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December 29, 2009

Bookmobile provides meals -- for the mind -- on wheels

DailyRecord.com
Donors keep vehicle rolling
By KATELYN FARAGO • MORRISTOWN THIS WEEK • December 23, 2009
The Morristown and Morris Township Library's Bookcar began bringing books to children in the community in 1923.

However, some feared the service would be lost earlier this year, as the bookmobile that was purchased in 1987 began frequently breaking down.

"We knew our days were numbered if we weren't able to get a new one," said bookmobile librarian and driver Kelly Simms.

Thanks to a $25,000 donation from the Friends of the Library and a $5,000 donation from the Paula Rosina Santoro Foundation, the library was able to purchase a new bookmobile this past fall, and will get back into full swing — with 16 stops a week — this January.

Stocked with about 2,500 books for preschool-age children up through young adult readers, the new bookmobile visits the Morristown Neighborhood House, local nursery schools, day care centers, and after school programs in the Morris School District. In the summer, the bookmobile will also visit playgrounds, pools and summer enrichment programs.

"We're dedicated to getting books into the hands of kids," said Maria Norton, the assistant library director.

Norton said the goal of the bookmobile program is to reach out to children who, for whatever reason, cannot get to the library themselves. Many of the children served by the program have two parents who work full time and do not necessarily have the free time to spend at the library.

When the bookmobile visits their nursery schools or day care centers, these children have the opportunity to look at books, check them out and take part in story time.

Gail Glennon, founder and director of Teddy and Me Day Care Center in Morristown, said she has hundreds of books at the center, but the children prefer the books from the bookmobile.

"The bookmobile books are special," she said. "It's how we come by them — we get on the bus, we pick them out, and they are going to be shared and returned. It makes those books special."

The children, who range in age from 2 and half to 6, borrow one book each per week, and then place their books in a special box to share with the rest of the class.
It's another way to expose children to good literature and pique their interest," Glennon said.

Because Teddy and Me Day Care Center does not host field trips, it would not be possible to take the children to the library during the day. But for the last 10 years, Glennon said the bookmobile has brought the library to them.

"I love that they get to go to the library even though they are staying right here on our property," she said.

Simms, who has worked on the bookmobile for about 10 years now, said she stocks a wide range of books and tries to keep everything up to date. She asks the children for ideas of what they might like to see on the bookmobile, and often takes their advice.

At their urging, Simms said she recently began stocking a small collection of graphic novels, like "Avatar," "Batman," and "Yu Gi Oh." She also carries the second installment of the widely-popular "Twilight" series, "New Moon." And to encourage the children to try reading some of the classics, Simms said she has stocked some graphic novels of "Moby Dick" and Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein."

But Simms had some help in stocking the new bookmobile. The students at Woodland Elementary School in Morristown collected hundreds of books for it through a book drive.

Simms said she will be adding three more shelves to accomodate those books and any others that may be added in the near future.

For more information, or to make a donation to help pay for the new bookmobile, contact Maria Norton at 973-993-1291 or send a check to the Morristown and Morris Township Library Foundation, 1 Miller Road, Morristown, NJ 07960.
Katelyn Farago: 973-428-6630; kfarago@gannett.com

Posted by tumulty at December 29, 2009 12:32 PM

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