IMLS Representative Visits Michigan Libraries and Michigan Reads! with Target

During the third week of August, the Library of Michigan's liaison from the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Laurie Brooks paid us a site visit to see how we've been utilizing our Library Services and Technology Act annual allotments to provide improved services to libraries in Michigan statewide. Of course we highlighted the Michigan eLibrary, but Karren Reish, our LSTA and grants coordinator, arranged some visits to libraries as well. We got positive responses from Laurie on our activities, and she was truly impressed with all that Michigan libraries, like the Chippewa River District Library System, are doing for Michigan's residents.

Here Karren and I are pictured with CRDLS director Lise Mitchell (second from right) and Laurie Brooks (second from left).

While visiting CRDL in Mount Pleasant, we took a side trip up to Clare to visit the Pere Marquette District Library. Director Sheila Bissonnette was busy off site that day, but we had a lovely tour from public services librarian Pam McKnight of their beautiful new building. Pam is shown here with one of the spectacular leaded glass windows they moved from their old building into the foyer of their new one.

On August 25th, Sheryl Mase, Elisia Johnson, Joyce Ruttan and I trekked to the Kensington Metropark for the annual Target Children's Book Festival. The weather was not perfect, but the event and the turnout were great! Target, through the Library of Michigan Foundation, is the corporate sponsor for this year's Michigan Reads! one-state/one-children's-book program. We were thrilled to have a booth at the festival and that Target brought in the author and illustrator of this year's book "Big Chickens" to present at the festival stage. Michigan author Leslie Helakoski and Florida illustrator Henry Cole had not met prior to the event, but like the great match between their text and illustrations, Leslie and Henry hit it off like they had known one another for years.

Above, see the photo of Ann Arbor area founder and director of Music for Little Folks, a music school for infants, toddlers, preschoolers and the grown-ups who love them -- Gari Stein, holding a copy of our Michigan Reads!/Big Chickens activity and programming guide. We were so lucky to be able to use some of Target's supporting funds to hire Gari to create the content for our guide. And we thank her for participating in the kick-off event.

Here is a shot of the Library of Michigan's Michigan Reads! booth, which, as you can see, experienced a lot of traffic all day long and generated expanded public awareness of the programming that will take place all during the month of September in Michigan's public libraries, K-2 school classrooms, and Head Start and School Readiness Programs. If you haven't already got one, find yourself a copy of "Big Chickens" at your local library and remind yourself what fun it is to read aloud to your children!