Montgomery County, MD - Department of Public Libraries - Press Releases

Two Montgomery County Public Libraries Offer New Video Phone Service; Deaf, Hard of Hearing Customers Can Make Phone Calls via Internet

20 Nov 2009 12:07:00 EST

In order to provide deaf and hard of hearing library customers with an additional means of communicating with hearing individuals, Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) has announced the installation of a new video phone service at the Rockville and Germantown branches.

The video phone equipment provided by Sorenson Communications will enable deaf and hard of hearing individuals to conduct telephone calls with hearing individuals via a high-speed Internet connection, television monitor, and a qualified American Sign Language interpreter.

Using video relay service (VRS), deaf callers connect to a nationwide network of American Sign Language interpreters. Callers see an interpreter on their television monitor screens and sign a message to the interpreter who then contacts the hearing recipient on a standard phone line and relays the conversation back and forth between the two parties. VRS allows deaf and hard of hearing individuals to communicate in their n ...more

Montgomery County Public Libraries Launches Campaign to Encourage Customers to Sign-up for Email Notifications

19 Nov 2009 16:30:00 EST

Under a new outreach campaign created by Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) that will run through the month of December, library customers will be encouraged to sign up for email notifications that can save them time and money.

By receiving email alerts, customers can:

• be notified when items they have requested are ready for pick up, thus saving time by being able to get materials faster and

• be reminded when borrowed items are due to be returned, helping to save money in overdue fines.

During the campaign, library staff will wear “Do you know?” buttons and hand out bookmarks promoting email notification. There will be signs at each branch and colorful reminder signs will be placed on the public computers.

Customers can sign up online from the library computers or any home, school or work computer with internet access, using the E-Mail Notification Link on the library’s website, # # #

Media contact: Bonnie Ayers, 240-777-6507
Program information: Rita Gale, 240-777-0022

...more

22nd Annual Train Day to be Held at the Damascus Library

20 Oct 2009 10:57:00 EST

The 22nd Annual Train Day will be held on Saturday, November 7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Damascus Library, 9701 Main Street.

Special features include pre-school storytime from 10:30 to 11:15 a.m., train music by the First Fruits Band, model layouts, N Trackers and displays by the B&O Historical Society and Operation Lifesaver.

Hobo lunches will be sold in the adjoining Senior Center where holiday items will be available for purchase.

Train Day is sponsored by the Friends of the Library, Damascus Chapter.

For more information, visit the library website at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/library, click on Find A Library, then Damascus and Programs and Events or call the library at 240-773-9444.

# # #

Media contact: Bonnie Ayers, 240-777-6507
Program contact: Anita Fry, 240-773-9444

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Leggett, Library Director to Unveil Exterior Plans for New Silver Spring Library at Book Fest Event

16 Oct 2009 15:37:00 EST

The Silver Spring Library, 8901 Colesville Rd., will mark its annual Book Fest celebration with a book sale and a variety of activities for all ages on Saturday, October 24 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. A bake sale will be held, while supplies last. A story time presentation by Diane Macklin will begin at 11 a.m.

At noon, County Executive Isiah Leggett and Montgomery County Public Libraries Director Parker Hamilton will unveil renderings of the exterior plans for the new Silver Spring Library that will be located at the corner of Wayne Avenue and Fenton Street.

From 12:30 to 1:30 p.m., a petting zoo on the front lawn will entertain young and old, alike.
In celebration of the County’s 23rd annual Community Service Day, attendees and customers are asked to bring canned goods that will be donated to Mid-County United Ministries.

A Census representative will be at the library to distribute information about the 2010 census, includi ...more

Potomac Library Celebrates “Potomac Community Day” with a Puppet Show

15 Oct 2009 16:00:00 EST

As part of the The Village of Potomac’s annual “Community Day” on October 24, the Potomac Library will host a performance by the Kaydee Puppets of “The Princess and the Pea” and “Rapunzel.” The free program, sponsored by Friends of the Library, Potomac Chapter, will begin at 12:30 p.m. in the meeting room of the library, located at 10101 Glenolden Drive. No registration is required.

