“Oakleaf” above this line. Visit the Library website at www.toaks.org/library January/February 2012 The Newsletter of the Thousand Oaks Library The current Thousand Oaks Library opened in January 1982 with approximately 75,000 items for circulation. The collection has more than quadrupled in the past 30 years, filling not only the main library but a Children’s Library that opened in 2006 and a branch library in Newbury Park that opened in 1991. And did the City leaders in 1982 ever imagine that Thousand Oaks Library would become one of the highest volume libraries in terms of circulation for its size in the country? Probably not. Today, the library collection has 456,315 items with a circulation of 1,556,612 last year. For fiscal year 2010-2011, more than 685,000 people passed through the library doors. Thousand Oaks Library began with humble beginnings as part of the local grocery store and gas station owned by William F. Knowlton on the corner of Ventu Park and Newbury Road next to the “Old Hotel” or “Stagecoach Inn” from 1917 until 1921. A variety of library custodians/ postmasters/storekeepers served as librarians until 1937 including, Mrs. Lillian Northrup from her family restaurant, Mrs. William Henry Gentry in her living room, and Mrs. Bertha Weston at the Oakdale Market. Then, from 1937 until 1946, Mrs. Ethel Smith had the library in her home behind the filling station on the corner of Rancho Road and Thousand Oaks Blvd. Following a brief stint with Myrtle Vincent, the library moved to Ethel and Tom Nixon’s dry goods and western wear store and was there until 1961. The growing community required its own library building, and it opened on Wilbur Road. Known as the Conejo Library, it was part of the Ventura County Library system. After incorporation in 1964, dedicated City leaders and community members were committed to providing residents with the best possible library service. On January 25, 1982, the building on Janss Road opened its doors as a City-owned library with lots of empty shelves. Today those shelves are filled to capacity with many formats not even imagined in 1982 – CDs, eBooks, computers, wireless Internet and DVDs. The library also hosts an extensive Geneology Division and a Special Collection of radio and television archives. Patrons flock to the library’s various special programs – storytimes, musical concerts, author talks, storytellers, jugglers, dancers, films, book discussions, magicians, Summer Reading Club, Courtyard Serenades, Shakespeare and more. Modern technology has certainly changed the way we do things at the library. The card catalog is now on a computer database and online resources are used to look up Thousand Oaks Library Turns 30 30 years ago... (continues on page 4)
Transcript
“Oakleaf” above this line.
Visit the Library website at www.toaks.org/library
January/February 2012
The Newsletter of the Thousand Oaks Library
The current Thousand Oaks Library opened in January 1982 with approximately 75,000 items for circulation. The collection has more than quadrupled in the past 30 years, filling not only the main library but a Children’s Library that opened in 2006 and a branch library in Newbury Park that opened in 1991. And did the City leaders in 1982 ever imagine that Thousand Oaks Library would become one of the highest volume libraries in terms of circulation for its size in the country? Probably not. Today, the library collection has 456,315 items with a circulation of 1,556,612 last year. For fiscal year 2010-2011, more than 685,000 people passed through the library doors. Thousand Oaks Library began with humble beginnings as part of the local grocery store and gas station owned by William F. Knowlton on the corner of Ventu Park and Newbury Road next to the “Old Hotel” or “Stagecoach Inn” from 1917 until 1921. A variety of library custodians/postmasters/storekeepers served as librarians until 1937 including, Mrs. Lillian Northrup from her family restaurant, Mrs. William Henry Gentry in her living room, and Mrs. Bertha Weston at the Oakdale Market. Then, from 1937 until 1946, Mrs.
Ethel Smith had the library in her home behind the filling station on the corner of Rancho Road and Thousand Oaks Blvd. Following a brief stint with Myrtle Vincent, the library moved to Ethel and Tom Nixon’s dry goods and western wear store and was there until 1961. The growing community required its own library building, and it opened on Wilbur Road. Known as the Conejo Library, it was part of the Ventura County Library system. After incorporation in 1964, dedicated City leaders and community members were committed to providing residents with the best possible library service. On January 25, 1982, the building on Janss Road opened its doors as a City-owned library with lots of empty shelves.
