Christina
I am extremely grateful to have been given the opportunity to attend ALA and share what KRL and the CAFE have been doing to advocate for the library in Kitsap County. It was encouraging to meet library workers from across the country and world and share stories and ideas. I enjoyed meeting authors and talking to vendors who might offer ways for KRL to improve it's services to the public. I attended sessions on a variety of topics related to programming, youth services, human resources, and library advocacy and I am bursting with new ideas for the CAFE to tackle as we work toward showing our community how valuable we are and hopefully passing our next levy! I also really enjoyed just being in Washington DC and taking in the sites and culture and am seriously considering what route to take to end up working at the Library of Congress one day!

Suzie

Rachele
It was very exciting to be attending ALA for the first time if not a little daunting. It’s totally different that WLA (Washing Library Association) Conference for sure. The sheer size of the conference center and the city itself was overwhelming. However, I was thankful for my WLA experience because it helped me be more prepared for ALA as far as having a basic idea of what to expect and how these conferences tend to be run and organized. It was thrilling to have such a vast array of learning and networking opportunities at our fingertips. It was also wonderful to be surrounded by so many people with many of the same passions/common goals as us. There are a lot of library systems out there experiencing many of the same struggles and challenges as us which is encouraging but I was most excited to hear how other libraries have made meaningful and lasting connections with their communities. Last but definitely not least, we truly enjoyed sharing the CAFÉ concept with other library professionals not only from across the nation but from all over the world! We had people from the UK, Germany, Mexico and Romania attend our presentation. We had great questions and comments from our audience and look forward to hearing from some of them through this blog!

Alter your T-shirt and alter your reality! Over the summer, KRL challenges staff members to creatively alter their Summer Reading Program T-shirts. The contest lasts as long as the Summer Reading Program: June 12th to August 31st. Prizes will be awarded to 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners. Scroll down to see our contestants so far!








Linda Klein & Annabelle Shillinglaw



Annabelle's entry
















Linda's entry

















Heidi Larsen's entry














Emily Tomshack's entries
















































Kim Doyle's Entry
























Jennifer Lu' Becke's Entry

As that mischievous and ever so curious pirate wench, “The Red Rogue” would say, “Tis a fine thing ye be doin and sharing all the valuable information with yer mates!

You would not think a pirate would be so interested sharing the booty found in the library; however, she has amassed a fine treasure and need not go for more. After all her travels, she wants no more than to settle down and share her passion for curiosity and discovery.

She loves to meet people of all ages, but prefers the younger ones, as they are full of imagination and curiosity. As she says, “Tis a fine lot of little lads and lasses that ye find out and about, even if they be land lubbers, they are so busy about their fun and pleasure, tis contagious, ye ken?” She recalls meeting a young boy, of about 6 years of age. It appeared he had been burned about his upper body. Scarred as he was, at the sight of “Red”, he began to laugh. Red said she had a special time with this fine lad, who was not about to let anyone stand in the way of meeting and having play time with the pirate wench.

To be associated with KRL, it is a fine thing. People of all ages, whether they use the library, or not, hold us in high esteem, for we provide what no one else can – access to and support of intellectual freedom. Even the internet cannot hold all that library does, and we ensure that whatever information is provided, is true and factual. Ah, and the entertainment! Stories that can take our readers (or listeners) anywhere or anytime in the world. And music and movies galore!

The message, you see, is that KRL Ambassador’s can enjoy the sharing of what KRL has to offer, for there truly is something for everyone! Join the Red Rogue in meeting some new folks, or even being visited by some of our regulars; enjoy sharing the story of us!

Here's my smile for the week.

One day a small, attractive, older woman came into the library. She told me with a heavy accent that she just LOVES the library, since thanks to us she learned to speak English! She would get books on tape and listen to them over and over again until she understood the words. Then she would come back for more.

"That's great!" I said. "How long ago was that?"

"Oh, almost twenty years ago, when I came to America from Poland when I was 62."
I about fell over--that meant she was almost 82! I had thought she was in her late sixties at the most.

A little while later she came to the circ desk with an armload of magazines. "I like to keep up on beauty tips," she said.

I decided on the spot, instead of plastic surgery I'll move to a foreign country as a senior citizen.
Her young-at-heart, infectious joy toward life kept me smiling the rest of the day.

Some of you may have heard over the last few weeks that a good number of children's books have been stolen from the Port Orchard branch library. The total number of books was around 1,300 at an estimated worth of $22,000. This is horrible news and for those of you just finding out, it's shocking. But enough bad news - I want to share with you the good news.

