July 1, 2008 - We wish to thank Jackie Beder for her dedicated service to the community as a member of the Westbury Memorial Public Library's Board of Trustees. Welcome to Cosmas Bonaparte, our recently appointed Trustee.

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DIRECTOR'S MESSAGE

A Place for Everyone

The public library is a unique community organization because it supports sharing. In general, most sharing is done with family and friends, not with strangers. However, at your library, the basic concept of use is that you share the building and materials within it with everyone in the community.

At times, the concept of sharing doesn’t go smoothly because some citizens are not conscious of the effect of their actions on others. For example, if a library user who parks their car in the lot throws their garbage on the ground, other users have to look at that garbage until a staff member has time to clean it up. Or, if a person brings home a movie and returns the DVD scratched, the next person who borrows the movie will not have the pleasure of seeing it.

Please remember that when you use the library the way you treat the materials you borrow and how you act while you are here has an impact on your neighbors.

The staff, board and local residents are very proud of the Library, which is the jewel of the community. Please help us to keep the Library as special and welcoming as it is by remembering to treat your neighbor, and the place and the materials that you share with them, with consideration and respect.

Cathleen A. Towey
Director

Laptops are now available for public use!
Patrons with valid identification and matching credit card will have access to loaner laptops for use within the library. Equipped with built-in wireless and software for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, databases and desktop publishing, these laptops are a perfect solution for study groups, online test takers, or individuals filling out job applications. For more information, see a staff member at the Technology Desk.

Free Museum Passes For Westbury Library Cardholders
Borrow one of our family passes to Old Westbury Gardens, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Cloisters, or the American Museum of Natural History. Free general admission for 2 adults and up to 4 minor children. Discount of 10% on merchandise at the Cloisters and the Met. Please see each pass for specific details.

 

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To see what events are scheduled at the Library take the EVENTS, YOUNG ADULT, or CHILDREN'S links in the bar to the left.

ZOOM TEXT for the visually impaired

The Westbury Library is pleased to announce the addition of specialized software to help our patrons who are visually Impaired. Through a gracious donation from the Foundation for Sight & Sound, we have installed ZoomText on both a public Internet computer and a word processing computer. The ZoomText software allows users to increase the maginification of text, increase the size of a mouse cursor and even change the colors on the screen to a higher contrast mode. All of these features will make using a computer a far less frustrating experience. Please see a member of our technology staff for any assistance with our public computers or the ZoomText software.

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   Notes Archives:

07/8/06 Taylor Branch

On Saturday July 8, Pulitzer Prize winning author Taylor Branch visited the Westbury Memorial Public Library and spoke about his trilogy on the life and times of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Before he addressed the audience, library intern Harrison D. Sanford conducted an interview with the well known historian.

IN DEPTH WITH TAYLOR BRANCH
By Harrison D. Sanford
As a southerner in the 1950’s, Taylor Branch witnessed one of the worst times of racial inequality in America. As a child, he didn’t understand what powered the engine of racism that consumed the South. Branch’s s father was against the idea of social inequality. “There is only one thing my dad said about racism,” Branch recalled, “`I don’t like this.’” Mr. Branch didn’t have to ask why his father was against it. “I just knew it wasn’t good,” Branch acknowledged.
For the past several decades, Taylor Branch has attempted to understand why. Mr. Branch has dedicated his time to discovering the stories of the civil rights movement and the life of Dr. King. In 1998, Mr. Branch’s publication entitled Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-63 was released. Among many accolades, Mr. Branch received the Pulitzer Prize in history for the book. Admitting that he originally didn’t predict a trilogy, Mr. Branch followed with two more volumes, Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963-65 and At Canaan’s Edge: America in the King Years 1965-1968. As he continued to compose the volumes, Branch watched the history of the civil rights movement continue to unfold.
After spending decades documenting the life and times of Dr. King, Mr. Branch shared his vast knowledge of the civil rights leader. According to Branch, there are two characteristics that propelled Dr. King’s success, his humbleness and his great speaking ability. “King insisted that he didn’t make the movement; the movement made him,” Branch recalled.
As we become further removed from the civil rights movement, Branch doesn’t want people to forget the works of many civil rights leaders. During his session, Branch reminded the audience how successful the use of nonviolence was and to consider how this tactic may be applied in U.S. foreign relations. Branch hopes to turn his trilogy into an HBO movie in the near future. He hopes that by doing this thousands more will learn from the civil rights movement. Branch wants to raise awareness for American’s complacency in racial relations. Branch said, “Racism is an enduring issue but we have fallen asleep.”

9/30/06 - The Library is now a WiFi hotspot. Sit in designated areas in the Library to use our 802.11b connection to access the Internet with your wireless laptop or PDA.

07/01/04 Information Here! is a new web resource, in Spanish, that the Nassau Library System is developing. Take a look.

1/31/03 -Nuevo en Espanol - La biblioteca tiene libros en espanol sobre varias temas como la salud, la cocina, los ninos, novelas, y mucho mas. Tambien tendra el periodico El Diaro y las revistas People y Cosmopolitan.

9/30/01 - Copper Beech Tree - in honor of  John and Margaret Leonardo, has been donated by their children, John and Susan Leonardo. This beautiful tree has been planted to the east of the main building.
Special Collection of  Bilingual Spanish/English Children's Books - has been donated in honor of the late Arlene Coleman by Patricia Cobbs. These books are now in circulation at the Children's Library.

4/02/01 - Barbara E. M. Krampitz, Director of the Library for the past five years and an employee of the Library since 1972, has retired. Thank you, Barbara, for your dedication to the Library and the Westbury community. Cathleen A. Towey is the new Director of the Westbury Memorial Public Library.

3/11/00 - Children's SATELLITE Library at Park Avenue - Grand Opening   Saturday, March 11, 2000, 11AM. 

9/1/99-Video Update
July 15 and 16 a crew from Bullfrog Communications was at the Library making a video about the Children's Library (which celebrated its 75th anniversary June 24th.) They were here from dawn to dusk getting a variety of shots and action. Exciting! We have seen the first cut of the video - it is wonderful. The video will be shown Sunday, October 3, 1999 at the formal ceremony wrapping up our year of celebrating Children's Library's 75th birthday!

Mexican Sculpture Donated to the Children's Library
This handsome wooden carving of a mother and child has been donated to the Children's Library by Ted and Jesse Fuchs.

Please note...

..you can access the Online Public Access Catalog called ALISweb. It shows the holdings of the member libraries of the Nassau Library System, including Westbury. You can search for items by Author, Title, Subject, or Keyword.

.. INFOTRAC and Academic Health Index are among the databases subscribed to by the Library that you can access through the Web. You will have to enter your library card number after you click on the link. INFOTRAC is an index to general interest and business articles in magazines, newspapers and reference books. The Academic Health Index can direct you to articles on fitness, nutrition and other health related topics.