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.