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Posts Tagged ‘books’

Longtime local librarian retiring

Posted in Not sports? Tough!, tagged , , , , on February 9, 2023| 1 Comment »

Leslie Franzen (center) enjoys time with family. (Photo courtesy Kelsi Mottet)

There’s a changing of the guard in the world of books.

Longtime Coupeville Library Manager Leslie Franzen is retiring Mar. 1, putting a cap on 43 years of work in the industry.

She’s ridden the ever-changing waves from the days of card catalogs to a world driven by computers, always remaining one of the friendliest, kindest guardians of the written word.

A celebration of her library tenure is set for Thursday, Feb. 23.

The event, which will feature light refreshments and is open to the public, is set for 1-4:00 PM in the library’s meeting room.

The Coupeville Library is located at 788 Alexander Street.

Franzen, a CHS grad, began her library life by working as a page while still in high school.

After a stint off-Island, she and husband Derek returned to Whidbey, where they raised children Kelsi and Garrett, and Leslie was tabbed as Coupeville’s managing librarian in 1988.

Over the years, Franzen (and the library) bounced from location to location in Coupeville, with the snazzy current version being built in 2010.

Two bond measures were passed in 2008 to finance the library improvement, with Franzen among those leading the charge in stumping for the new building.

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Donate today, witness success tomorrow

Posted in Not sports? Tough!, tagged , , , , on March 23, 2022| Leave a Comment »

Support your local schools.

You can help Coupeville children by donating for an upcoming resource fair, with drop-offs set for the next two Wednesdays.

All the info you need can be found in the photo above, so I’ll let you get back to reading that.

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Buy a book, inspire a student

Posted in Not sports? Tough!, tagged , , , , on August 5, 2021| Leave a Comment »

“Books! We’re getting books!!” (Photo by JohnsPhotos.net)

You can fuel book love.

Make a donation of $5 or more to a fundraiser being run by Coupeville Elementary teacher Christi Messner, and the money will go to make sure all of her students have a new book to take home each month during the coming school year.

“Scholastic is an amazing company that provides low cost books to students and teachers,” Messner said. “Sadly, times are changing and many families cannot afford to purchase these books to have at home.

“Print rich environments aren’t the norm at many homes anymore,” she added. “How amazing would it be if ALL of my students could receive one free book every month?!”

Deeply-committed teachers like Messner, whose own daughter Katie will be a freshman at CHS this fall, continue the work embraced by my mother, who worked as a children’s librarian when I was younger.

The book you buy today may fuel the birth of the teacher or librarian of tomorrow.

Or if not, your donation will still provide a ray of sunshine in the life of Coupeville’s youngest superstars.

“We would love to pass on the love of reading and provide books for them to have at home,” Messner said. “Being a teacher, the greatest joy is watching students fall in love with books.”

 

For more info and to donate, pop over to:

https://shop.scholastic.com/viewCampaign?campaignId=7ef2c0b1-8aea-40bf-9575-c3c38903b24f&fbclid=IwAR0Z9aewBkfNQoDDgxzs-lXCh7fOH1l-95kBWgJBRn-vjbNNEeVL2XBzCH0

 

You can also donate through:

PayPal — allofuswhidbey.net

Venmo — @Christi-Messner

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A book for you, a book for me

Posted in Not sports? Tough!, tagged , , , , on October 9, 2020| Leave a Comment »

Escape the world and disappear inside a book. (Photos courtesy Rainy Simpson)

They’re making the world better, one book at a time.

Three Coupeville siblings have created a unique lending library which has quickly become the go-to place for local readers.

Called “Pages on Pennington,” since it’s located at 992 Pennington Loop, the little free library is the brainchild of the Simpson kids.

Laken (5th Grade), River (3rd), and Stone (Kindergarten) started off by running a farm stand during the summer of 2019.

The Simpson kids hard at work.

They sold their tasty treats by donation, and built up enough money in return that they decided to expand into the library biz.

Mark J. Orth, a talented woodworker and artist who hails from Langley, offered to build the enclosure for their books for free, as long as the Simpsons paid for the cost of materials.

Once built, the library was placed in front of their grandparents house, as it offered a prime spot to snag plenty of foot traffic.

While the masterminds behind the project are on the younger side, the library offers a mix of books for all ages.

An assortment of books fit for the season.

Children’s picture and board books, young adult, graphic novels, and both fiction and non fiction aimed at adults have found their way into the library.

There’s also a handy reading bench next to the library, and a Siamese cat named Heffner often shows up to hang out.

Later this month, the library is branching out, hosting a virtual costume party.

Join the fun.

In the end, the philosophy of the library is simple – take a book whenever you please, and leave one when you can.

And, either way, spread a little joy.

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Buy a book, inspire the next generation

Posted in Black Lives Matter, tagged , , , , on July 20, 2020| Leave a Comment »

A simple purchase can help a community.

Swing by the Kingfisher Bookstore today, while wearing a face mask and practicing strong social distancing skills, and help Coupeville Schools build a diverse, inclusive library of books.

But first, pop back up to the photo above to get all the info on the project.

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