I Geek...

Residents of Liberal may soon add a new verb to their vocabulary-- 'geek.'

The Liberal Memorial Library is participating in Geek the Library, a community-based public awareness campaign. The campaign highlights what people are passionate about and how libraries can support them, in an effort to heighten awareness about the critical funding issues public libraries face.

Geek the Library features local educational material that introduces 'geek' as a verb, and encourages the public to talk about what they 'geek'--whether it's engineering, superheroes or art. The public awareness campaign illustrates the fact that everyone is passionate about something--everyone 'geeks' something--and that the library supports them all.

"This campaign is designed to provoke conversation about the vital role that public libraries and librarians play in today's challenging environment," said Cathy De Rosa, global vice president of marketing for OCLC, a non-profit library cooperative which led campaign development and conducted a pilot campaign from June 2009 to April 2010. "We hope it will spark important community discussions about how public libraries can remain strong."

The awareness campaign features advertising, social networking elements, a Web site and grassroots community initiatives to draw attention to the need for increased library support. The campaign Web site, www.geekthelibrary.org, provides information about how people can get active and support their local library.

As the economic downturn slowly recovers, millions of Americans are turning to local libraries for educational opportunities, job-searching resources and entertainment. The increased demand for library services is taking a toll on libraries already experiencing flat or decreasing budgets. And state and local cuts are impacting public library hours, programs and staffing, forcing some libraries to close indefinitely.

While most people have visited their public library and understand its important role in their community, many do not know that libraries are at risk or that local funding for libraries is heavily influenced by community members.

This public awareness campaign hopes to start a conversation about library funding to inspire more people to take personal responsibility for keeping their local public libraries vital in their communities. The campaign will not support or oppose any candidate for public office, nor attempt to influence legislation.
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The Liberal Memorial Library and the Seward County Historical Society welcomes award-winning authors Phyliss Miranda and Linda Broday to Liberal from July 14-16.

Miranda and Broday will be discussing their latest western romance, "Give Me a Texas Outlaw" at a social at the Library on Thursday, July 14 at 6:00 p.m. and at a breakfast at the Coronado Museum on Saturday, July 16 at 8:00 a.m.

Both events at the Library and the Coronado Museum are free to the public.
"Give Me a Texas Outlaw" is the fourth in a series of anthologies by Miranda, Broday, Dewanna Pace and best-selling author Jodi Thomas. A fifth anthology is slated to come out in October of this year.

The first three books are "Give Me a Texan," "Give Me a Cowboy," and "Give Me a Texas Ranger."

For more information on the events, contact the Liberal Memorial Library at (620) 626-0180 or the Seward County Historical Society at (620) 624-7624.

For more information on the authors, you can visit their websites at www.phylissmiranda.com and www.lindabroday.com.

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The Liberal Memorial Library is happy to be partnering with the Mid America Air Museum on its latest exhibit, "The Wartime Escape: Margaret and H.A. Rey's Journey from France."

The Library will be running programs in coordination with the Air Museum's exhibit, which tells the tale of Margaret and H.A. Rey perilous escape from France during World War II. The Reys are the renowned authors the Curious George series.

The Library will have children's programming on Curious George for the children as well as programs for adults and teens on World War II and the Holocaust. We will also have tickets to the exhibit.
"The Wartime Escape: Margaret and H.A. Rey's Journey from France" is expected to begin at the Mid-America Air Museum later this month.

For more information on the exhibit, you can contact the Air Museum at (620) 624-5263. For more information on Library programming, you can call us at (620) 626-0180 or visit our web site