Other “Community Day” activities include a parade from 10 to 11:45 a.m. followed by a street fair, vendors and food at the intersection of River and Falls roads.

To request ADA program accommodations, at least five work days in advance, or for more information about the puppet program, call the library at 240-777-0690, TTY 301-765-4083.

# # #

Media contact: Bonnie Ayers, 240-777-6507
Program information: Lindsey Hundt, Potomac Library, 240-777-0690 ...more

Bethesda Library Celebrates Chicago Day with Discussions by Noted Authors and Journalists

15 Oct 2009 10:33:00 EST

Bethesda Library will celebrate the city of Chicago with an afternoon program on October 24 from noon to 6 p.m. Washington Post columnist David S. Broder, National Public Radio commentator Scott Simon, WTOP political commentator Mark Plotkin, author Paul Dickson and others will talk about the aspects of life in Chicago, including the Sox vs. Cubs; Riverview Park; architecture; politics and more. The library is located at 7400 Arlington Rd.

Chicago hot dogs will be served to all who attend the celebration. The free program is sponsored by Friends of the Library, Bethesda Chapter, and no registration is required.

“The city of Chicago has come to Washington with the Obama administration. Celebrating Chicago day provides a great opportunity to look at a city that’s played a pivotal role in our nation’s architecture, politics, sports and culture,” said Judy Gilbert Levey, president of the Friends of the Library, Bethesda Chapter.

Hi ...more

“Survival Artist” Author Talk In Sign Language and Voice to be Held at Rockville Library

12 Oct 2009 11:39:00 EST

Author Eugene Bergman, retired professor of Gallaudet University and a Bethesda resident, will discuss his recently published memoir of the Holocaust entitled “Survival Artist” on Sunday, November 1 at the Rockville Library, beginning at 2 p.m. The Rockville Library is located at 21 Maryland Ave. in the Town Square section.

“Survival Artist” is a detailed memoir of a Holocaust survivor who narrowly escaped death by living a childhood of constant vigil. While playing in the street with other children, the author was struck deaf by the butt of a German officer’s rifle. Through traumatic and certainly life-threatening, this vicious attack would ultimately save his life several times. “Survival Artist” also details how some members of the family survived through a combination of luck, skilled deception and an underlying will to live.

Bergman also co-authored two previous books, “Tales from a Clubroom” and “Les ...more

Nobel Prize-winning Scientist to Present Program at Quince Orchard Library

08 Oct 2009 10:49:00 EST

Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. William D. Phillips will bring science down to earth for the audience as part of his presentation at the Quince Orchard Library on Saturday, October 24, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. The library is located at 15831 Quince Orchard Rd., Gaithersburg,

The program will include a lively multimedia presentation, including experimental demonstrations and down-to-earth explanations about some of today's most exciting science.

Dr. Phillips is a physicist at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg where he leads the Laser Cooling and Trapping Group in the Atomic Physics Division of NIST's Physics Laboratory.

In 1997, Phillips shared the Nobel Prize in Physics "for development of methods to cool and trap atoms with laser light."

The program is sponsored by the Friends of the Library, Quince Orchard Chapter.

To request ADA program accommodations, at least five work days in advance, o ...more

Montgomery County Public Libraries Participating in “One Maryland One Book” Program; Local programs held in October

07 Oct 2009 09:32:00 EST

Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) is participating in the second annual “One Maryland One Book” (OMOB) statewide reading program designed to encourage the shared experience of reading and discussing the same pre-selected book.

The work chosen for 2009 is James McBride’s “Song Yet Sung,” set on Maryland’s Eastern Shore in the 1850s. It is an intricate, gripping tale of escaped slaves, free blacks and slave catchers. The protagonist is an enslaved woman called The Dreamer, whose gift for visions of the future quickly reaches mythic proportions after she escapes from a local plantation. McBride, a former staff writer for The Washington Post, also wrote for People Magazine and The Boston Globe. His work entitled “The Color of Water, A Black Man’s Tribute to his White Mother” was on the New York Times bestseller list for more than two years. In 2008, McBride’s novel “Miracle at St. Anna” was adapted ...more