called the design shots. They’ve helped decide what goes in and what stays out. I’ve seen teens have serious and open discussions on censorship and diversity. I’ve seen teens who come to meetings through thunder storms. I’ve seen teens work on library computers to put the magazine together, working hard to make sure this magazine gets done every year.
One thing I haven’t seen before is a pandemic putting some giant wrinkles in our plans.
But, Tornado Alley is a creative endeavor. Those involved are creative people. And we came through with creative solutions. A closed chatroom for Senior Editors. Collage pages to showcase art. A new forum space (Tornado Alley Online) for teens to post their work and support each other online. We’re getting this done. The magazine must go on.
There are only a few things that can’t be helped. Each year, I send each teen creator an official letter stating whether their piece has been accepted or rejected. This year, due to limited access to things like, oh, printer paper, ink, and stamps, this is not going to happen by my usual deadline of April 1. Teens will receive their letters, just not as soon as I would have liked.
This being the case, I wanted to give a special shout-out to all those teen creators who will be featured in the Spring 2020 edition of Tornado Alley:
Aimee Basnett, Grade 9
Andrew Richard Basnett, Grade 8
Eryn Basnett, Grade 12
Caitlyn Bragg, Grade 11
Belle Fockler, Grade 9
Alaina German, Grade 8
Max Hershberger, Grade 10
Claire Lenhart, Grade 12
Lexus Marsh, Grade 12
Jasmine Montanez, Grade 8
Marissa Montanez, Grade 7
Elizabeth Peterson, Grade 10
Noah Peterson, Grade 7
Emily Summerson, Grade 10
Mary Vogel, Grade 11
Grace Williams, Grade 10
Thank you all for your hard work and for sharing your talents with us! I hope you continue to develop your skills and keep finding ways to share what you create with the world.
After 21 years in public libraries I thought I had seen it all. In a matter of days, I went from having a meeting with my Board of Trustees on the remote possibility of our library closing to planning a meeting with my staff to explain that a closure was indeed happening.
My fellow library directors can attest that a book could be written on the things you were never taught in library school. You know what I mean—things like capturing a bat flying around the Children’s Room, or that vague thing called facilities maintenance. What do we really know about HVAC systems? In 2008 we went through the collapse of the housing market and the subsequent recession.
You can add crisis management during a pandemic to that list. Today we are dealing with “that which should not be named,” ie, COVID-19, or better known as the coronavirus. I will call it Voldemort.
To be honest, I thought that my colleagues who were sweating the coming of Voldemort were a bit extreme. Turns out I was the one who was wrong. Today, not a library in my region is open to the public. Unbelievable. I have found myself over the last four days hunting for toilet paper, stocking up on bread and pasta and other foods, checking my supply of Tylenol, and preparing for the worst. I am not a prepper. I am not Chicken Little. I will tell you that my concern began to deepen last week when my son Noah, who was home on spring break and who is a freshman at Bethany College in West Virginia, received word that he was not to report back to college. And then the schools closed for three weeks, and they canceled the NBA season, and then Voldemort visited Tom Hanks. Seriously! Yesterday my family and I drove down to Bethany to get Noah’s books and things from his room. The campus was deserted and it was sad and a bit haunting. If you have ever been to Bethany it DOES look a lot like Hogwarts. We stopped in Wellsburg at a Kroger to pick up some things and the place was a tad too busy for a Sunday morning. People had that look in their eye that made me uneasy. They were stocking up—just like us at home and it was all unsettling. So we made it home and I was of course glued to my phone. Checking Facebook, CNN, and watching the Governor’s press conferences. I felt anxious and fearful. Then, I heard my youngest son say, “Dad, we are going to go and play Wiffle Ball out back.” I said OK and pondered the next dreaded news update.
Then it hit me. There is NOTHING I can do about this right now but go outside and play Wiffle Ball with my three boys. So we did. For a few hours I kicked Voldemort to the curb and we ran and laughed and played ball.
