All posts by Friends of the Brunswick Library

Brunswick – The Documentary

Library News, ,

As part of the “Stories from Main Street” exhibit coming to Brunswick at the end of August, this local student-produced film provides an oral history of Brunswick and the Railroad that made it.

Smithsonian Institution: Stories From Main Street: Brunswick – The Documentary

Developed by Brunswick Students, the Brunswick Library, and the Brunswick Railroad Museum. Project support provided by the Smithsonian Institution Youth Access Grant program and the Maryland Humanities Council.

Looking for Art!

Library News

Now that the new Library has opened, there is so much more space. Even with so much of the exterior walls being floor-to-ceiling windows, there are still plenty of places inside that could do with a little decoration.

One of the primary purposes of the Friends of the Library is to seek out and acquire art for the Library. As such, we’re looking for a large, signature piece to mount above the fireplace.

As such, we’re looking for an artist who lives or works within a 50-mile radius of Brunswick to create some art for the Library.

Details here: Request for Proposal: Artwork for Brunswick

The Frederick County Community Foundation will allocate up to $15,000 for the creation of a piece of artwork for the Fireplace Reading Lounge of the Brunswick Public Library. The scope of the work will consist of:

One (1) piece of art to be installed in the Fireplace Reading Lounge. Preference given to artwork that features a theme that is unique to the Brunswick area or southern region of Frederick County. The artwork will be installed on a brick wall above the fireplace. The area directly above the fireplace measures approximately. 9′ 6″ h x 11’11” w

Responses must be submitted by April 12, 2012. (Full details at the RFP.)

February 12 – Appraisal Event

Fundraising

Get your treasures appraised by a Professional Appraiser.

Got an old painting? Pottery? Jewelry? Furniture?

Find out what those family treasures are worth!

Featuring local appraiser, Robert Abraham.

The event will be held Sunday, February 12, 2012, 12 noon to 4 PM. (Snow date: Sunday, February 19.)

The Green Country Inn
620 Souder Road
Brunswick, MD 21716

Only $5 per item, maximum 3 items

Proceeds benefit the Friends of the Library – Brunswick Branch

If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail us: folbrunswick@gmail.com

(Facebook Event)

Not all “Books for Charity” are

Uncategorized

A piece aired on the radio program Marketplace today about some bright blue bins found throughout the country.

Not all “Books for Charity” Go To Charity

In a nutshell these bins, owned by a company called Thrift Recycling Management, collect a whole lot of books. Some books indeed go to charities; some are recycled and so don’t add to our landfills; but a large portion of them are sold on sites like Amazon.com. Enough for the company to make $27 million last year.

Here’s a quote from Richard Cady, a volunteer at the Prescott (Arizona) Library:

Cady: The average little old lady who is going grocery shopping at Safeway isn’t going to figure this out. She’s going to think that those books are going to children, and I don’t think that’s always the case.

The bins worry Cady because he helps run Prescott Library’s used bookshop. It raises thousands of dollars for library programs by selling donated books. Like many Friends of Library groups around the country, Cady worries the bins are siphoning off donations that normally would come to them.

Indeed. The biggest fundraising event for the Friends of the Library is our used book sale. We’d be beside ourselves with glee to be able to earn one-tenth of one percent of $27 million for the Brunswick Library. That some corporation is making big bucks while competing against us for used books seems just a little unseemly.

So, before you dump your used books in a nameless bin in some supermarket parking lot, please remember your local Library organizations.