Tompkins County Public Library

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

LIBRARY TO HOST PANEL ABOUT COUNTY’S RESPONSE TO SEX CRIMES

In recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, the Advocacy Center and the Tompkins County Public Library have partnered to present, “Tompkins County’s Response to Sex Offenders: A Community Panel,” Tuesday, April 26 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM in the Library’s BorgWarner Community Room.

Intended to provide information about the innovative approaches local agencies are using to combat sexual crimes and protect victims, the panel will feature a diverse group of community leaders engaged in managing sex offenders and offering community and victim support. Panelists are:
  • Pat Buechel - Director, Tompkins County Probation Department
  • Susan Currie - Director, Tompkins County Public Library
  • Jeff Huddle - Investigator, Ithaca Police Department
  • Ken Lansing - Tompkins County Sheriff 
  • Louise Miller - Director of Programming, Advocacy Center
  • Linda Riley - Forensic Supervisor, Tompkins County Mental Health Clinic
  • John Rowley - Tompkins County Judge
  • Gwen Wilkinson - Tompkins County District Attorney
This program will begin with a screening of the newly-released DVD, “Child Sexual Predators: The Familiar Stranger.” Produced by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, the video provides important information about how sex offenders gain the trust of children and adults. It also includes footage of four paroled child molesters who provide candid insight into their crimes and how parents can protect their children.

For more information about this program or other events being held in recognition of Sexual Assault Awareness Month, contact Heather Campbell, education director for the Advocacy Center at hcampbell@theadvocacycenter.org.

Friday, April 22, 2011

LIBRARY TO HOST SENIOR THEATRE TROUPE

The Tompkins County Public Library will host an encore performance by the Senior Citizen’s Theatre Troupe of Lifelong, Friday, April 22 at 2:00 PM in the BorgWarner Community Room.

A follow-up to last spring’s riveting performance at the Library, this show will center around the theme of aging and feature humorous and serious stories from troupe members’ lives. The Troupe performs simply, with no lights, props or sets. The theatre being performed is developed from themes that the actors pick, and the stories they tell are based on their own experiences.

The Troupe is directed and coordinated by Sue Perlgut and features Robyn Bem, Joan Bokaer, Maggie Goldsmith, Eva Luby, Natasha Tall, Carol Santucci, Priscilla Schneeberg, Thelma Turner and Dolores Wermelinger. The plays and theatre exercises performed are developed using improvisational theatre techniques, some of which will be demonstrated during the Library performance. For more information about the Senior Citizen Troupe of Lifelong you can contact Lifelong at 607-273-1511 or go to www.closetohomeproductions.com/seniortheatretroupe.html.

This program is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler-Carmenatty at (607) 272-4557 extension 248 or cwheeler@tcpl.org.

Thursday, April 21, 2011

LIBRARY TO HOST READING/SIGNING WITH PAUL McEUEN


The Tompkins County Public Library and the Tompkins County Public Library Foundation will host Paul McEuen for a reading and signing of his debut novel, “Spiral,” Thursday, April 21 at 6:00 PM in the Thaler/Howell Programming Room.

McEuen, a Cornell University physics professor and director of the Kavli Institute at Cornell for Nanoscale Science, used the University as the setting for “Spiral.”  A scientific thriller, the book tells the story of scientists caught in a conspiracy involving biological warfare.  Called “gripping and “engrossing,” “Spiral” has earned rave reviews for its reliance on cutting-edge scientific ideas while remaining accessible to all readers.

Copies of “Spiral” will be available for purchase at the event with support from Colophon Books.

This program is free and open to the public and is being held in conjunction with the Library and Library Foundation’s 2011 Local Writer’s Series.

For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler-Carmenatty at (607) 272-4557 extension 248 or cwheeler@tcpl.org.

Saturday, April 16, 2011

LIBRARY TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH WITH POETRY AND MUSIC


The Tompkins County Public Library will celebrate National Poetry Month with “The Music of Shakespeare’s Time,” a performance of English lute songs and Spanish poetry by internationally-recognized early music duo Elizabethan Conversation, Saturday, April 16 at 2:00 PM in the BorgWarner Community Room.

Joined by acclaimed vocalist Rebecca Leistikow, Elizabethan Conversation’s principals Susan Sandman, a Wells College music professor emerita, and instrument craftsman Derwood Crocker, will showcase, through period instruments and voice, a variety of musical sounds from the cosmopolitan renaissance of Shakespeare’s time. 

