the 1950’s, the tumultuous 1960’s, the off-field politics that culminated in the 1994 p la ye r s ’ s t r i k e t ha t devastated the sport, and how the “Steroid Era” recaptured fan interest.

This program is free and all are welcome. Funding for this program is provided by the Friends of the Meriden Public Library and the Meriden Foundation.

To reserve a seat, contact the Community Services Department at (203) 630-6 3 4 9 , e m a i l comsvc@hotmail.com or visit www.meridenlibrary.org and sign up through the adult calendar.

Meriden Public Library is pleased to host Aaron Krerowicz on Tuesday, July 29 at 7:00 pm as Mr. Krerowicz begins a three part series on the History of Baseball.

Unlike other sports, baseball has a rich and complicated history that closely parallels American history.

The first part, “Civil War through the Black Sox” will cover how the American Civil War provided baseball with its first platform for national exposure and infused the sport with a sense of national pride. It will trace the history of the national pastime from the Civil War, through the late 19

th century, the “Dead Ball

Era,” and the Black Sox scandal of 1919.

Part 2, “Babe Ruth through I n t eg r a t i o n ” w i l l b e presented on August 12 at 7 :00 pm . W i th h is gargantuan home runs and matching personalilty, no single person—before or s i n c e — f u n d a m e n t a l l y changed baseball more than George Herman “Babe” Ruth. This program will observe how Ruth’s onfield accomplishments helped revolutionize the game in the 1920’s, how the Great Depression weakened the sport in the 1930’s, how World War II reestablished a sense of patriotism in baseball, and how Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier.

Part 3, “The 1950’s to the present” will be presented on September 2 at 7:00 pm. The second half of the Twentieth Century saw both new highs and new lows for baseball. This program will cover the “Golden Age” of

History of Baseball

Summer Hours July 7—August 30

Monday: 9:30 am—8:30 pm

Tuesday: 9:30 am-8:30 pm

Wednesday: 9:30 am—8:30 pm

Www.meridenlibrary.org July/August 2014

Meriden Public Library

Mark Your

Calendars

Thursday Movie Nights

begin July 10

July 15: “Second Acts:

finding a new career

path”

July 29: History of

Baseball Part 1: The

Civil War through the

Black Sox

Aug. 12: History of

Baseball Part 2: Babe

R u t h t h r o u g h

Integration

Inside this issue:

“Second Acts: finding

a new career path

2

Chess & Scrabble

Writer’s Network

2

Summer Movie

Schedule

2

Yu-Gi-Oh & LEGO 3

Friends News 4

Summer Reading

Challenge

4

Children’s Summer

Programs

5

Thursday: 9:30 am—8:30 pm

Friday: 9:30 am—5:00 pm

Closed Saturday and Sunday

Library Closed

Friday, July 4

Meriden Public Library, 105 Miller Street, Meriden, CT 06450 (203) 238-2344

mailto:comsvc@hotmail.comhttp://www.meridenlibrary.org

Employers can’t find peo-

ple to fill 4 million jobs

each month. Why is this

happening?

Have you recently lost

your job? Are you

searching for a new

career? Is there a way to

upgrade your skills quickly

for the job market?

Join us on Tuesday, July

15 at 2:30 pm in the Cook

Room to learn about

finding a new career path.

Learn how to:

Create a personal

analysis of your skills.

Match your skills to

find the perfect job for

you.

Find opportunities to

quickly re-enter the job

market.

Use social media to

present yourself and

network.

Presented by Roynn Lisa

Simmons, and Carolyn

Sommer, from Middlesex

Community College.

This program is free and

all are welcome.

August 13—7:00 pm in the

Cook Room

August 27—7:00 pm in the

Cook Room

July 16—7:00pm in the

Griffin Room

July 30—7:00 pm in the

Cook Room

Anyone who is interested

in writing is welcome to

attend.

Second Acts: Finding a New Career Path

Writer’s Network

Chess Club Scrabble

Mondays in the Cook Room

2:00 pm

July 14

July 28

August 11

August 25

All are welcome!

Wednesday, July 2

Wednesday, August 6

6:30 pm

Seminar Room

All skill levels welcome

Bring your chess board.

Page 2

Meriden Public Library

Romance Reader Group The Romance Readers Group will meet on Monday, July 21 and August 25 at 3:30 pm in the Seminar Room. This is not a traditional reading group with assigned books to read each month, but a group of like-minded fans of romance literature who meet to discuss the genre in all its aspects. Please contact Becky at (203) 630-6350 if you have any questions about the group.

If you have any questions contact the Information Desk at (203) 238-2346.

Come and duel with your friends at our monthly Yu-Gi-Oh! meet up on Monday July 21 and August 18 at 6:00 pm in the Cook Room.

Snacks and drinks will be provided. Bring your own deck or learn how to play from one of our members.

Wednesday, July 23

4:00 pm

Griffin Room

This month’s theme:

Open Build

Let your imagination run wild.

Check www.meridenlibrary.org

for the August date.

