John Jermain Memorial Library Visit

So... remember on our last library visit post how we told you that it was the final one we’d be posting this summer? Well, it turns out we didn’t take into account the possibility of a quiet Friday with beautiful weather! In short, we lied. But we didn’t mean to! How could anyone say no to the chance to drive to Sag Harbor and see the newly-renovated John Jermain Memorial Library?

We entered the library through the ground floor entrance that takes you right into the children’s area, where the space has a great exposed brick new industrial vibe. As head of children’s services Susann Farrell told us, there’s still a lot of furniture to be moved in, but it already looks great. Check out that delightful story time circle - doesn’t it make you want to sit down and read?

Children's fiction stacks

Storytime Circle, which was promptly taken over by patrons who clearly enjoyed the cozy space

Next we headed up a floor to the teen space, where we got to talk to John Jermain’s director Catherine Creedon and teen librarian Mireille Stürmann. Mireille gave us an excellent and very informative tour of the rest of the library, explaining all about the library’s history and transformation -- thanks Mireille!! We had a blast! You can read more about the library’s history here. Check out some of our visit's highlights below.

Mireille shows us a video of the library's opening day on their multimedia display behind the teen reference desk

A cozy teen reading nook by a sunny window. The library will have a teen advisory board to get feedback on how teens
want to make the space their own.

The stunning rotunda reading room. I may have gasped when I came up the stairs. Patrons of all
ages have been enjoying the use of the space, including a 4th grader who comes there to work
on a book she's writing.

Rotunda ceiling and skylight

John Jermain over the reading room fireplace, which with its
benches to either side, will be the best place ever
when the weather turns cold.

Original refurbished gas lighting fixtures, updated with Edison bulbs

In the climate-controlled archival room, a shot of the old building meeting the new building.
That brick wall is the original exterior. The archival room is also unimaginably cool and
deserves its own post - I'm very mad at myself for not taking more pictures of it!

Mireille and Darla by a sunny window seating area looking out on the courtyard

Thank you for letting us invade your library, John Jermain!! We can't wait to visit again in the future!

Derek and Darla's North Fork Road Trip

Thursday, July 21st dawned bright and beautiful, a perfect day to hit the North Fork and see some LIBRARIES! We made our way to the end, allll the way to Greenport, then worked our way back to conclude our day at Riverhead Free Library for the second in SCLS' series of Meet and Greets. 

First on our road trip was Floyd Memorial Library, where we met Tracy in the teen room, who, at 10 o'clock in the morning, already had her computer station full of teens! Then we made our way to Children's, where Joe was nice enough to talk with us about their exciting summer programming conducted in conjunction with other North Fork libraries and community organizations. He also gave us an exclusive tour of their beautiful garden! 

Remember these grins?

Next up was Southold Free Library, where we caught Dana in action in an embroidery class! We got to peek at their costumes for the upcoming Battle of the Books, and when making our way into their youth services area, spotted a passive program that came from our training with Dr. Dana Sheridan earlier in the year! 

Then, on to Cutchogue-New Suffolk Free Library where it was all about a summer full of fitness! Patrons can take part in their Be Fit Challenge, a series of fitness exercises along their garden path. Those who complete it get to send a monkey on a zipline ride to ring a bell! When talking with Mignon, a young patron came in, excitedly declaring, "I DID IT!" The toddler also conducted a small interview with myself and Derek, demanding our names and that we watch her send the monkey down the zipline. We did. It was amazing. We wanted to do it to. Wouldn't you?

Mattituck-Laurel Library was completely decked out in sports decoration goodness! Want to play a round of mini-golf? Go for it! Want to shoot some hoops? You got it! As long as you're signed up for the Summer Reading program, you get to play with a TON of awesome stuff! Teen librarian Jacklyn also took some time out of her day to show us her revamped teen space. Looking great! 

3D Printed Bubble Wands!

Mattituck-Laurel: Team Valor Town

Derek, breakin' rules as usual

Finally we found ourselves at Riverhead Free Library, where we brought the newest addition to the SCLS-YS team, Delilah Dinosaur (that isn't her name) to show off. Thanks to the Riverhead for hosting us and showing us around! 

We hope we see you at our next SCLS Meet and Greet at 10:00 am this Thursday, August 4th at Lindenhurst Memorial Library!