Holiday Homecoming Special!!!

The Lillie M. Evans Library is partnering with LG Fitness 24/7 for our next LME Biggest Loser Season 3. Simply visit LG Fitness 24/7, located next to the Princeville Washtub, on Thrusday, December 1st from 5-8pm during the Holiday Homecoming Celebration and preregister for our next LME Biggest Loser. After you register you will receive a one month fitness pass for FREE! This is a great opportunity to get started on the right track to a healthier you.

Thank you Cindy & Suzie of LG Fitness 24/7 for this wonderful opportunity for all our contestants!

Additional LME Biggest Loser 3 Info:

If your New Years resolution is to lose weight or get healthier in 2012 be sure to join the Lillie M. Evans Library's Biggest Loser 3! The library will be having their first weigh-in day on Wednesday, January 11, 2012. Players can stop in anytime on Wednesdays between 9am - 8pm to confidentially weigh-in. Player weights will be kept private at all times; percentages of weightloss will be posted every Thursday and the weekly winner announced by noon. Players may only weigh-in during library hours on Wednesdays. Registration is free, must be 18 or older. Complete rules available at the library.

Players can earn a 1 lb advantage for attending our health & fitness classes (maximum 2 lbs advantage per week). We will also have yoga, Zumba and Workout Wednesdays to get you moving!

There will be prizes awarded to the weekly winners as well as a $50 Visa giftcard being awarded to the overall Biggest Loser on March 1, 2012!!!

The Homeland Security Digital Library (HSDL) is the nation's premier research collection for open-source resources related to homeland security policy, strategy and organizational management. They have been commemorating the 10 year anniversary of 9/11 through a series of blog posts. This week post highlights some of the memorials and observances for the ten year anniversary and it can be found at https://www.hsdl.org/hslog/?q=node/6342

50 Ways to Use Your Library

Libraries aren't what they used to be—they're even better! Here are just 50 ways your library can enrich your life. Visit the Lillie M. Evans Library, and you'll see the limitless opportunities that await you @ your library. 
  1. Enjoy a good mystery.
  2. Reserve a book.
  3. Locate a friend in an online phone book.
  4. Prepare for your job interview.
  5. Pick up a book on CD and listen to it in your car as you drive home.
  6. Read a large-type book without wearing your glasses.
  7. Check out a Grammy winning CD.
  8. Spruce up the house with the latest books on interior design.
  9. Download an ebook or audio book from the Alliance Digital Media Library.
10. Use the computers to research a quote on how a stock did today.
11. Learn how to plan a drought resistant garden.
12. Trek to another planet in a Sci-Fi novel.
13. Find out where to send a consumer complaint.
14. Learn how to clean ink stains from a marble counter.
15. Call the Library to find out who said "To err is human, to forgive divine."
16. Decide which Digital Camera to buy with the help of consumer guides.
17. Borrow a playaway that teaches you how to speak Spanish.
18. Take home Bach, Beethoven and Brahms.
19. Entertain your preschooler with a book and a read-along CDs.
20. Let the children choose an armload of read-aloud stories.
21. Ask for information about how to start a business.
22. Get tax forms and tax filing information.
23. Get a list of materials that help gain reading skills.
24. Post a comment on LME’s facebook page.
25. Make a photocopy.
26. Get an book from a library in another city-it's done quickly by computer.
27. Enroll in a library program—we’ll be making ornaments and boxes soon!
28. Ask a staff member to give a talk to your service organization.
29. For a leaky faucet, you might look up a book on how to do your own plumbing.
30. Read all the latest issues of the popular magazines without spending a dime.
31. Send a fax.
32. Find a recipe for new Christmas cookies!
33. Play a game of chess.
34. Sit in the rocking chair and read to a toddler.
35. Sign your preschooler up for Storytime.
36. Relax in the Turner Room.
37. Learn more about your community and its history.
38. Read the paper.
39. Use the online database, NoveList to find a new author.
40. Join a library book club.
41. Sit on a bench in the garden at twilight.
42. Visit with your neighbors.
43. Learn about a new hobby.
44. Check out the facts about the latest diet craze.
45. Do your homework.
46. Tutor someone.
47. Watch a movie.
48. Find out community news from the bulletin board.
49. Set up an email account and email a friend.
50. Become more knowledgeable about something.

Sorry State of Affairs

By Joanne Cox

The library systems have been a vital part of our library programs and services in Illinois. We were famous for our great library systems. That all changed on Friday, May 28, 2010 when the majority of services that we received from the Alliance Library System were discontinued due to the lack of funding caused by the Illinois financial situation. Many of you have questioned what that will mean to the Lillie M. Evans Library District.

