News
Building Resilience
Spring is a great time to pause and consider our goals for the year. Join Virginia Savage, LCSW, Art Therapist, at the Chickasha Public Library on Thursday, March 17 at 6 pm to 8 pm to continue our community conversation about mental health and how we can improve our resilience to whatever life brings.
The Building Resilience program is free of charge, however, space is limited and registration is required. To register, call 405-222-6075 or visit the library at 527 W Iowa.
In this program, you will learn a smart method to create achievable goals and then use two-dimensional materials to create unique vision boards for 2022. Participants will have the opportunity to share their thoughts on the process.
All necessary materials will be provided, however, participants may want to bring images of their own for the vision board.
Bring your imagination, and join us!
This program is funded through the Oklahoma Department of Libraries with a federal grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.
Beanstack’s Winter Reading Challenge Read for a Better World
From January 1 to January 31, Chickasha Public Library will participate in Beanstack’s Fifth Annual Winter Reading Challenge, “Read for a Better World,” sponsored by Lerner Publishing Group.
We challenge our patrons to read at least twenty minutes a day during the month and keep track of their reading on our Beanstack site at https://chickashapl.beanstack.org/reader365.
Thousands of other libraries and schools across the nation are joining in too, for a chance at winning prizes including book collections, signed books, and virtual author visits. Happy reading, Chickasha!
Chickasha Public Library Patrons Can Now Access the ChiltonLibrary
Keep Your Car Ready for the Road
Whether you’ve got a little or a lot of DIY mechanic in you, here’s a go-to source we thought you should know about. The name “Chilton” has been around almost as long as there have been cars on the road—and now their auto repair manuals are available online through ChiltonLibrary.
RELY ON UP-TO-DATE INFORMATION
With ChiltonLibrary, you’ll find accurate, digestible information that’s continuously updated to cover most cars, trucks, vans, and SUVs on the road today, including:
Step-by-step repair procedures for everything from suspension, brakes, clutch, and gearbox jobs to more ambitious electrical and engine projects.
Troubleshooting guides for additional support.
Maintenance schedules to help prevent costly repairs.
ACCESS ANYTIME AND ANYWHERE
Visit https://link.gale.com/apps/CHLL?u=odl_chickasapl for free access to ChiltonLibrary at your library, at home, or on the go.
Happy car caring!
This project is funded through the Oklahoma Department of Libraries with a Federal grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services through the Library Services and Technology Act.
Chickasha Public Library 2021 Year in Review
Congratulations! We made it to 2022!
In January 2021, the library began using a new circulation system called Atriuum. This has some amazon features, one of which is the ability to create and run several different types of reports. This allows us to track statistics with a wide range of parameters-and that makes my boring little heart just soar. Join me on my adventure through the Chickasha Public Library 2021.
Last year our patrons checked out over 20,000 items from the library. This includes books, audiobooks, magazines, and DVDS. When we started counting circulations per book we found one that soared above the rest. Juniper’s Butterfly Garden by Autumn Heigle was the most-circulated item in the entire library. The book tells the story of Juniper, a young girl who wants to find ways to help the Monarch butterfly population. It is a great book, but what made it even better is that each patron who checks out the book receives a voucher to the Oklahoma City Zoo for up to 4 people. That’s a pretty good deal in my book! Four Winds by Kristen Hannah was another heavily circulated item. This story of Elsa Wolcott and her life-changing decisions was the most circulated adult fiction item.
Of course, the library added more than those 2 items. In fact the library purchased over 2200 items to add to the collection in 2021. The first book we ordered in the year 2021 was Plants-Only Kitchen: Over 70 Delicious, Super-Simple, Powerful and Protein-Packed Recipes for Busy People -a vegan recipe book by Gaz Oakley. Many of the children’s books we added this year were focused on animals in coordination with the theme of Summer Reading 2021 which was Tails & Tales.
While most of the items we add to the collection are selected by Lillie, the Library Director or Courtney, the Youth Services Librarian, we do occasionally add items that are requested by customers. Last year our customers requested 347 items. Some were titles suggested by family and friends or recommended through social media.
Sometimes an item that has been requested is difficult to find for purchase. That is one of the many reasons we use a system called interlibrary loan wherein libraries around the country lend books to one another for their customers. This year we lent 564 items to libraries as close as Anadarko and as far away as New Jersey. Of the 924 items that we borrowed, one came all the way from Alaska!
You may be asking yourself “Brande, if the library added over 2000 items this year, why are you not bursting at the seams?” That is because in addition to adding items to the collection we also eliminate items. This year we weeded over 1600 items from the collection. Most of the items had low circulation counts, were in unacceptable condition, or covered a topic that needed updating-for example a book about First Ladies of the United States that ended with Barbara Bush who served in that role from 1989-1993.
Looking over these statistics I was amazed that the library had accomplished so much in 2021. I certainly knew that we had been busy, but I hadn’t realized how busy. It is easy to get caught up in a day to day routine, to miss the forest for the trees. What did you accomplish this year? What does your forest look like?
