There's Something for Everyone at Norwood's Library

Read Bonnie Wyler's entire column this week in the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Excerpt:

" When I began working at the Morrill Memorial Library in 2001, I was struck by the unusual breadth and depth of the programs offered here.

Like many libraries, Norwood offers wonderful programs for children and adults in the community. In addition to these basic services, our library has two outstanding programs: Literacy and outreach, which address the needs of underserved populations in town.

The outreach program delivers library materials to residents of nursing homes and senior housing facilities, as well as to anyone unable to come to the library because of illness or disability.

The literacy program provides free tutoring to non-English speakers and people who wish to improve their language skills."

Bonnie Wyler is the outreach and reference librarian at Morrill Memorial Library.

Never Too Late to Learn

Read Charlotte Canelli's entire column this week in the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

St. Leo University is tucked into hills that roll across part of west central Florida. It is a small campus; only 1,000 students live and study there in buildings designed to look like a Spanish mission. 

Many more students at St. Leo are the non-traditional types who attend evening or weekend classes on campus or at satellite locations. Over 13,000 of St. Leo’s students finish their degrees in continuing education programs in seven states or through online learning. 

Most of these students have families and jobs that won’t allow them to pursue their education the old-fashioned way. Many of them return to school after hardship or initial educational failures. Whatever the reason, all of them are making their families proud.

Saving the World and Other Backyard Projects

Read Charlotte Canelli's entire column this week in the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Excerpt:

I was stung on the eyelid by a nasty yellow jacket as a young child. It was, as you might guess, a very traumatic experience. I remember lots of adults fussing about me and having to take blue medicine by the spoonful and I’ve been terrified ever since.
As a young(er) adult I avoided bees and wasps at all costs, actually nearly breaking my back on a fireplace pit as I stepped away in panic. Bees, as you might guess, wouldn’t be my choice of pet, companion or live-in guest. Or neighbor.

So, how exactly has this librarian become a beekeeper? Or perhaps, the wife of a beekeeper who happens to keep honeybees in OUR yard?

My beekeeping days began as a total skeptic. For one, I figured that my hobbyist husband would give up on his rather strange interest in raising honeybees. Golf, birds, photography, gardening – did he really need another obsession? Secondly, I figured that his wife (me) would never actually OK the idea. However, given time and knowledge, and my insatiable desire to feed my family’s reading needs and support their causes, here we are ... saving the world.

Use the Library to End the Day Happily

Jean Todesca is a Youth Services Librarian at the Morrill Memorial Library in Norwood. Read Jean's entire column this week in the Norwood Transcript and Bulletin.

Excerpt:

The hectic day is finally winding down.

It’s 9:30, the pizza boxes are piled in the trash. Your 4- and 6-year-old children are finally bathed and in bed after a late Little League game, preceded by a Cub Scout meeting and a quick stop at the school art fair. You’ve just put your feet up when you hear a loud wail coming from your 9-year-old son who is working on his homework. “I need six facts about New Mexico!” he exclaims.

Your first thought is the library, but it’s already closed. You’re just too tired for a random Internet search. If you could only get to an almanac, encyclopedia or fact book, but you can’t!