We have experienced an outpouring of concern and help from our community and others not residing in our library district. After the story aired on the news and had hit the papers, we here at the Port Orchard branch have received generous donations of children's books from many people in our community. We have had small contributions from the small people who are the biggest users of this collection. (One boy about six or seven wanted to donate his dollar.) And we have had large, emotional donations from concerned families throughout the county, including a $5,000 donation from a family in Poulsbo who saw our story on the news.

We are privileged to have so many great and caring people in our community and those beyond. I would like to say from myself and the Kitsap Regional Library, Thank You! We appreciate all of you. Without your support we could not be a library.

Have an idea for Kitsap Regional Library? The CAFE committee is asking all KRL employees and patrons for ideas about KRL: everything from how to educate the public about the service KRL provides to the community to how the library system can run more efficiently. We’re taking ideas of every stripe and color and we’ve received some great ones!

Here’s a few ideas that we’re already implementing:
• Tour de KRL, in which people visit each KRL branch and get their "passport"
stamped over the summer.
• Having the Bloedel Reserve give discounted admission with a library card
• Having a staff-altered T-shirt contest for Summer Reading Program T-shirts.

There are many more ideas still to be considered, like making audio files of community leaders reading stories, and providing a virtual space for people to log in their exercise hours and favorite audio book.

And we’re still looking for more ideas, so put in your two-cents worth!

In January, Sylvan Way Library held a Disney Princess program to celebrate the newest movie princess, in Princess and the Frog. Many of the children and some of the staff dressed up as princesses and other fairytale characters. We had a read-aloud by "Belle," a "Musical Flying Carpets" game with "Jasmine," photos with the princesses, and arts & crafts, including tiara-making. The turnout was 213, about one-third of that adults.

Inspired by the great success of the Sylvan Way Library princess program, Manchester Library offered a Princess Fancy Nancy Party in March. What fun! 250 people attended, mostly children dressed in their fanciest royal finery. Princesses prevailed, escorted by a few brave princes. Although frosting butterfly cookies and creating princess crafts were popular, the highlight of the party was dressing up and parading down the Royal Walkway, where a Royal Photographer was on hand to capture the moment. Photographs of each event are on Kitsap Regional Library's facebook page.

Who will host the next Royal party for all these budding princesses and princes?

On March 3rd, 35 adults and 70 kids attended Sylvan Way Library's Hero Party, celebrating real-life heroes and superheroes. Officer Jason Glasgow and K-9 Lance, Chris Rotter from the Bremerton Fire Department, and submariners Paul Tomshack and Allen Burgess talked about how they help people. The kids had lots of questions, including "How do submarines stay in the water?" and “How fast does your fire truck go?”

For the rest of the program, the local heroes posed for pictures and answered one-on-one questions. Also, Firefighter Rotter let the kids try on the boots and other firefighting gear. Parents seemed to especially appreciate this way to connect their children with real-life heroes in a community setting. And families enjoyed the crafts, particularly the Spidey snacks (two Ritz crackers, eight spider-leg pretzels, two raisin eyes, all stuck together with peanut butter).

At each branch of Kitsap Regional Library, we receive stories from staff and patrons that give us a smile or a boost, stories that help pull us through our greyest of days. It's always nice to hear how much KRL is needed and appreciated, and for many library employees these stories are the pride of working for such a great institution. Café has recently received some of these heartwarming stories from several of our smaller branches around Kitsap County and I would like to share them here.

KRL likes to let our patrons hold onto their library materials for as long as they need them and our policy is to give everyone the opportunity to renew their items up to three times when possible. Annabell, who works at our Little Boston branch, wrote that she has received many thanks from patrons who were not aware of the various ways to extend checked-out items. Of course, as KRL employees we know how operations and day-to-day tasks are taken care of at all different levels. But patrons may not know (or have forgotten) that something as simple as renewing can be taken care of with a phone call to any one of our branches; they also have the opportunity to renew their books online.

A patron who was in Arizona called because he was having trouble placing holds online. After a quick phone call, he learned that his card had expired. It was updated and we had another happy patron with holds to look forward to when he arrived back home. Another patron on vacation called to get our mailing address so she could send her books back to us using the postal service. After a conversation about extended checkouts and a few renewals, we had another satisfied patron (who also saved a few bucks on postage!) Little Boston recently had a conversation with an elderly couple who were having health problems. Staff set them up with an appointment at their home for some much-needed help from our Outreach department. They were so grateful to KRL that they have shared their story with family and neighbors.

At the same end of the county we have Linda, who works in the paging department at our Kingston branch, wanted to share some great news about how her community is working together. The Kingston branch recently partnered with Kingston Farmer's Market to offer story sessions at the market. And thanks to the amazing community volunteers, the Village Green Park is now open. This is the campus that will eventually include a new and enlarged Kingston Library. For those interested in more information about The Village Green Foundation, they meet on the fourth Tuesday of every month. You can find more at kingstonvillagegreen.org. A website is under construction for related projects.

