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Plainfield Public Library March 2022 |
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From the Desk of the Director...
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Spring will be here soon and I can’t wait. Along with better weather we have good news – as of this newsletter we will have opened our seating for our patrons. This will allow you to spend time in the library to read or work, or use our free wifi with your own devices. It has been a long time coming! While you are in the library enjoying our services may I suggest you take advantage of a new digital resource on our Libby app. Now, through eLibraryNJ you can download and borrow your favorite magazines on your devices.
I took a tour of the selections and have to say they are extensive. The library would never have been able to supply the variety of magazines that are now at your fingertips through Libby. There is something for everyone in the choices including, sports, history, gaming and tech, magazines for kids and teens, news, crafts, fitness and much more.
The absolute best is that multiple users can take out the issue and there is no waiting period. I looked up some of my favorite magazines and more generic subjects that I like and found not only periodicals that I like and read but new ones to explore. What I like best about magazines is the ability to browse the issue and pick and choose articles that interest me. What I hate most about magazines is that when I buy them through subscriptions (and sometimes I do), there is no place to store them and I hate throwing them away.
Borrowing them through Libby allows me to read and avoid not only the expense but the clutter. For me, the best of both worlds. Using Libby will allow you to experience favorite titles while exploring new ones as well.
Ask at the Reference Desk or give us a call at 908 757 1111 ext. 112 if you need help finding this new resource within Libby.
Till next month,
Mary Ellen Rogan
Download Libby on the App Store
Download Libby on Google Play
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Changes to Library Hours and Services from February 28
From February 28th we'll be opening up services some more with the reinstatement of seating for patrons. This will allow patrons to spend time on the library's main floor to read, study or just enjoy the library. Seating is once again available in the Children's room too, so kids and parents will have more comfort when using the Children's Library.
The reintroduction of seating accommodation also facilitates patrons' ability to remain in the library whilst using personal electronic devices such as laptops, tablets or phones with the option of using the Library's free WiFi service.
Our public seating policy retains some social distancing caution, however- each table may be used by no more than two patrons at a time. Do please also note that masks must continue to be worn in the Library at all times.
Our opening hours remain-
Mondays through Fridays: 9am-5pm
Saturdays: 11am-3pm
Sundays: CLOSED
The stacks remain open for browsing, ( curbside service is still available on request if you prefer - call (908) 757-1111 ext. 111 to arrange), and the main floor Reference, Tech Desk, and Circulation desks are all available for in-person service whenever we're open. Patrons can visit the Children's room freely. Local History is open by appointment only. The Literacy department offers a range of ongoing services, and classes.
The newly-refurbished and redesigned public bathrooms are currently available.
As noted bove, per the City of Plainfield's general instructions for public buildings,
everyone must wear a mask while inside the Library.
For more information generally, please get in touch with the Reference Department. For department-specific information, you can contact those departments.
Our in-person services and hours pages at the Library website are also kept updated with details of service changes in more detail. |
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eBooks, Comics, Movies, TV, Audiobooks, oh my!
Hoopla loan limits increase to 7 per month.
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Hoopla became a valuable addition to our database offerings when it was added a couple of years ago. If you haven't yet used it, it offers you access to over 400,000 titles across a range of eBooks, Audiobooks, Comics, TV shows and Movies - all available for free. And since our subscription to hoopla offers instant access to all this, it means that there is no waiting for a hold to come in for you.
We just increased the monthly Hoopla checkout limit per-person to 7 items, so you can now enjoy even more online content straight away.
This joins the news above that our other main streaming and e-content option, through eLibraryNJ- Libby, now features thousands of movies and TV shows through Kanopy, and thousands of magazine titles in many languages. Get into Libby and Hoopla and get access to all sorts of online streaming content and electronic resources for free!
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New Calendar System Going Live March 7th
If you've ever used our old calendar system to find out what was going on at the Library, you'll know that it wasn't super-detailed or very eyecatching.
Our new calendar system, which will go live on March 7th, will change that for the better, allowing us a lot more customization and letting us really show you more of the interesting and fun experiences you can have here at your Library. With much better support for informational images like flyers and posters for events, and proper pages for each upcoming event, we hope you'll find the new calendar system easier to work with and more entertaining to browse through. You'll be able focus right in to individual events in much clearer detail, and apply filters to just see the kind of events that interest you the most - so you can make the calendar work for you and not the other way round!