This program is free and appropriate for an all-ages audience.  For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler-Carmenatty at (607) 272-4557 extension 248.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

LIBRARY TO HOST SLAM POETRY GROUP


Celebrate National Poetry Month with the Tompkins County Public Library and Ithaca College slam poetry group Spit That!, Wednesday, April 13 at 6:00 PM in the BorgWarner Community Room.

Originating in 1980s Chicago, slam poetry offers writers an opportunity to not just read but to perform their work, and it has become a popular tool for attracting young poets.

Spit That! strives to establish a forum for students to develop and share their thoughts, through written and spoken word, in a comfortable and non-judgmental environment.  Spit That! spreads awareness of sociopolitical issues through performances and readings while helping members craft their writing and performance skills.

This program is free and open to the public.  For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler-Carmenatty at (607) 272-4557 extension 248.

Monday, April 11, 2011

LIBRARY, CIVIL WAR COMMISSION TO OFFER PROGRAMS

In recognition of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, the Tompkins County Public Library and the Tompkins County Civil War Sesquicentennial Commemoration Commission have announced a five-year partnership to provide opportunities for informed discussion and increased awareness about the divisive “War Between the States.”

Beginning this spring, TCPL and the Commission will provide Library patrons and community members with at least two annual opportunities to learn, from regionally-recognized experts, about the people, issues, themes and lasting impacts of the War.

The inaugural program is scheduled for Monday, April 11 at 6:00 PM in the BorgWarner Community Room and will feature a discussion by Pearl Ponce, assistant professor of history at Ithaca College. Held on the eve of the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Fort Sumter, Ponce’s program, “Signposts on the Road to Disunion,” will offer insight into the key events leading up to the war--- from the Compromise of 1850, through Bleeding Kansas, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry and the election of 1860.

Other programs being planned include a look at Civil War nurses, Northern Democrats, the Elmira Prison Camp, a panel discussion on African Americans in Upstate, NY prior to the War, an exhibit of Civil War photographs and a discussion on the legacy of war.

For more information about Library programs, contact Carrie Wheeler-Carmenatty at cwheeler@tcpl.org or (607) 272-4557 extension 248. For information about the Tompkins County Civil War Sesquicentennial Commemoration Commission, contact Tompkins County Historian Carol Kammen at ckk6@cornell.edu.

LIBRARY FOUNDATION ASKS PATRONS TO CREATE VIDEOS

The Tompkins County Public Library Foundation is soliciting one to two-minute videos from community members willing to share, through anecdotes, illustrations, songs or brief remarks, why they need the Library.

Patrons will have an opportunity to express the important role TCPL  plays in their lives by visiting the Library anytime between 11:00 AM or 3:00 PM on Friday, April 15 or Saturday, April 16.   Stories shared during those Library visits will be added to a video being created by the Foundation.   Those interested in making their own video can upload their entries to the Library’s YouTube site, TCPLNY.  Videos should be submitted on or before Thursday, April 28.

Videos will help the Library and Foundation showcase for donors and friends, the important role TCPL plays in the lives of local residents.

For more information, contact Suzanne Smith-Jablonski at ssmithjablonski@tcpl.org or Sally Grubb at sgrubb@tcpl.org.

Sunday, April 3, 2011

LIBRARY TO HOST STORYTELLERS

Families will have two opportunities to experience the fun and skill of storytelling in April, as the Tompkins County Public Library welcomes the return of the Ithaca Area Storytellers.

An informal group of individuals dedicated to furthering the timeless art of storytelling, the Ithaca Area Storytellers will present “Tall Tales and April Fools,” an hour-long performance of tall tales and outright lies, Sunday, April 3 from 2:00 to 3:00 PM in the Library’s Thaler/Howell Programming Room.

On Tuesday, April 5th at 7:00 PM, the Storytellers will return to the Library to celebrate spring with a presentation of stories, folktales and legends about nature.

These programs are free and open to the public; however, they are most appropriate for families with children ages five and older.

The Ithaca Area Storytellers is always accepting new members. Anyone interested in finding out more about the group is encouraged to attend their monthly organizational meeting. April’s meeting will be held at 6:30 PM on April 5th in the Library’s Thaler/Howell Programming Room.

For more information, contact Carrie Wheeler-Carmenatty at (607) 272-4557 extension 248 or visit http://www.ithacaareastorytellers.com/.