And finally, I would like to share one last story from Heidi at our Manchester branch at the south end of Kitsap County. Every branch has its regular patrons that everyone recognizes and calls by their first names. But at the smaller branches like Kingston, Little Boston, and Manchester, that is true for almost every patron that comes through their doors. Many times library support goes further than casual conversation. A while ago, the Manchester branch had a member of their community pass away. Branch staff attended the memorial service on their own time and flowers were brought into the library in honor of this patron. Heidi mentioned this because she wanted to show everyone that at a large branch you are only going to be able to meet and get involved with a small percentage of the community. The degree of community connection at these smaller branches is great. I have to agree with Heidi that the stories and relationships that we build with our smaller-branch patrons are a rare and beautiful gift.

These are but a few of the great stories that happen at Kitsap Regional Library on a daily basis. I hope to be able to share many more stories with KRL staff and our public. Thank you, and please keep us posted with your own stories and ideas.

Ambassadors are the face of Kitsap Regional Library. They are the ones who go forward in our community to spread the news about KRL and what we have to offer. They are also the ears of KRL. They listen to the public and find out what the community has to say about their local libraries. They gather this feedback so that KRL can better understand what the people need and would like to see in the future of their libraries.

Most importantly the Ambassadors are out at Kitsap County’s local events to teach. They help our community understand how the library operates, give out specific information on everything from programs put on by librarians to statistical information on upcoming levies. Teaching these important facts to our community is an important job. Many people do not know about the many programs and classes that go on at their community library or understand how we operate. As an Ambassador you get to show them the details (although many of our dedicated library users do know a lot about us.) One of the best reasons to be an Ambassador is learning for yourself the wealth of knowledge our community already posses.

2009 saw the debut of KRL’s Ambassador team. Most events took place over the summer months and it was often a challenge to spread our Ambassador team throughout the county. This year we may have even more events coming up that KRL and the Ambassadors would like to participate in. For that reason, we will surely need to call out to our KRL employees to join in on the fun.

Now that we all have a little information on what our Ambassadors do, I would like to ask all employees of Kitsap Regional Library to think about joining this wonderful program. Meeting the community and talking one-on-one with patrons (and soon to be patrons) is not only fun but gratifying. Whether you are giving out important information or just handing out bouncy balls to the local children, it’s sure to leave a smile on your face at the end of the day. If you have further questions about the Ambassador program, feel free to seek out someone who has been a member or talk to someone on the Café committee. And to all the KRL patrons, look for us at upcoming community events.

What does C.A.F.E. stands for?

Collaborative. Affiliates. Fostering. Engagement.

Café is a committee of Pages, Library Assistants, Librarians, and members from our Technical Service, Human Resource, Public Relations and Volunteer Coordinator departments that meet every six weeks for two hours to discuss creative ways to educate the public about the value of Kitsap Regional Library. We also want to be united in our purpose as a library system in this community by discussing ways to equip and motivate staff to “celebrate” KRL not only at work but also in their everyday interactions with others.

Café includes members from all nine branches of the county as well as members from our Bookmobile and Outreach departments. We have been an active committee going on two years and are proud of the many accomplishments we have achieved in that time. Some of those accomplishments include facts that we like to call “Did you know?”

DYN facts help the community to understand what the library does for them. It points you to resources that you might not have had knowledge of before. DYN facts include statistics about KRL, classes and online tools, programs that KRL offers, book groups, and fun facts that tie into our monthly themes and other important events happening in our world.

If you have been to any KRL branch over the last year you will also notice that the library has taken another step toward being eco friendly by getting rid of our plastic bags. This was a development that happened because of the bright minds of our Café committee. In place of the plastic bags we now offer reusable canvas bags that you can obtain for $2.00. Look around your community and it’s easy to spot the people helping keep our world clean by using the beautiful dark green bags labeled “The Ultimate Green.”

Café is also responsible for a new group that has joined the KRL family this past year, The Ambassadors! The Ambassadors are responsible for reaching out to the public at local events like The Kitsap County Fair, The Future Festival in Port Gamble, The Cruz in Port Orchard, Chief Seattle Days in Suquamish and The Blackberry Festival in Downtown Bremerton. At these events Ambassadors are responsible for getting the word out about KRL. That can be anything from encouraging others to sign up for a library card, letting people know about upcoming events and public meetings to just listening to our community and gathering information about what the public wants the library to provide.

These are just a few of the great ideas to have come from our Café committee. I hope that this blog is helpful and that everyone can understand how a group like this has been beneficial to our library system and our community. If you have any comments or questions please let us know.

Thank You,
Kitsap Regional Library Café Committee