Making Memories
Many older adults experience dementia, Alzheimer’s, or other forms of memory loss. It can be difficult for family members and caregivers to know how to connect with people and to find meaningful conversation topics and activities. To help address some of these issues, the Chickasha Public Library has created memory kits with books and activities for both people who are experiencing memory loss, as well as their caregivers.
There are currently two kits available at the library. Each kit contains a copy of the book A Caregiver’s Guide to Dementia: Using Activities and Other Strategies to Prevent, Reduce and Manage Behavioral Symptoms by Laura N. Gitlin and Catherine Verrier Piersol, which contains information for caregivers about different activities and strategies to navigate daily challenges, effective communication, safety, and more. There is a set of conversation cards with photos to help facilitate memories and recollections, provide social interaction, and enhance cognitive functioning. Each kit also contains an activity pillow, which is brightly colored and full of various textures that can provide a relaxing and soothing activity.
In addition to the items mentioned above, Kit #1 contains a fidget board with various metal locks, chains, clasps, and zippers, which is ideal for people who enjoy tools and mechanical projects. There is also a jigsaw puzzle with a picture of an antique car, and a Greatest Hits of the 50s CD.
Kit #2 contains a color sorting board, a jigsaw puzzle with a picture of a cat drinking some milk, and a CD with relaxing music. CD players are also available upon request. Let library staff know if you would like a CD player at the time of checkout.
Each kit can be checked out for two weeks. These items are intended to help people connect with their loved one while providing a variety of activities for daily life. Caregivers and family members can also take a kit with them while visiting family members at their house or in a nursing home.
Memory kits are a great way to help people to remember important people and events in their lives, while also creating new memories with caregivers and loved ones. The library’s memory kits are currently on display on the table near the front desk, along with books about Alzheimer’s, dementia, and maintaining brain health. If you or someone you know has been affected by memory loss, this is a great resource to check out!
Stay Connected: Check Out New Technology at the Chickasha Public Library
The Chickasha Public Library now offers patrons the option to check out Facebook Portals and T-Mobile Hotspots. The Library recognizes the critical importance of connecting with loved ones and hopes these free resources will help families and friends stay connected this holiday season and beyond.
The Facebook Portals were purchased through a Health Literacy Grant in 2020. To use a Portal, you must have a Facebook account, and you can call loved ones using Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Zoom, GoToMeeting and more.
Through the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, the Library was able to purchase and provide one year of service for the internet hotspots through T-Mobile. Hotspots allow users to access internet wherever T-Mobile provides service.
Any adult with a valid Chickasha Public Library account can check out a Hotspot and/or Facebook Portal for up to two weeks at a time. They can be checked out together or separately.
If you have questions or would like to check out a Portal or Hotspot, visit the Chickasha Public Library or call them at (405) 222-6075.
This project was supported in whole or in part by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Opinions expressed in this publication or presentation do not necessarily reflect the position or policy of the Oklahoma Department of Libraries or IMLS and no official endorsement by those entities should be inferred.
Look Up! Explore Our Universe: The James Webb Space Telescope Challenge
NASA @ My Library Beanstack challenge
Explore our universe with the James Webb Space Telescope Challenge. Learn all about the science behind NASA’s newest space telescope mission, the James Webb Space Telescope. Scheduled to launch this winter, JWST is the most advanced infrared space telescope ever launched and will allow us to look deeper into time and space than ever before!
You can register for the NASA @ My Library Beanstack challenge using the Beanstack app or by following this link. Select the challenge you want to participate in, and you will be prompted to sign in or create an account.
Every reader in your family can have an account and participate in the different challenges. If you need help signing up for a challenge, call 405-222-6075.
NASA @ My Library is supported by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration under grant No. NNX16AE30A. The work was also assisted and supported by the Space Science Institute, which was the recipient of the grant. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of NASA or the Space Science Institute.
How I learned to Knit. What does the library have to support your hobbies?
Back in the Dark Ages, 1997, I found a pair of knitting needles in my mother’s big blue sewing box. Why there were knitting needles in there, no one knows, she was an avid crocheter, but I had never seen her knit at that point in my life. I took them as my own and decided to learn to knit. The problem? 1997 was pre-internet, and I didn’t have a knitter handy to help me. What did I do? Why I turned to the only resource, a teen in rural Oklahoma had–the encyclopedia. Yep. I grabbed the “K” volume, a skein of Red Heart, those found needles, and got to work trying to learn the art/craft/sorcery that is knitting.
A book that may have been a bit more helpful than a half-page entry tucked between the Knights Templar and Alfred Knopf in an out-of-date World Book would have been a comprehensive guide like Knitting school: a complete course. This book addresses the basics of knitting and how to fix mistakes like dropped stitches. It even has simple patterns for basics like mittens and baby booties.
