Monday, December 31, 2012

2012 Progress towards new Library

As 2012 ends, let's look back at the past twelve months of progress in constructing Holyoke's Library of the future.   See this photo gallery documenting the construction:

Library Construction Photos
(Click the Slideshow button, upper right, to watch the images flip by)

Construction started in earnest in mid-January 2012. Now, less than twelve months later, the building project is 60% complete -- on budget and on schedule for an opening in fall 2013. That is something to CELEBRATE!     Happy New Year!

The gallery includes some videos created with images from a time-lapse camera stationed on the Masonic Lodge roof, across Chestnut Street. You'll have to stop the slide show to see the videos.


Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Ornament selling well!

The new ornament featuring a City Hall stained glass window is selling well. Many stores and locations are assisting us with the sales. In Holyoke, you can purchase ornaments at The Cottage, LaJustice Printing, DE Bourque Auto Repair, Highland Hardware, Pizza D'Action, as well as at the Library and the Mayor's Office in City Hall. In South Hadley, visit The Odyssey Bookshop.

Today, Tuesday Dec 18, 5:00 -7:00 pm, we will be selling both new and older ornaments at the special Raffle event and celebration at Gateway City Arts, 92 Race Street, Holyoke.  All proceeds from the raffle will benefit the Holyoke Public Library’s expansion and renovation project. The raffle drawing (for 3-yr lease of 2013 Hyundai Elantra,  ski vacation, and Barnes and Noble gift basket) will take place at 6:30pm. Come enjoy beer tasting and live music before the drawing.

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

New Ornament!

Holyoke Public Library
Ornament Presentation
Wed. Dec. 12, 2012
5:00 pm
Holyoke City Hall, Library

Please join The Friends of the Holyoke Public Library as we present our newest in an ongoing series of ornaments and the very first in color. This year we have chosen to capture one of the beautiful stained glass windows in City Hall. The ornament is a reproduction of the Agricultural theme and is made right here in Massachusetts.

A holiday shopping opportunity that benefits two worthy causes: the Friends of the Library and the Stained Glass Window Restoration Fund.  Ornaments will be for sale at varying prices. The new one is $18 with $2 of each sale donated to the Stained Glass Window Restoration Fund.
Refreshments will be served.

For more information please contact Christine Alger, President, 413-627-3015 or chrialg6 [at] gmail.com

Thursday, November 15, 2012

Upcoming events


Please join us for any or all of these upcoming library events:

Wednesday, November 286:30pm: a talk and slide show by Friends board member Elaine Baskin about the artisans’ colony of Guaitil, Costa Rica, where she has lived and worked.  Library meeting room, City Hall.

Thursday, November 29, all day (9:00am -10:00pm) Bookfair at Barnes and Noble to benefit the Holyoke Public Library's Renovation and Expansion. Library volunteers will be on hand to provide information about the library and hand out coupons. The "Drive to the Future" car will be parked nearby and raffle tickets will be available.

Saturday, December 1,  7:00pm, Christmas Concert "From Montaña to Main Street: The Cuatro  Concert" at Our Lady of the Cross Hall, 23 Sycamore St (between Dwight and Appleton Streets), Holyoke. This concert featuring musicians Jeff Kust and José Gonzalez is presented by the Puerto Rican Cultural Project and the Holyoke Public Library. For more information, call Library Director María Pagán at 413-322-5640.

Monday December 3, 6:30pm. Tom Keeler of the Holyoke Public Library staff will demonstrate his use of found materials to create musical instruments in miniature. “Refuse to Refrains: Making Drum Kits from Discards” will include examples of Tom’s work. Library meeting room, City Hall.

Wednesday December 12, "Valley Gives"day. Residents of Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties will join together for 24 hours in special events and online campaigns in support of their favorite charities. Please support the Holyoke Public Library that day. "At the end of 24 hours, the top three nonprofits that have raised the most money and the top three nonprofits that have the most donors will be rewarded with special grants of $15,000, $10,000 and $5,000. The nonprofit in 12th place in each category will receive $1,200. In addition to those prizes, participating nonprofits will be eligible for special bonus gifts given between 11am and midnight to randomly selected winners." Help the Holyoke Public Library by donating online between 12 AM and 11:59 PM on 12.12.12.

