Lee Eaton, 76

Lee Eaton, director of the Beekman Library, passed away on her 76th birthday, June 8th. Lee was the heart and soul of the library, beginning in 1965 as the volunteer director of the Beekman Reading Center. She guided the library through the years, through changes in the profession and technology and through the explosive population growth in the community. Her capstone contribution was to spearhead the long haul to a beautiful new library building which became a reality for the community in August 2005.

While we all knew Lee as a library person (and chief meatball supplier to the annual DA Holiday Party) she had also been a nurse, a nursing professor, a Girl Scout Troop leader, an active member of the Democratic Party, co-founder of the Beekman Historical Society and for 15 years, the Beekman Town Historian.

Lee’s love of “library people” endeared her to everyone here at MHLS. She will be greatly missed.

"Lee was THE driving force behind the development of the Beekman Library and anyone who worked with her knew of her humor, convictions, and strength when faced with any obstacle.”
– Tom Lawrence, executive director, Poughkeepsie Public Library District

"Lee was my dear friend for over 27 years, and the first person who welcomed me when I moved to the Hudson Valley. She was undaunted in her effort to make the Beekman Library a reality. Our challenge is to carry on her legacy.”
-Lena Smolon, Beekman Library trustee; MHLS Outreach & Education Assistant

"She was a beautiful person. She was very loving and giving and she helped anybody she could in any way possible.”
-Jane Straub, Beekman Library Assistant

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Beekman Library, P.O. Box 697, Poughquag, NY 12570-0697.


MHLS Announcements
Teleforms is finally here! Teleforms is Millennium's automated phone service for alerting patrons about holds to pick up and overdue items. The implementation of this product will change the notice process for EVERY LIBRARY, even those who did not purchase the product. Please have staff read the instruction sheet found on the Resource Sharing & Millennium page in the section about Notices, get there directly at
http://midhudson.org/resource/Millennium/Notices/Instructions/Teleforms.pdf. A copy is also enclosed with this week’s Bulletin.

MHLS Libraries
Cheryl Bennin has been appointed as the director of the Sarah Hull Hallock Free Library in Milton.

Professional Development
Millennium for Directors & Administrators: Thursday, July 19th from 10:00am – 12:00pm in the MHLS Auditorium. Presented by Laurie Shedrick, MHLS Automated Systems Manager this workshop will cover:
· Web Management Reports
· Millennium Statistics
· Customizing access and settings for the Millennium Client
· Where to turn for more information
Register online through the MHLS calendar by going to http://midhudson.org then Calendar OR get there directly at http://www.midhudson.org/evanced/lib/eventcalendar.asp

The Small Libraries Roundtable will meet on Tuesday, July 24th from 1:00 – 3:00pm at the Staatsburg Library to talk about how to deal with running a library in a small space. This users group is designed for the administrators of small libraries (3FTE or less). The purpose of the group is to discuss the issues surrounding running a small library. During this session we will address issues and solutions for dealing with small spaces:
· Maximizing smaller spaces for collections, technology, programs, and advertising
· ADA and the small library
· Share your questions, solutions and tips
· Learn from your peers
The session will be facilitated by Josh Cohen, MHLS Executive Director and Rebekkah Smith Aldrich, MHLS Coordinator of Member Information. The Staatsburg Library is located at 72 Old Post Road, Staatsburg, NY 12580-0397. Register online through the MHLS calendar by going to http://midhudson.org then Calendar OR get there directly at http://www.midhudson.org/evanced/lib/eventcalendar.asp

Librarycareersny.org is a great new website with information about careers in librarianship and information science with a particular focus on New York State. It is a great resource for public libraries offering job and career information services, for librarians looking for new job opportunities, and individuals looking to make a career change. It is also a great web site to direct your promising YA pages to! The website includes five informational areas: career information; education requirements and opportunities, including online and distance learning; job search information; career growth involving continuing education, professional organizations, conference attendance, and staying current in the profession; and profiles of librarians currently on the job and recent graduates. It is linked to the Professional Development section of midhudson.org and you can also get to it directly at http://www.librarycareersny.org. The New York State Library developed Librarycareersny.org as part of the Making It REAL! grant project funded by the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Laura Bush 21st Century Librarian Program to expand diversity in the library profession.

Programming
The memoir, Fierce Attachments by Vivian Gornick has been added to the Book Club in a Bag Program (BCB) thanks to the Highland Public Library. The BCB Program has over 60 titles for patrons and library staff to choose from. Staff can book titles for patrons (or for the library to use in programs) up to a year in advance through the MHLS web site: http://midhudson.org then Programming then Book Club in a Bag or get there directly at http://midhudson.org/program/main.php.
[P.S. The NorthEast-Millerton Library has offered to pick up the tab for a new BCB kit that would feature Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides (the new Oprah Book Club pick) If your library has extra copies of this title please consider donating them to NorthEast-Millerton to help offset the costs of creating the bag.]

Youth Services
Margaret Keefe, MHLS Youth Service Coordinator recommends…“There is a new book out about teens online titled Totally Wired: What Teens and Tweens Are Really Doing Online by Anastasia Goodstein, this could be a good addition to your library to help parents balance all the negative PR in the press.” Focusing on the pros rather than the risks, Goldstein presents a solid and accessible guide to help understand the wired generation.

Job Openings
The New Lebanon Library is seeking a full-time director to oversee the operation of this small, but fast growing, library in northeastern Columbia County. Send resumes to John Dax, Pres. Board of Trustees New Lebanon Library PO Box 630, New Lebanon, NY 12125, or by e-mail to Jdax@cohendax.com.

Small, Ulster County Library is seeking part-time Library Clerk. This position requires some computer experience, good communication skills and a desire to provide excellent patron assistance. Alternate Saturday hours required. Please forward letter/email to Sarah Hull Hallock Library, Attention Cheryl S. Bennin, Library Director, Box 802, Milton. N.Y.12547, email: miltonlibrary@hvc.rr.com.

MHLS recommends that the minimum starting salary of a full or part-time librarian with an MLS degree be at least equal to that of a teacher with a master’s degree in the same community.

Member Libraries are welcome to submit items of interest and job openings to the MHLS Bulletin: bulletin@midhudson.org. The MHLS Bulletin is available on line at http://midhudson.org/bulletins/main.htm.