Yu-Gi-Oh! Lego Club

August Movies

August 7—Lady and the Tramp

August 14—Close Encounters of the

Third Kind

August 21—Aladdin

August 28—Casablanca

July Movies

July 10—How to Train Your Dragon

July 17—Tootsie

July 24—Muppets Most Wanted

July 31—Captain Phillips

Page 3

July/August 2014

Summer Movies at the Library

Thursdays at 6:00 pm

Notes from the meeting held on Monday June 23, 2014 President’s Report: June formally thanked everyone who helped and took part in the summer social, making appetizers, salads and desserts and helping with set-up. Karen and her staff had beautified the courtyard and decorated tables with fresh flowers. Security was there all evening to let in partygoers and 25 people attended the cordial event. Bookstore: Phyllis announced that during the week-long paperback sale over 70 bags of books at $5 per bag were sold. With this plus the regular daily sales, bookstore profit this month should be very good. Summer specials will include all history and biography books for half price plus summer dining books (picnics, salads and barbecue fare). The store will be closed on Saturdays during July and August because the library will not be open those days. (The library will be open Thursday evenings instead.) Friends of Connecticut Libraries: Karen, Linda, June, Frank, Larry and friends attended the state Friends (FOCL) annual awards ceremony at which Larry won an individual achievement award for his ongoing painting of the library interior. Library Director: Biweekly summer children’s programs, “Seussical Summer,” paid for by the Friends, have started and will run through July and August. We will also pay for two e-readers as prizes for the teen and adult programs. New security gates and a self-checkout station are now being installed. The collection is being prepared for scanning, starting with DVDs. Plans for Tomie dePaola’s 80th Birthday Bash are progressing with a two-part celebration planned for September 27. The 2014 Christmas ornament, “The Silver City,” is now available at $10 apiece. This program has produced a new ornament each year for the last 21 years. Proceeds from the sale have supported the library’s historical collection.

Meriden Public Library

Don’t forget to join the Summer Reading Challenge!

Log the books you are reading this summer and be entered into our weekly drawings.

Prizes include gift certificates to Holiday Cinemas, Dunkin Donuts and many other local businesses. The grand prize drawing at the end of the program will be a Kindle Fire.

The challenge continues to August 15th. This Summer Reading Challenge is open to

teens and adults. Sign up by the library or use the link at www.meridenlibrary.org. For more information, contact the Information Desk at (203) 238-2346.

Friends of the Library News

Summer Reading Challenge

Meriden Public Library, 105 Miller Street, Meriden, CT 06450 (203) 238-2344

http://www.meridenlibrary.org

Meriden Public Library Tomie dePaola Children’s Library presents

Seussical Summer! (June 23—August 15)

Tickets will be available in the Tomie dePaola Children’s Library beginning June 9th.

OTHER GREAT SUMMER ACTIVITIES AT THE LIBRARY! STAY TUNED FOR DETAILS! • Thursday evening drop-in crafts (June 26—August 14) •

• Visit the library to participate in a Look and Find Challenge (June 14—July 25) • • Can you spot the Cat in the Hat? Find him in the Children’s Library to receive a small prize! (July 28—August 15) •

• Come to our Dr. Seuss Ice Cream Party (July 22) • • Blast off into fun at our Rocket Club for grades 4 and up (July 28—August 1) •

Monday June 23 6:30pm Mr. Magic • Mr. Magic will wow you with this fun, magical performance! Great family show! All ages.

Friday June 27 10:30am Turtle Dance Music • Turtle Dance Music presents a wonderful, zany and gentle program that is sure to have children moving and grooving. All ages.

Monday June 30 6:30pm Book Time with Ronald McDonald • Join Ronald on a magical and musical adventure with puppets, audience participation and lots of laughter

Friday July 4 LIBRARY CLOSED FOR INDEPENDENCE DAY HOLIDAY

Monday July 7 6:30pm Great Big Seuss • Paul Merklein combines art, comedy and audience par-ticipation as he draws famous faces and people right from the audience! All

ages.

Friday July 11 10:30am Fur, Feathers and Beyond • Kids’ imaginations will soar, along with their feathery friends, as the birds perform dazzling tricks, show off their color-

ful plumage and more! Learn unique facts about each bird’s natural habitat!

All ages.

Monday July 14 6:30pm Bending Gravity • You’ve never seen a show like this! Eric Girardi wows audiences with his incredible yo-yo skills during this interactive perform-

ance! All ages.

Friday July 18 10:30am Silly Song Singalong • Join Edward Leonard for a show that com-bines songs, games, dancing, and movement. Kids will sing and jump along

while he plays various instruments. All ages.

Monday July 21 6:30pm Garden of Beats • A forty-five minute adventure in drumming. With hand drums of every size and lots of shaky and percussion toys we introduce the

world of rhythm to kids. K-2. Space is limited.

Friday July 25 10:30am Nature Nick* • Get up close to close to a dozen exotic animals, includ-ing monkeys, wallabies and rare birds of prey. All ages. *Sponsored, in part, by the staff of Roger Sherman School.

Monday July 28 6:30pm Hoopin’ it Up! • Be amazed by cool hula hooping tricks and try these special weighted hoops yourself! All ages. Space is limited.

Friday August 1 10:30am Mr. Gym Band • Get ready to rock! (And leap, bend, twist and stamp!) Mr. Gym leads kid in an active and fun program. PreK-3.

Monday August 4 6:30pm Bubble Dance Party • The show includes music, games, and danc-ing, and of course bubbles are the highlight. All ages. Space is limited.

Friday August 8 10:30am Amazing Andy • Andy Charney's one-man show of magic, juggling/balancing, balloon sculpting, illusions, stilt-walking and the production of a live

rabbit. All ages.

All programs are sponsored by the Friends of the Meriden Public Library.