First, what it doesn’t mean:

• We will not stop delivering the very best service we can give you.
• We will continue to supply books, DVDs, audio books, databases, programs, and our great website that provides day or night connection to our library. Our libraries will still cooperate with each other to provide materials to you.
• Delivery and our automated catalog are not affected at this time.
• Our current staff will remain to serve you.

What we will no longer have access to without the system:

• Consulting services available when we need it, blogs, notices, the system’s excellent consulting staff.
• The opportunities for getting together and partnering with other libraries in an organized setting to work on grants and other projects.
• Continuing Education opportunities. The library resources and the needs of the community are constantly changing. The library system provided countless opportunities for improved skills through workshops, seminars, webinars, and training classes. Most of them were offered at no cost to either participants or to their library.
• Group purchases. The system gave us cost breaks by negotiating better prices for the group. There are price breaks that can be very significant to our budget.

The library was one of the founding libraries of our system when Princeville joined with six other libraries to form the Illinois Valley Film Cooperative. That later became the basis for the Illinois Valley Library System when the legislature passed the Illinois Library System Act in 1964. In 1994, four systems combined to create the Alliance Library System which served over 250 libraries in west central Illinois.

It is a very sad day to see a successful method of supporting local libraries that took over 40 years to establish come to such an end.

WE’VE SOMETHING SPECIAL TO SHOW YOU!

Check out our displays! They highlight our collection and change frequently. Our “Recommended” display features books that our staff has read and enjoyed and want to share with you. Our “How To…” display currently presents gardening books, growing vegetables, choosing flowers for your beds, preparing the soil and even landscaping books and techniques. We even have books for children who would like to develop a “green thumb”. Getting into shape this summer is our “Featuring” display. It coincides with our adult summer program of “LME BIGGEST LOSER”. There are books, videos and DVD’s to help you achieve your goal. Our “Up to the Minute” display features monthly specials. Our “May, May” offering celebrates Cinco de Mayo, Moms, Armed Forces Day and Memorial Day. It is a month of remembering! Our “Seasonal” presentation has items for brides and grooms! Planning a wedding and honeymoon and even how to get along with the in laws. The videos and DVD’s on our “Walt Disney” display are constantly being refilled! You just can’t beat those Walt Disney family movies! Check those out as well as the additional ever expanding collection that we carry. Learn about the Dewey Decimal System from our other display. We are featuring sections of our non-fiction collection. Currently we are featuring the 200’s, Religion and Social Services.
Our displays change frequently so you can see something new featured very often. We measure the success of our displays by how many books are checked out from our displays. We love having to add books! Come in today and check out something to “check out”!

Get Fit & Stay Active @ Your Library!

Did you know the library an exercise group that meet on a weekly basis?

Every Monday & Friday morning at 9:15 am we have an adult yoga class. Participants stretch and workout to "Yoga for the Rest of Us."

In addition to our exercise class the library also offers several yoga, aerobic, cardio and fitness VHS and DVDs to checkout for free. If you are looking for something specific, simply ask one of our staff members and we will see if we can borrow it from another library for you.

Are you in the mood to try a new diet? We have a wide variety of diet books including diets for specific health conditions such as diabetes, pregnancy and heart disease. Eat your way to a better you!

Our staff is here to help you. If you need a book, video or movie on fitness, dieting or general health let us help you find the perfect item for you. The library can be an invaluable resource when it comes to your health and fitness.

Go Green @ Your Library!

Our library is trying to keep up with technology and to be as green as possible. You can go green and get information from us faster by providing us with your email address. Your privacy is very important to us. We will only use your email to send you overdue notices and notice of hold items available. As an added bonus, you may request to be notified a few days before your checked out materials are due (also sent via email) so you can either renew them or return your items and avoid those dreaded late fees!

Providing the library with your email can also be very helpful if you have children. Upon your request, we can add your email to your minor children's accounts as well. All notices will have the patron's name on it so you will know which family member it is regarding.

To get your email address added to your library account, or those of your children, please fill out the registration form on our website lmelibrary.org (choose "Go Green @ Your Library" from the Event section), call us at 309-385-4540 or talk to someone at our service desk during your next visit. Please do not post your email in a comment to our blog for your privacy & security.

*Note: If you sign up for email alerts, you will no longer receive overdue notices by United States Postal Service mail. Please be sure that you only sign up for this service if you check your email regularly.

Digital Books have Arrived!

Word is spreading about the digital collection available to our patrons. Those who have used the service find it convenient and easy to use. The collection continues to grow each month and we appreciate it when you suggest titles that you would like to see added. Send us an email at lill@lmelibrary.org with the title, author and format (audio book, eBook) and we will send it on to the selection committee. There is also an online submission form available on the Alliance Digital Media Library site once you are logged in.