Wednesday December 12, 5:30-7:00pm. Friends of the Library meeting. All welcome! Library meeting room, City Hall.

Save the evening of Tuesday December 18 for a special event including the RAFFLE drawing.  Buy your RAFFLE TICKETS before then for a chance to win:

• A three-year lease for a 2013 Hyundai Elantra (Courtesy of Gary Rome Hyundai)

• An all-expenses paid ski vacation for four (Courtesy of Clear Channel)

• A Barnes & Noble gift basket full of goodies (Courtesy of Barnes & Noble)

Thank You!




Saturday, October 27, 2012

Video of Gail Rubin's book talk

Did you miss the October 22nd book talk by Gail Rubin?  Perhaps you'd like to see what you missed?  Fortunately, Gail set up a video camera and recorded her talk.  The video came out very well and she has posted it on YouTube and also on her Family Plot blog:


She certainly is an entertaining speaker!  Her book, A Good Goodbye: Funeral Planning for Those Who Don't Plan to Die, is full of practical information and interesting stories from her experiences helping families create memorable goodbyes for loved ones.

Sunday, October 21, 2012

Gail Rubin "A Good Goodbye" Oct 22, 7pm


Gail Rubin, often called “The Doyenne of Death,” will be the special guest of the Friends of the Holyoke Public Library for a Book Talk on Monday evening October 22, at 7:00 PM, during which she will read excerpts from and discuss various aspects of her best seller “A Good Goodbye.” The subtitle of the book, “Funeral Planning for Those Who Don’t Plan to Die,” goes a long way toward explaining what the book is all about.  
Ms. Rubin is a frequent and popular speaker to groups of all types on getting the funeral planning conversation started. Ms. Rubin has pointed out that we plan our finances, our families, vacations, retirement, just about everything, except our funerals. She has noted that without end-of-life-planning, life’s other plans can come undone, when all it takes is a little bit of time and some simple decisions to have things turn out the way you would have wanted them to.
“A Good Goodbye” uses gentle humor to convey vital information about funeral arrangements most people don’t learn about until there is a death in the family. At that point decisions must be made quickly and may not always reflect the choices the deceased might have made themselves. “A Good Goodbye” brings light to a dark subject: from cremation to caskets, obituaries to obesity, religion to receptions. Just talking about funerals will not hasten your demise in any way – and it will reduce the pain and stress  on family members and will create a memorable “good goodbye.” It may even reduce expenses.
Ms. Rubin is also the author of The Family Plot Blog: Funeral Planning for Those Who Don’t Plan to Die. She serves on the cemetery committee for her congregation and has assisted in the preparation of the deceased for burial. She is also a breast cancer survivor and a member of the Association for Death Education and Counseling, as well as the International Cemetery, Cremation and Funeral Association.

This is a special opportunity for Friends of the Holyoke Library and is open to the public free of charge. For information call the Library at 413-322-5640 or visit the Library at Holyoke City Hall Auditorium.

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Halloween Crafts and Costumes at Library Oct 18

Need ideas for costumes?  Have your children outgrown their costumes?  Come swap your old ones for something different.  Come see a selection of masks and accessories, hats and face paints, etc.
Halloween Crafts, Books, and Costumes
Thursday October 18, 4:30pm - 8pm
We will read some stories and then children will get to make a special seasonal craft. 
The first 25 children to arrive will receive a book!

Join us for this event, which will be FUN and not too terribly spooky! 
Sponsored by the Friends of the Holyoke Public Library and the Holyoke Public Library Staff. 

Friday, October 5, 2012

Characters at a Cocktail Party


What a party!  The Friends Cocktail/Costume Party on Saturday September 22 was attended by many well-dressed characters, including Lady Macbeth, Belle Skinner, Sherlock Holmes and Watson, Dr. Gonzo, Tigger, a Wizard, Reporter Brenda Starr, and several Flappers. 

Thanks especially to party organizer Christine Alger, seen here enjoying the Wine Toss.  (Photo courtesy of Peter Palombella.)  HPLC President Terry Plum thanked the Friends: "The costumes were terrific, and so were the prizes. Excellent work."