Of course, knitting isn’t the only hobby a person could enjoy. The book Get a Hobby: 101 All-Consuming Diversions for Any Lifestyle lists, well, 101 hobbies that you could learn. And the library has resources to help you with many of them.
With the rise of at-home tests, genealogy has exploded in popularity. Did you know that the library has access to several resources to trace your family history? You can start your search from home by logging onto HeritageQuest. You can search for your relatives in city directories, the US censuses as late as 1940, even Freedman’s bank record. HeritageQuest is available from home on our e-resources page. You can also access several physical items at the library to help with your genealogy quests, including yearbooks.
Perhaps you want a hobby more tangible than genealogy but less tangled than knitting. Papercrafting could be for you, and Origami isn’t your only option either! There is Kirigami: the art of 3-dimensional paper cutting by Laura Badalucco. Kirigami is a combination of folding and cutting paper to create images that “pop” from the page. You could use this skill to make amazing birthday cards and jaw-dropping displays for your home.
In the end, World Book served me well enough, and if you like an encyclopedia, those are available at the library. I learned the basics of knitting from an encyclopedia, even if that first scarf was a mess of dropped stitches, crooked edges, and uneven tension. Over the years, I have used many resources, mainly from the internet, to learn new techniques and patterns, but I will always be on the lookout for a good book that will help me grow my hobby.
2021 in Nonfiction
This year seems to have passed by very quickly, especially after the strangeness that was 2020. It still feels like 2021 is just beginning, but there are only a few weeks left until 2022. Therefore, now is a good time to highlight a few of the nonfiction books that were released during this year, specifically those about current events and issues that have affected many people during this past year.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact various aspects of everyday life, a few people have given some early thoughts and assessments of what the post-pandemic world might look like. One of these is Ten Lessons for a Post-Pandemic World by Fareed Zakaria (303.49 Zakaria). Lessons such as “life is digital,” “inequality will get worse,” and “globalization is not dead” are discussed in individual chapters. Zakaria goes into detail about international relations, economic factors, social interactions, and offers some thoughts and insight about some of the complicated issues that intersect with and affect one another. Because of the wide-reaching nature of the pandemic, there are likely to be many more forthcoming books offering a wide variety of perspectives about health, medicine, public policy, safety, the economy, technology, and other ideas.
Navigating the digital landscape is becoming increasingly important because so much information is now transmitted through online sources. Knowing how to find reputable sources can feel overwhelming, so Viral BS: Medical Myths and Why We Fall for Them by Dr. Seema Yasmin (610 Yasmin) is one source that can help people who are looking for health and medical information. Each chapter covers a specific question (“Do cell phones cause cancer?,” “Is trauma inherited?”) and gives facts and data from medical studies and explains their relevance to both individual and public health.
One health topic that affects many people is the complex and tragic nature of addiction and how to prevent it. The Addiction Inoculation: Raising Healthy Kids in a Culture of Dependence by Jessica Lahey (649 Lahey) is described as “a comprehensive resource parents and educators can use to prevent substance abuse in children. Based on research in child welfare, psychology, substance abuse, and developmental neuroscience, this essential guide provides evidence-based strategies and practical tools adults need to understand, support, and educate resilient, addiction-resistant children. The guidelines are age-appropriate and actionable—from navigating a child’s risk for addiction, to interpreting signs of early abuse, to advice for broaching difficult conversations with children.” This book discusses the genetic nature of addiction and gives tools and resources with which to help children and young people access prevention and treatment for addiction.
And because we all need some positivity, Let Us Dream: The Path To a Better Future by Pope Francis (261.8 Francis) gives some much-needed optimism to today’s current events. Many problems are discussed, but solutions are offered for dealing with both personal and societal crises. This can help the world feel less overwhelming. There are also many examples of ordinary people helping others, starting with simple steps, along with a hopeful reminder that it is always possible to create a better world for the future.
Exchange Food for Overdue Fines this December at the Chickasha Public Library
December is the Chickasha Public Library’s 21st annual Food for Fines month, when overdue library fines may be paid with a donation of non-perishable food.
“The donations will be given to the Chickasha Emergency Food Pantry,” said Lillie Huckaby, Library Director. “Even if you do not owe a fine, please come to the Library and make a donation. Together, we can bring in more food than ever before to help our neighbors this holiday season.”
According to the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, 6,900 people in Grady County live with hunger, including 2,550 children who are food insecure. The donations from the Food for Fines food drive will be given to the Chickasha Emergency Food Pantry, located at the First Presbyterian Church.
The value of the donated food does not have to equal the amount of the fine; any donation covers any fine.
“In addition to much-needed food, many overdue books also return home to the library during Food for Fines, usually about 100 of them,” Huckaby said. “Not having to repurchase popular titles means the Library can purchase more new books. This also gives patrons who have accrued fines a way to make a fresh start and be able to check out books again. ” If a book has been lost, the overdue fine will be waived, however, the replacement cost of the book must be paid.
The Food for Fines food drive will run through December 31st. For more details, call the Chickasha Public Library at 222-6075.