Alliance Digital Media Library (ADML) is a consortium of more than 40 public libraries in Central Illinois. These libraries have joined together to provide materials to patrons that are accessible from home. You can browse the collection anytime but your library card number and pin will give you access to the download function.

Your "Virtual Library"

Did you know your library is also online? Through our website, http://www.lmelibrary.org/, you can access an abundance of information! From what's going on at the library to entertaining your kids to browsing newspaper articles you can find it through our website.

By clicking the RSACat logo you can browse our catalogue, view holdings in other libraries, place items on hold, renew materials, see what you currently have checked out, material due dates and fines owed.

If you visit our "Calendar" link you can find information on upcoming programs and events that may be of interest to you and your family.

Not sure what's new on the library shelves? Check out our "New Arrivals" section. We have our newest materials broken down into 9 different categories, including fiction and DVDs, to make searching easier for you.

Our "Reference Center" is another great resource for our patrons. Are you doing genealogy research? The HeritageQuest database will assist you in finding ancestors, all you need is your library card number. Want to find an old newspaper article? America's Newspapers has editorials, articles, obituaries, announcements and more, including a direct link to the Journal Star. If you have children, Tumblebooks is great educational entertainment! We even have databases to help you choose books based on your favorite authors or genres. There are many more great databases for you through the library's website.

Going Green with Your Library!

Today, everyone is trying harder to “go green.” Our library is trying to be as green as possible as well. Currently, we participate in the Princeville recycling program, have a yearly book sale, have live plants in and around our building. We have florescent lighting, have tinted window film, and whenever possible we use both sides of paper before recycling it.

You can help the library go green by providing us your email address. No, we won’t send you a bunch of junk mail! We will use your email to send you overdue notices and hold available notices. As an added bonus you may request to be notified a few days before your materials are due (also via email) so you can either renew or return your items and avoid dreaded late fees!

To get your email address added to your library account, or those of your children, please send us an email at lill@lmelibrary.org, call us at 309-385-4540 or talk to someone at the service desk during your next visit (you may add the same email address to multiple library accounts). Please do not post your email in a comment to our blog for your security.

*Note: If you sign up for email alerts, you will no longer receive overdue notices by United States Postal Service mail. Please ensure that you only sign up for this service if you check your email regularly.

Loving the small library

I love working in a small library. Our library is small by any standard: small population, located in a small town, and in a small building; I love it. I love the fact that I know the people I serve. My office looks out at the interior of the library and when I see someone tucked into a corner engrossed in a book or magazine, I love it. I know the families, sometimes three and four generations of them. I love that they like just dropping in to say hello or to see what's new. Having the technology to get the information for my patrons, just like a big library, means I can usually find information that they might need quickly and efficiently.

Last evening just reminded me of all of these things as we were one of a number of locations used in the filming of a community DVD. There was a hum of excitement and lots of chuckles as we local residents served as film stars for the night. We try hard to meet the needs of the community, it's our home.

Techno Bingo!

The Lillie M. Evans Library wants to encourage adults and teens to try something new and have fun learning about technology. Play Techno Bingo and learn about MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, the library’s databases, Wikipedia, Hulu and more!

You can print your board here and get started right away! If you have any trouble completing any of the squares, there is an online tutorial and a printable tutorial available on our website to help you complete the tasks. For an additional challenge, try completing the entire board! The Lillie M. Evans Library is also proud to announce a new service called “Book a Librarian” where you can schedule one-on-one time with a library staff member to get help completing a square or for other research and training needs. You can sign up to Book a Librarian here on our website or schedule an appointment by phone 309-385-4540.

We would love to hear your feedback on this. Please feel free to comment here or send us an e-mail at lill@lmelibrary.org.

Welcome from the garden bench

Welcome to the library's blog, "From the Garden bench." Funny name for a library blog, you say? Well, the idea of sitting in the garden thinking and dreaming or talking with your best friend was very appealing to us and we hope it is to you too. That's what this blog is about, just sharing ideas and thoughts about library things together. You are welcome to add your ideas and comments here too. Some of you will be doing just that as a part of our adult summer program, TECHNO BINGO. If you want to join us, there is more information on the homepage. Sharing ideas, telling you about favorite movies and books, telling you about new programs, asking your advice and listening to your suggestions is what this is all about. This time of year, the garden is especially beautiful so spend a while sitting on one of the garden benches and then share your thought with us here. We, the staff, will all be contributing to the blog. We will all be using the "Library Lill" as a signature.