You'll be able to subscribe to our calendars, and copy Library events easily to your own online calendars to save the date for something that interests you. We think it'll make finding out what's happening at your Library much more fun (and efficient!)
You'll find our new calendar system live at https://plainfieldnj.librarycalendar.com/events/month
from March 7th, and we'll be making extensive use of it for upcoming events at the library from now on.
When we're able to open up our Meeting Rooms properly, you'll also be able to use the system to book in your meeting room usage: for the time being the Library's free-to-use Zoom accounts are bookable for your virtual meetings-
Please join us for one of our many programs, crafts and events, and consider checking in regularly or even subscribing to our events calendar! |
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Free Online Meetups for Seniors - All Welcome - 4 days a week!
PLUS- special Plainfield session, celebrating St Patrick's Day, on March 15th at 11am
We've partnered with RWJBarnabasHealth Institute for Prevention and Recovery’s Hope and Healing Program, who offer 4 meetings a week for seniors, plus some special upcoming events just for Plainfield:
Special Plainfield program - St Patrick's Day with NJ Hope and Healing. Join us live via zoom on March 15th at 11am. Chat with others, learn a little bit about St Patrick's Day with a trivia and fun facts activity, and get involved with the other Seniors programs available most days. This program for seniors is free!
Regular online meetups:
While transitioning back to our lives, we still need connection and support. Our groups offer a place to engage with others, make new friends and learn new things! No registration necessary! Come join us any or all days!
SENIORS – 4 Meetings a week, every day a different topic!
or join via phone:
1 (929) 205-6099 Meeting ID: 974 2675 9376 Passcode: 275889
Wednesdays at 10am
Zoom Link
or join via phone:
1 (929) 205-6099 Meeting ID: 925 0841 7386 Passcode: 871829
or join via phone:
1 (929) 205-6099 Meeting ID: 936 2962 5609 Passcode: 202710
Fridays at 3pm
Zoom Link
or join via phone:1 (929) 205-6099 Meeting ID: 957 0977 9459 Passcode: 542469
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IC3 Digital Literacy Registration is Open!
The Literacy Department announces that registration is now open for IC3 Digital Literacy courses for the Spring session, April 18-June 16, 2022. Registration deadline is March 30, 2022.
Limited Microsoft Office Specialist sessions will also be opening for students who have passed the IC3 certification.
Contact the Adult Literacy Dept for further information at (908) 757-1111 ext. 123 or email literacy@plfdpl.info |
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Children's Library March Calendar
(Click on the calendar to go to the Children's calendar in more detail.)
For more information on Children's activities, please get in touch with us at (908) 757-1111 ext.129 or email yp@plfdpl.info |
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Read Across America - City of Plainfield
City of Plainfield employees will be participating in the national Read Across America event on March 2nd, using the library as a base. We're hosting a throng of avid readers as they tackle readings from a roster of stories for children. Read across America will go on all day across the nation, and Plainfield's cohort will keep their stream of stories going 9:30-3pm.
Tune in via Zoom to show your support, or join in with the spirit of the day and give a child the gift of your reading a story to them.
Interested in finding out more about Read Across America? Check our www.nea.org |
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Read Across America - New Jersey's Cory Booker and Bonnie Watson Coleman
The national event also features participation from NJ Senator Cory Booker and NJ Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman, both taking time out to share a story and add their voices to Read Across America day. They've kindly shared recordings of their readings, so you can go right to their readings now.
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Look out for March Crafts on Thursdays
The Children's team presents 4 craft programs celebrating Women's History on the Library's YouTube Channel this month.
Online premieres for each session are at 3pm on Thursdays ( & the recording remains available afterwards). Collect your free craft supplies on Thursdays to follow along when it suits you.
3/3 - Fossil Hunter Mary Anning, and an Icy Dino Egg
3/10 - Engineer Emily Roebling and a Maker's Bridge
3/24 - Aerospace Engineer Mary C Ross and a Hovercraft
3/31 - Biologist Valentina Cruz and a Turtle Floater
Check out the Children's Pages for more info or get in touch with the Children's Library at 908-757-1111 x129! |
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St Patrick's Day Craft - Thursday, March 11th, 3:30pm via Zoom
Join our Children's team to create a St Patrick's Day bracelet!
