Here's a printable PDF calendar of all the programs and events that are happening at the library in May, 2013.

You are invited to join the Canton Public Library and Canton Township as we celebrate the receipt of the LibraryAware Community Award, cosponsored by Library Journal and  LibraryAware, part of EBSCO Publishing's NoveList Division.


Light refreshments will be served. All members of our community are encouraged to attend and children are welcome.

At the Board of Trustees meeting on February 21, 2013, Circulation Services Department Head Nancy Szczepanski provided an overview of reciprocal borrowing. Nancy reviewed 2012 checkouts from our library by residents of other communities, and vice-versa, particularly since the board approval of changes to our Circulation Policy last year. The updated policy affirmed our commitment to sharing with and supporting our neighbors while preserving primary access to Canton taxpayers.

Nancy's presentation, attached here as a .pdf, gave the Board good background on checkouts of our materials by patrons of other libraries, and I hope that you find it useful and interesting, also.

Best,

Eva M. Davis, Director

According to the World Health Organization, 284 million people worldwide suffer from poor vision simply because they do not have access to or cannot afford care. In some countries, a pair of eyewear costs more than a month's salary.

Here's a printable PDF calendar of all the programs and events that are happening at the library in February, 2013.

CANTON, MI— The Canton Public Library is counting on the generous people of Metro Detroit to come through again for the fourth Stuff the Truck Diaper Drive, November 14 and 15. Over the last three years, the library has collected more than 75,000 diapers to benefit the Canton-based Detroit Area Diaper Bank, in the biggest diaper drive in Michigan. This year, they hope to top the 100,000 mark.

The library will accept diapers of any size or brand, newborn through adult, including pull-ups, swim diapers and open packages, from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM on November 14 and 15. The Detroit Area Diaper Bank, a nonprofit charitable organization, will dispense them to SE Michigan partner agencies serving people in crisis.

Do you have a pile of spare pennies? Consider donating them to the Pennies from Heaven program to support the Canton Goodfellows "No Canton Child Without a Christmas." Bring your pennies — or any spare change — to the lobby of the Canton Summit from 10:00 AM to Noon on Saturday, October 27 and meet other Goodfellows and Canton Observer staff. Enjoy a glass of cider and a doughnut. Your change can make a change for the Canton Goodfellows this year. This project honors Nancy Spencer, a long-time volunteer with the Canton Goodfellows and The Friends of the Canton Public Library, who passed away last week.

[Rusty Pennies by puuikibeach licensed under CC BY 3.0]

Proud friends and family gathered at the Canton Public Library Board of Trustees August meeting as 11 library volunteers were awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award. Don Turner, CPL Board President, presented a bronze service star, certificate and letter signed by President Obama to recipients Morgan Benjamin, Quinn Ebner, Betty Hellmers, Lisa Kluka, Diane Miner, Gabrielle Mussehl, Jason Pino, Ilene Saunders, Carolyn Sumner, Sandra Walczak and Xiao Zhu.

Beginning August 1, 2012 our circulation policy for cardholders of other TLN-member libraries will change. We have standardized our circulation policy so that TLN users may have a maximum of 10 items checked out per card. As before, these items do not include video games.

This change allows us to continue to provide service to other communities while focusing our resources on the Canton community that supports us. We're happy to allow residents of communities outside of Plymouth-Canton to use all of our resources while in our library; however, beginning August 1, check outs will be limited to 10 items per card.

We are pleased to be part of the Detroit Institute of Arts Inside|Out program, which brings high-quality reproductions of masterpieces from the DIA's collection to the streets. There are six pieces displayed in Canton, including this one, Young Woman with a Violin by Italian painter Orazio Gentileschi. This painting depicts Cecilia, patron saint of musicians, and was created in 1612. The artist's daughter is the model; the painting is a gift of Mrs. Edsel B. Ford.

Get news and information about programs and activities throughout Canton to celebrate our participation in this program on our Inside|Out page. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation sponsors this program.

Thanks to the generosity of our community, we were able to provide over 20 boxes of supplies and $330 in gift cards and donations for homeless veterans, collected through our Memorial Day drive. The Veterans Hospital of Ann Arbor volunteer specialist Sandy Jacobs packed her van with your donations to distribute to homeless and needy veterans in the area. Thank you for your contributions.

To thank our community for its generous support, we've installed a donor acknowledgement near the front door, by the Reception Desk. As our budget has declined over the last few years, your financial contributions are very important in helping us support our programs and services. Check it out next time you are in the library. Get more information on our 2012 budget or ways to make a contribution. To see what we accomplished with your help in 2011, take a look at our annual report.

Before we celebrate Memorial Day, let's commemorate. Please help CPL as we collect items to be donated to the VA Hospital of Ann Arbor for distribution to homeless veterans. Donations will be appreciatively accepted beginning Thursday, May 10 through Thursday, May 31 at the Reception Desk.
Suggested donations include:

• Rolls of Lifesavers (or other hard candy)
• Rice Krispies bars (or granola bars, etc.)
• Plastic utensils (knives, forks, spoons)
• Napkins
• Ritz snack mix (or other trail mix)
• Easy-open cans of tuna, chicken or other meats

Other general requests include $5-10 gift cards to Wendy's or McDonald's; cans of coffee (regular or decaf); prepaid telephone calling cards; new crossword puzzles and word search books.

Our Internet Lab  re-carpeting went so smoothly that we are once again open for public use, well ahead of our anticipated Friday opening.

This event has been canceled due to the death of the guest of honor.

To foster a sense of community and provide an opportunity for calm conversation, the Canton Public Library will host a book discussion for two book titles whose inclusion in the Plymouth-Canton Community Schools AP English curriculum was recently challenged.

Beloved, by Toni Morrison, will be the featured title of a February 27, 7:00 PM discussion and Waterland, by Graham Swift, will be discussed on March 27 at 7:00 PM.

"By hosting a discussion of these books, we can give our community a shared experience and promote a dialogue around the perspectives each individual brings from reading the book," says Rebecca Havenstein-Coughlin, department head of adult services. "The public library is an excellent forum for connecting our community in this manner."

The discussion will be led by library staff and is open to anyone in the Plymouth-Canton community ages 16 and older. Those interested in participating may register and pick up a copy of the book at the Canton Public Library beginning January 30.

Beloved: a novel by Toni Morrison — for which Morrison won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize, is described by its publisher, Random House, Inc., as "Staring unflinchingly into the abyss of slavery, this spellbinding novel transforms history into a story as powerful as Exodus and as intimate as a lullaby. Sethe, its protagonist, was born a slave and escaped to Ohio, but eighteen years later she is still not free. She has too many memories of Sweet Home, the beautiful farm where so many hideous things happened. And Sethe's new home is haunted by the ghost of her baby, who died nameless and whose tombstone is engraved with a single word: Beloved. Filled with bitter poetry and suspense as taut as a rope, Beloved is a towering achievement."

Waterland by Graham Swift

The January calendar is now available online in printable pdf format.

The benefit concert is sold out.

The December printable calendar is available online now in pdf format.

Do your holiday shopping at Barnes & Noble Northville on November 28 and the Canton Public Library will receive a percentage of almost anything you buy, including a Nook and items in the cafe. Present the CPL voucher, printable from our website, at check out or use our Bookfair code, 10570158.

You can also shop online November 28 through December 3, 2011. Stop in the store and enjoy storytimes, crafts and games like Giant Scrabble all day long at the Barnes and Noble Northville.