The Holyoke Sun published a series of wonderful photographs. See the cover and page 10 of the issue dated September 28 - October 4: http://www.holyokesunonline.com/pdfs/hs09.28.12.pdf

Other photos have been posted on our Facebook page.  See an album taken by "Brenda Starr, Reporter" (a.k.a. Sara Krohn) and another album posted by Jeffrey Byrnes.




Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Holyoke on the rise

News from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC)
September 19, 2012

Holyoke on the Rise
The addition and renovation of the Holyoke Public Library reached a milestone on Friday, September 7, 2012 when the highest structural beam was hoisted into place.  Community members, library staff, and local and state officials marked the occasion with a “Topping Off” ceremony to celebrate this mid-point in completion of the project.
http://mblc.state.ma.us/mblc/news/releases/past-releases/2012/nr120917.php


photos:  Flicker album of photos
video:  video of ceremony (made by Mike Hines, Holyoke Public Schools)
more: http://www.thereminder.com/localnews/holyoke/reconstructionofho/

[This newsletter was sent to libraries state-wide.]

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Sign a steel beam! Topping out - Friday Sept 7

The steel work is nearly finished! We are invited to come to the construction site Wednesday 8-2 or Thursday 8-2 to sign our names on the steel beam that will be installed FRIDAY September 7, 2012. 

We are also invited to attend the official Topping Out Ceremony at 10:00 am FRIDAY Sept 7 in the Library Park adjacent to the construction. Coffee and refreshments will be provided by the Friends of the Library.  

Friends Board members Connie Kennedy and Sandy Ward are coordinating the refreshments (and food for the steelworkers to thank them for their work). Library Director María Pagán is coordinating the ceremony.
September 4, 2012

Friday, August 17, 2012

Steel columns up!

Look at the progress at the Library construction site!  The structure for the new addition is rising into the air.  Erection of the steel columns started Wednesday August 15. These pictures were taken only two days later.

Photo from webcam Friday morning 8-17-12
Friday afternoon 2:20pm 8-17-12

View from Maple Street side, 11:20am 8-17-12




Thursday, July 19, 2012

HPL Night at the Blue Sox!

July 28 New Flash: RAINED OUT again! Will try MONDAY! July 26 News Flash:  This game has bee RE-SCHEDULED (BECAUSE OF RAIN) until Saturday.  It will be the second game of two.
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As part of the Library's Summer Reading Program, Thursday, July 26, is Holyoke Public Library Night as the Blue Sox, Holyoke’s favorite baseball team, faces the Danbury Westerners at MacKenzie Stadium on Beech Street at 6:30 PM.

All tickets for that game are specially priced at just two dollars each (a saving of $4.00 on each ticket) and children five and under are free – making this a perfect opportunity to treat the family to an evening out as you support your new library and Holyoke’s own ball team.


Holyoke Public Library Board President, Terry Plum, will throw out the first ball for the evening. Mayor Alex Morse and several City Council members are expected to be on hand, together with Friends of the Holyoke Public Library, HPL Board members and other community leaders. 


The 2013 Red Hyundai  Elantra, provided by Gary Rome Hyundai, will be on display at the stadium that evening. Tickets for the “Drive into the Future” Raffle for a three-year lease on the vehicle will also be available for purchase. All proceeds from the drawing have been committed to the Holyoke Public Library’s Next Hundred Years Building Campaign.

Monday, July 16, 2012

Cocktail Party! Costume Party!

Who will you be?
Please join the Friends of the Holyoke Public Library at our Annual Cocktail Party. This year will be a costume party and we ask that you come dressed as your own literary inspiration. Come as a favorite Character, Author, or Book!   Prizes for best costumes will be awarded. We will have hors d'oeuvre, a cash bar, music and several raffles.  Tickets will be on sale soon.


***Saturday, September 22, 2012***      [Date changed from August  to avoid summer heat.]
6:00pm until 10:00pm
City Hall Auditorium
Temporary Library Location
536 Dwight Street, Holyoke, MA 01040

Costumes are NOT required but ARE encouraged! An assortment of fun costumes and props will be provided courtesy of CityStage & Symphony Hall. CityStage Symphony Hall is proud to present great entertainment just minutes from Holyoke. For their complete 2012-13 Season lineup visit www.citystage.symphonyhall
A photographer will be on hand in case you desire a portrait of your character.