Because space and materials for this project are limited, please contact the Children;s Library on (908) 757 1111 ext 129 or email yp@plfdpl.info to register and receive joining details for the session. |
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Local History, Genealogy & Special Collections
The Plainfield Room is open by appointment for historical and genealogical research. Our hours are Monday-Friday, 9am to 5pm and Tuesdays from 9am to 7pm. We are offering two virtual programs in March. Also, the Memoir Writing Club will meet via Zoom on March 9th. New members are always welcome!
MyHeritage Access Starting March 1st
MyHeritage Library Edition is the industry's most multilingual family history research database. It includes billions of historical documents from 48 countries, millions of historical photos, public records, indexes and additional resources that span the past five centuries. This new genealogy resource will be available onsite for all and remotely to Plainfield Public Library card holders.
Library Genealogy Club
Proprietary and Colonial New Jersey Research
Saturday, March 12, 2022
10:30am via Zoom
Presented by Melissa Johnson
Researching families who lived in New Jersey during the Proprietary period (1664-1703) and the Colonial period presents unique challenges. Beginning in 1664, the East and West Jersey proprietors governed New Jersey’s inhabitants. Their records, deposited at the New Jersey State Archives, are complex and require an understanding of the time period and its practices. The Colonial period offers additional record groups to consider, such as church records, land records, court records, probate records, and local records. Attendees will learn strategies useful for specific areas of New Jersey, and discover record groups specific to these time periods. This lecture uses several case studies to illustrate how these records work together to make connections between generations.
Melissa A. Johnson, CG is a professional genealogist, writer, and editor. Her genealogy practice, Johnson Genealogy Services, focuses on New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and British families. Melissa is the Program Director for the Boston University Genealogy Studies Program, and teaches at various genealogical institutes across the country. She serves on the Board of Trustees of the Genealogical Society of New Jersey, and as Vice President of the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History.
This program is co-hosted by Plainfield Public Library and the Historical Society of Plainfield / Drake House Museum.
This FREE program is open to all.
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Curbside- Teen & Adult Crafts
Greening It Up: Growing Sprouts & Microgreens
March 16, 7 pm, via Zoom
Zoom link:
https://tinyurl.com/PPL-sprout
Combat the March blahs with a spring tonic you grow indoors. ‘Microgreens’ are tiny salad greens you grow quickly indoors, an update to ‘sprouts in a jar’. We’ll show you how to set up some sprouts in a jar and start some microgreens in a recycled container, as well as talking about different seeds that are available for sprouting and how microgreen growing differs from regular sprouting.
Pick up your free kit with all supplies at the library Tuesday, March 15, 1-5 pm or Wednesday March 16, then Join the live presentation Wednesday March 16 at 7 pm.
Zoom link:
https://tinyurl.com/PPL-sprout
Live presentation will be recorded and posted to the library’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/PlainfieldPublicLibrary
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Live Daily Serial continues every Weekday at 2pm.
The Trail of the Serpent, by Mary Elizabeth Braddon
We're currently reading
The Trail of the Serpent by Mary Elizabeth Braddon:
The Trail of the Serpent was Braddon's debut work, first published in 1860. We'll follow the terrible Jabez North as he schemes to acquire a fortune, Meanwhile Richard Marwood is implicated in the death of his Uncle and must prove his innocence. Mystery! Intrigue! Murder! Turmoil! Victorians!
Follow along with the story's twists and turns each weekday live at 2pm, or check out recorded episodes and playlists.
Most of the books we've read/will read are available as e-books from eLibrary NJ or at the Library. Grab your copy and read along for free!
The stream goes live on our Facebook page at the same time each weekday from 2pm to 2:30pm. Please head on over to our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/PlainfieldPublicLibrary to join us!
Previous episodes - now as playlists!
We've been doing live serialization for numerous months now and have amassed a fair number of 'back issues' to facilitate viewers' perusal of previous series, you can now browse our public-domain-based serials as playlists at https://www.facebook.com/PlainfieldPublicLibrary/videos
So far, you can peruse playlists of serializations of:
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Donate to the Plainfield Public Library
The Library needs your help!
To make a donation online via Paypal, please click on the "Donate" button below. For more information or to contact the Administration office, call 908-757-2305.
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