The Gill Boys
Monday, we had a mandatory staff meeting to explain that we were indeed closing. Shock was evident but I also noticed a collective sigh of relief from many. Like many of you, I spent the last few days answering emails and phone calls from media outlets. I had to explain to our staff, as well, why library leadership made the decision they did. Looking into their eyes, hearing their concerns, and knowing their hearts, I know we made the right decision. I care for these people and want them to be safe. I care for our patrons who give us purpose. I care for our families and those who depend on us.
And then the magic happened.
We began to brainstorm together how we can change our services to meet the needs of our patrons during the closing. From keeping our Storytimes going using Facebook, to boosting our WIFI signal so people can use their laptops and phones in the rear parking lot, to using our Little Free Library to house the daily newspaper, to shifting materials purchasing to various digital platforms—we worked together to make our situation for the community a tad bit better. That’s what librarians do!
I mentioned at the
meeting that Denny, one of our longtime patrons, was in on Saturday and how he
just got word from the doctor that he is cancer free. He said, “You know, people ask me how I do
it. How I deal with six straight years of cancer. Of getting bad news and good
news and more bad news. They ask how I
just keep going. They say, ‘Denny, I
could never be that strong. I couldn’t do it.’ I tell them, yes you can. You
never really know how strong you can be until you are in that situation-that
you are stronger than you think.” Seems
fitting for dealing with Voldemort, wouldn’t you say?
Towards the end of the meeting, Paula, our Adult Department
Manager, shared how much it hurt to know that many of our regular patrons would
not have a place to have fellowship, to read the daily paper, and to have
someone to talk to. She shared Hebrews
13:2, “Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have
entertained angels unawares.” And right
there another staff member named Robyn-who just started the week before-
offered to make calls to our elderly regulars to check on them and to reassure
them that we WILL open again. We work in
libraries because we care for people—our patrons and each other. We know that what we do is more than just a
job; it is a chance to be an angel for someone.
And as long as we are doing that, Voledmort can never win.
Now in the Community Room, the art of John William Henry Wright Thomas is an impressive collection of photographs. While we all stay safe during this time of social distancing, Thomas has given the Library permission to share the following video and his story online.
The photos in the video, we admit, do not give his work justice. If you would like to contact the artist, you can do so at PO Box 241 Baltic Ohio, 43804, by phone at 330-897-7291, via email johnwhphoto@yahoo.com or online at johnthomasphoto.com.
John William Henry Wright Thomas was born in Union Hospital – Dover, Ohio to parents Henry D. P. Thomas and Edna E. Wright. He became interested in photography while still in gradeschool. In 1973, he met Chinese artist Sylvia Tsui, who introduced him to many aspects of life as an artist.
“I felt that photography allowed me to show reality of a moment in time much better than other media,” says Thomas. “Thus my images cover thoughts of the abstract to the depth of human moods.”
In 1986, Thomas started to show art in public. He shows in outdoor-indoor art shows, galleries, and museums in various states. He has also won many show awards.
Thomas uses both conventional and digital photography techniques. The only photos that are manipulated are his abstract pieces. His photos range in color, but are all archival quality. They are also limited printings, signed, and numbered.
“Each image is a moment in time. Past to present to future.”
There are a lot of great artists who create beautifully illustrated webcomics. Some of my favorite graphic novels at the library, like Cucumber Quest, Spaceboy, and Tea Dragon Society started out as webcomics. Here are some webcomics I enjoy, that you can read online for free.
This slice-of-life comic features an appropriately-named cat with access to a large library of games and an over-active imagination, who literally dives into popular franchises and tackles topics in gamer life from a cat’s perspective.
Set in a Prohibition-era 1927 St. Louis with a population of anthropomorphic cats, the plot chronicles the fortunes of the Lackadaisy speakeasy after its founder is murdered. The comic mixes elements of comedy, crime and mystery.
Kochab is a YA fantasy comic about two girls lost in a pile of ruins under the woods, inspired by various myths and fairytales. The story follows Sonya, a lost skier trying to survive a snowy wilderness and find her way back to her village, and Kyra – a fire spirit trying to fix the home that she’s let fall apart around her.