Today those shelves are filled to capacity with many formats not even imagined in 1982 – CDs, eBooks, computers, wireless Internet and DVDs. The library also hosts an extensive Geneology Division and a Special Collection of radio and television archives. Patrons flock to the library’s various special programs – storytimes, musical concerts, author talks, storytellers, jugglers, dancers, films, book discussions, magicians, Summer Reading Club, Courtyard Serenades, Shakespeare and more. Modern technology has certainly changed the way we do things at the library. The card catalog is now on a computer database and online resources are used to look up
Thousand Oaks Library Turns 3030 years ago...
(continues on page 4)
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LIBRARYNews Notes8
• • • The Oakleaf • • •
We are pleased to announce the appointment of Nancy Schram to the position of Deputy Library Services Director effective December 28, 2011. Ms. Schram joined the Thousand Oaks Library staff as a Division Manager in June 2007. Since then she has overseen a variety of services and departments including Children’s/Young Adults’ Services, Reference Services, Circulation Services, Special Collections, Library Information Systems, the Volunteer Program and the Newbury Park Branch. She previously worked for the County of Los Angeles Public Library for 10 years, including positions as the Manager of the Canyon Country Jo Anne Darcy Library, Manager of the Westlake Village Library, and the Library’s Literacy Coordinator overseeing 17 library literacy centers throughout Los Angeles County. Ms. Schram also worked previously as a Reference Librarian for a public library in Illinois, as well as a volunteer in libraries. The new Deputy Director holds a Masters of Library & Information Science degree from the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Marquette University. Ms. Schram grew up in
the Midwest, but relocated to Southern California in 1997. In her free time, she enjoys walking and exploring with her two dogs, Stanley and Dexter. Ms. Schram said of her new position, “My passion is providing excellent library services to the public, and I feel very privileged to be able to work as Deputy Library Director in a community that truly supports its library. The Thousand Oaks Library plays a key role in enabling citizens to achieve their educational and career goals, and it is something the community
can be very proud of. I am pleased and honored to be able to play a part in helping to move library services within the community forward into the future.”
New Deputy Library Director Named
Sorenson Video Relay Service (SVRS) is a free service that makes it easy for deaf and hard-of-hearing persons who communicate using American Sign Language (ASL) to place and receive phone calls to any hearing person through an ASL interpreter via video and a high-speed Internet connection. The Thousand Oaks Library now offers a videophone and SVRS ser-vice to all deaf and hard-of-hearing persons. For example, library patrons who communicate using ASL may
use this service to make important calls to hearing individuals, such as making medical appointments, con-tacting their children’s schools, etc. The videophone is located in the quiet study room at the Grant R. Brimhall Library, and may be used by any deaf or hard-of-hearing person who communicates using American Sign Language on a first-come, first-served basis anytime the library is open to the public. For more information, visit the library or call 805-449-2660 option 5.
Videophone Now Available
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The Thousand Oaks Library celebrates its 30th anniversary on January 25, 2012, and is hosting an array of programs that week (and all year long) to commemo-rate the event. Join us for:
Shipwrecks, Buried Treasure and Underwater Adventure!Saturday, January 21, 201211:00 a.m. at Grant R. Brimhall Library; 2:00 p.m. at Newbury Park Branch Library.
Sisters in Crime: Passport to International Intrigue, Panel Discussion.Saturday, January 21, 20122:00 p.m. at Grant R. Brimhall Library.
Games & Puzzles, with John Suarez, Spielmeister.Sunday, January 22, 20122:00 p.m. at Grant R. Brimhall Library.
Read to Me, Read to You.Thursday, January 26, 20126:30 p.m. at Grant R. Brimhall Library.
Juggler David CousinSaturday, January 28, 201211:00 a.m. at Grant R. Brimhall Library; 2:00 p.m. at Newbury Park Branch Library.
Comedy Writer Gene Perret.Saturday, January 28, 20122:00 p.m. at Grant R. Brimhall Library.
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• • • The Oakleaf • • •
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The Thousand Oaks Libraryhas recently added these materials
to its collection:
FICTION
NON-FICTION
Information AdvantageWhen you need reliable information, take advantage of the
powerful research tools available at your library.
