Make Your Voice Heard

If you haven't already done so -and if you live in Maryland you have not- don't forget to vote on Tuesday, November 4th. Turnout is expected to be at record high levels -I have heard the figure 130 million bandied about- so expect a line. But be patient, your vote really does matter. As we saw in both 2000 and 2004, a ballot here and a ballot there may well decide who our next President will be.

Also, as a final reminder, please be sure to attend the library's first anniversary party on Saturday November 1st. The Navy football game isn't until 3:30, so getting into the city for the event shouldn't be too difficult. But if you are concerned, why not come early and tour the museum before the event begins at 1? See you there!

Robert Walsh
Friend of the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library

A Reminder

Saturday, November 1st is the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library’s first anniversary party, so mark your calendars and come enjoy the festivities! Do you like poetry? Betty Henry, Cynthia Crowner, Betty Coleman and Ida Mae Henson will share selections with you. Do you like music? There will be performances from John W. Baer, Atlay Washington, and Juan Brown and the JB Singers. And if you like what you hear you can visit the sales desk to find items by the artists on our bill.

This is the library’s opportunity to raise awareness about its holdings, so please take the time to browse through our stacks. There you will find resources that document and elucidate Maryland’s African American Heritage, a veritable treasure trove of books and pamphlets and other materials that bring that rich history into clear focus.

As always, Dr. Joni Jones will be on hand to answer any questions you might have about the library or its founder. She can also help you if you are pursuing information for a research project, because the Banneker Douglass Museum is the state’s repository for all things relating to Maryland’s African American material culture. And should you have items that you would like to donate to the library, she is always eager to make those materials available to the citizens of Maryland and to visitors to our fair state.
So please clear your schedule, pack up the kids, tell your friends, and come join the party! The events will begin at 1 p.m., and continue for two hours. See you there!

Robert Walsh
Friend of the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library

SGGL 1st Anniversary: You Are Invited

I would like to take this opportunity to invite all of you to help the Sylvia Gaither Garrison Library celebrate its first birthday. We have a wonderful program lined up; full of very talented poets and musical performers, and it all takes place here on November 1 between the hours of 1 and 3 pm.

It hardly seems possible that a year has passed already, but as I look around me, I see the progress that we have made. Our holdings are cataloged now and available digitally. We have begun a very exciting oral history project. We have hosted events in coordination with the One Maryland One Book initiative. And we have bid a tearful farewell to two wonderful interns.

As you may know, Sylvia Gaither Garrison is my mentor and my role model. The dedication of the library in her name is merely the culmination of a distinguished career as a scholar, an educator, a church leader, a community activist, and yes, a librarian. She was the driving force behind the establishment of the Banneker-Douglass Museum’s library, and so it could not have a more fitting name. We only hope that we can live up to such a lofty designation. I believe that we are well on our way.
--Joni Jones

Sara Smith: Intern Extraordinaire

On October 3, 2008, I bid a fond farewell to IMPART intern extraordinaire, Sara Smith. Sara is a highly talented and tireless worker, who is truly dedicated to the library and its mission. She is irreplaceable.

Sara was the very first IMPART intern for the SGGL. After only a few months on the job, I felt comfortable assigning her a key role in the rededication ceremony on Oct. 27, 2007. In the year to follow, Sara greatly surpassed my expectations. She became our cataloger (cataloging well over one thousand books using a software she taught herself) the IT trouble shooter (oh, the stories she could tell), the designer of our electronic vertical file, and the creator of this very blog. She was also invaluable as we prepared for our two OMOB events (and you can read her impressions of that weekend--and offer your own reflections here--if you wish).

So taken were we with Sara’s skills that she became the only IMPART intern given supervisory authority. Clearly, her job assignments far exceeded those of a typical intern, but that was just it: Sara was no typical intern. She's all-around outstanding (Did I mention that she's a black belt and fluent in German?). The BDM staff and I gave Sara a nice sendoff at a local sushi restaurant, which is where the picture above was taken. The smiles of that afternoon are tears today however; and I am very nearly inconsolable (chocolate helps, but not enough). Thank you, Sara, for your distinguished service.

--Joni Jones, SGGL Librarian-Archivist