Recent Additions to Library Catalog Options

Do you rely on your cell phone as a primary form of communication?  If you text or tweet or get your email on your phone, the Ridgefield Library wants to make it easy for you to get the information you want about our collections and programs. Two new text messaging options have recently been added to our online catalog for your convenience.

You can receive hold notifications from the Library as text messages;  you will see this as an additional option in the usual screens for placing holds and managing your account preferences.  No more driving right by the Library only to get home to discover an email or phone message about a book waiting to be picked up.

When you find an item of interest in the online catalog, you can send the call number information to your cell phone as a text message to help you locate the item when you visit. Just look for the “text to phone” link next to the call number. No more searching around for elusive pen and paper.  With the expanded shelving areas coming in the New Ridgefield Library, this will be even more of a help in finding what you seek.

Shop Local and Support your Library at the Same Time

Have you taken the Shop Local Holiday Pledge?  This new movement spearheaded by the Chamber of Commerce encourages Ridgefielders to shop, give and eat locally this holiday season.  You can find out more and take the pledge at the Chamber’s Facebook page.

One way you can enter into this spirit is by taking advantage of the annual Ridgefield Library Days at Books on the Common during the weekend after Thanksgiving.  Just show your Ridgefield Library card at the register, and 15% of the proceeds of your purchase will be donated to the Library. To make your holiday shopping even easier, the bookstore will be open Friday the 29^th from 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM, Saturday the 30^th from 9:30 AM – 6:00 PM and Sunday December 1st from 11:00 AM – 5:00 PM.

As an additional incentive, the 30^th is also Small Business Saturday, when shoppers get a rebate on purchases made with an American Express card at participating small retailers including Books on the Common.

The Library will be closed on Thursday the 28th and Friday the 29th, so be sure to come in before then if you don’t have a card. Stop by the Circulation Desk today; all you need is proof of Ridgefield residence.

Young Adults vs. Teens

“Divergent” by Veronica Roth, “Twilight” by Stephenie Meyer and “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins used to be in our YA (Young Adult) fiction collection. Now, to find one of those titles, you need to go to our Teen fiction collection. 

The Future Business Leaders of America from Ridgefield High School spent several hours in the Ridgefield Library on October 24, helping us re-label the entire YA Fiction collection. These cheerful teenagers spent their volunteer time sticking new labels that read “Teen” over old labels that read “YA”, then taping the labels down.  They handled several thousand books and helped us quickly make the transition to the collection’s new designation. 

Why did we make this change? Well, I am the Library’s Teen Services Librarian and work with our Teen Advisory Group. When the New Ridgefield Library opens in the spring, there will be a new Teen Room for my patrons. I serve people in middle school and high school; they are ages 12-18; they are teens, not young adults. “YA” is a jargon-y term that book publishers’ marketing departments use. It seems right to eliminate it from the Library, and to use a word that is clearer, more accurate, and reflects what my patrons call themselves: teens. 

Contributed by Geri Diorio, Teen Services Librarian and Head of Children's Services

New Health Insurance Options: Your Library Can Help You Find Answers

One of our jobs as reference librarians is to stay abreast of changes to government programs that affect our patrons.  On October 1^st we saw the launch of the new state health insurance marketplace website, AccessHealthCT.com, part of the  Affordable Care Act (ACA).  In January 2014, more changes are scheduled to go into effect. New consumer protections; expanded health plan options for individuals, families and small employers; and discounts to help qualified consumers afford coverage will become available.

The Ridgefield Library can make understanding the ACA and the enrollment process, which began October 1 and ends March 31, 2014, easier by providing extended computer times and links to a variety of resources and information on our webpage (www.ridgefieldlibrary.org), Research & Reference, Health & Fitness page.   

On Monday, November 4 at 7:00 PM Randi Redmond Oster, a leading speaker on Health Care Reform, will present a program called Health Care Reform: What You Need to Know Now.  She will address questions like:  Who qualifies for health insurance premium subsidies? What are the penalties for not purchasing insurance? Does my business have to offer me insurance? What happens if I am already covered? Will my Medicare deduction change? Please register as space is limited.

Contributed by Victoria Carlquist, Head of Reference Services

Celebrating our Friends this Week

October 20-26 is National Friends of Libraries Week, and it couldn’t be a more fitting time to celebrate the Friends of the Ridgefield Library.

Friday through Monday October 25-28 marks the Friends annual fall used book sale at Yanity Gym, offering tens of thousands of titles in over 30 categories, all at great prices.  Get the full sale schedule at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org, where you can also find out more about the Friends and the many Library activities they support, including Ridgefield Folk concerts, monthly poetry discussions and Reading Is a Family Affair.  The Friends also make possible such innovations as downloadable ebooks and audiobooks, Great Courses audio and video lectures and Mango and Little Pim language learning programs.

When they are not busy with the book sale, the Friends have taken on the task this fall of assisting the Library staff with “RFID tagging” – placing a special radio frequency tag into each of our 120,000 books and other items in preparation for a state-of-the-art automated circulation system in the new Library.  Anyone interested in volunteering to help with this project should contact me as listed below.

Whether you see them at the sale or around the Library, take a moment this week to thank a Friend!

Fall in Love with the Library – and all of Ridgefield – this Weekend

It’s time to Fall in Love with Ridgefield this Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  The annual celebration of Ridgefield’s rich history, culture, shopping, dining, music, arts and beyond offers dozens of activities for all ages.  Highlights include a costumed 5K Pumpkin Run, a scarecrow scavenger hunt, a pumpkin recipe contest and much, much more.  The Library’s contributions to this festive weekend include:

·         Meet the Natives - a family nature program (for ages 3+) with the Woodcock Nature Center, at the Library, Saturday at 2:00 PM

·         Ridgefield Folk with singer/songwriter Susan McKeown, at The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, Sunday at 2:00 PM. Susan was originally scheduled to appear last fall but was postponed due to Superstorm Sandy – we are thrilled to finally bring her to Ridgefield.

·         Community Art Project, organized by the Watershed Gallery.  Stop by the field next to the gallery and the Library at 11:00 AM or 3:00 PM on Saturday to create “altered book” pages as part of a project to benefit the New Ridgefield Library.  Discarded old books supplied by the Friends of the Library!

For more on the full schedule of events, pick up a brochure at the Library or around town or keep your eyes on Facebook for updates!