Get ready for Summer Reading fun!

Kids and Teens can sign up for ‘Get Caught Reading’ online, or at any Arlington Public Library

• Preschoolers may earn a “fishy” prize by sharing 10 books and completing fun, literacy-building activities.
• Children in grades K-2 must read or listen to 15 books to earn a prize.
• Children in grades 3-5 must read or listen to at least 10 books to “catch” a fish.
• Middle and high school students can win cool prizes as well – teens will win an “eco” notebook and pen by reading 4 books and turning in a bookmark. They’ll also be eligible to win a $100 grand prize gift card in our raffle!

The first day to pick up prizes will be July 10.

There are wonderful programs planned as well– special storytimes for the preschoolers, magicians, the Maryland Science Center and much more for elementary children, and movies, gaming and craft programs for teens.

Children of all ages are encouraged to participate.

 
A few patrons witnessed a very special event today at the Columbia Pike Branch Library – butterflies hatching!

Please come visit them and check out the progress on the (yet to be officially named) butterfly garden as well.

Are you as excited about summer as we are? School’s out, the weather is warm and we are looking forward to enjoying the pool, vacations, camping, fireflies – and the library! Check out these special summer activities for kids this summer:

The Cherrydale Branch Library will display 13 paintings by Ruth Galoon, a noted Washington artist of the 1950s and ’60s, from June 7 – July 31.

Ruth Galoon was born in 1916 and grew up in Baltimore. She moved to Washington shortly after her marriage to Ben Ginsburg, and lived here until her death in 1976, at the age of 60. 

Galoon was a member of the Washington Watercolorist Association, but she also worked with oils, encaustic paint, and collage. Her work was exhibited at the Corcoran Art Museum, American University, and some of the most noted commercial galleries of the day in New York and Washington. Galoon also had solo shows at the Barnett-Aden Gallery and at the Dupont Theater. View a sample of her work on the Library’s flickr page.

Galoon worked in DC public elementary schools and held classes for children in her home – she preferred to teach children because she considered them more creative than adults, and many of her students went on to become artists.

Ruth Galoon’s daughter and son-in-law, Sheila and Steve Gell, live in Arlington, near the Cherrydale Branch Library.

Last weekend Friends of the Library Book Sale Volunteer Julie Bordwell spent several warm and muggy hours selling books and music cds in front of the Aurora Hills Branch Library at the Aurora Hills Senior Center’s Trash and Treasure Sale.

But people came out in droves despite the heat, and thanks to Julie’s efforts the Friends made over $120!

So the next time you see Julie volunteering at Aurora Hills, make sure to say hi, and thank her for all of her wonderful work!

Many years ago, stuck in a job that I disliked and yearning for adventure, I found a book that helped me change my life. Today, The Back Door Guide to Short-Term Job Adventures, by Michael Landes, is still a personal favorite.

Landes has done an excellent job of first outlining the process of finding something different, whether for a couple of weeks or a couple of years, and then giving practical advice, before moving into chapters that list specific opportunities. There is something here, it seems, for just about everyone: for people who like photography, for example, or for seniors who’d like to volunteer abroad; for those who are interested in working in summer camps and for those who have always wanted to work on a boat; for people curious about sustainable living and for people driven, simply, by the desire to spend some time outdoors.

It is unlikely that I will soon quit my job, move across the country, and work on an organic farm, as I did all those years ago. Reading about the many opportunities that exist, however, continues to feed my wanderlust, and in the midst of a particularly harrowing day at work, or after a lengthy metro ride in a hot, crowded car, it’s nice just to know that there are other options, after all.

Book Love is a regular feature of the Library Volunteer Newsletter, and is written by Library Volunteer Anna L. She’s always open to suggestions on what to read next.

After a lot of hard work and the recent rain, our new vegetable garden is sprouting like crazy!

Vegetable and Herb Panorama!

Thanks to Arlington Food Assistance Center, the Girl Scouts of Troop 1431, Potomac Overlook Regional Park, the USDA’s People’s Gardens Initiative –  and all of our other volunteers – for their work in turning our daydream of a garden into such a successful reality.

See more photos of the garden on our flickr page.

Interested in the what’s happening on the Pike?

Maria “Pete” Durgan plays bass

The Columbia Pike Documentary Project has posted photos on their blog of last weekend’s Forty-fifth Annual Flores-Gambino Memorial Day Party and Eddie Jenkins “Arlington’s Most Experienced Drummer.”