NEWArrivals
Featured Resource:Book Club in a Bag The new Book Club in a Bag project gets multiple copies of great books into the hands of local book clubs quickly, and now it’s even easier to choose the perfect book. Simply go to http://research.tolibrary.org/bookclubs. There, you’ll find the list of available titles with links to the library catalog record. Click on the book cover image, and learn more about the book, read reviews, plot summaries, even a first chapter. The titles in the Book Club in a Bag program include literary classics, Pulitzer Prize winners, newly published, excellently reviewed titles, as well as a generous roster of all-time book club favorites your group might have missed. Each bag includes a group member sign-up sheet to help keep track of books, an author biography and discussion questions when available. The process is simple: look on the library website for the Book Club in Bag available titles, and then call or email librarian Margaret Douglas to arrange for a pickup date. The borrower must have a library card and will be responsible for the bag contents; the loan period is four weeks, and bags may be renewed once if no other group has reserved it. Already, library patrons are celebrating the program. One book club leader’s response: “Thank you for promoting this program; it’s wonderful, and our members are so grateful and enthusiastic because of the time and resource savings.” This program is generously supported by the Friends of the Thousand Oaks Library. For more information, or to request a Book Club in a Bag, contact Margaret Douglas at (805) 381-7357 or [email protected].
The Thousand Oaks Library was a host site for the United States Marine Toys for Tots Founda-tion’s annual toy drive this year. Library Services Director Steve Brogden (right), Lance Corporal Justen Pardo (left), and Corporal Adan Garcia (center) join forces to collect toys for needy children.v v v v
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King of the Badgers (Fiction) by Philip Hensher
Bad Moon (Mystery)
by Todd Ritter
Mr. Fox (Fiction) by Helen Oyeyemi
The Silver Lotus (Fiction) by Thomas Steinbeck
338.973The Next American Economy: Blueprint for a Real Recovery by William J. Holstein
331.352Retirement Heist: How Companies
Plunder and Profit from
the Nest Eggs of American Workers by
Ellen E. Schultz
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Thousand Oaks Library • Volume 12, Number 1 • January/February 2012Director of Library Services: Stephen R. Brogden
Grant R. Brimhall Library • 805-449-26601401 East Janss Road • Thousand Oaks, CA 91362
The fifth annual Thousand Oaks Reads: One City, One Book culminated in October with Jamie Ford, the author of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, sharing his thoughts about writing, his family roots, and the impetus to write his “classic, old-school” love story set in the World War II American homefront. Mr. Ford’s storytelling and gentle good humor mesmerized more than 600 of his readers at the Kavli Theater. “An Afternoon with Jamie Ford” brought to a close the month-long citywide reading program, and the final statistics tell the story: nearly 4,500 library patrons participated, by reading or listening to the novel, participating in book discussions, submitting essays, or attending one or more of 12 music, art or cultural programs. The rich palette of programs (many were standing-room-only) included:• A kick-off concert with jazz legend Dave Pell • A screening and discussion with Toyo’s Camera documentary director Ju-nichi Suzuki• An important community discussion with local survivors of the WWII Japa-nese-American internment camps• A classical guitar concert with musician Taro Wayama• A kimono fashion show• A trip to the Japanese-American National Museum and the Chinese Ameri-
can Museum in downtown Los Angeles• A fun, improbable afternoon of in-flatable sumo suit wrestling Response from the community includes this accolade: “We want to thank those who planned the recent One City, One Book for offering the Conejo Valley such a fantastic range of events…BRAVO, T. O. LIBRARY!” Every member of the 2011 One City, One Book committee, headed by librarian Margaret Douglas, worked hard to make each event the very best it could be, always inspired and guided by the One City, One Book slogan: “When we open a book together, we close it in
greater harmony.” v
Patrons Enjoy Fifth Year of Thousand Oaks Reads
Cate Lynn Covell and Sawyer Du-mond lend a hand modeling kimonos.
Samantha Yeung, Supervisor of Reader’s and Information Services, has been promoted to Division Manager. Ms. Yeung began her career at the Thousand Oaks Library in September 2000 as a librarian. She was promoted to Library Services Supervisor in charge of the Information Systems Department in March 2004. Prior to joining the Thousand Oaks Library staff, Ms. Yeung was a Supervising Librarian
at the Downey City Library. A resident of Thousand Oaks, Ms. Yeung and her husband have two teenage sons. She enjoys taking them to her
native China to visit with relatives. v
New Division Manager
everything from antiques to stock investments. Over the past 30 years, our community has embraced the Thousand Oaks Library and continues to utilize it as an information center and gathering place. Thank you for your continued support. We can only dream of where we will be 30 years from now! v
