New librarian has plans for Oakley branch

January 30, 2004

The Oakley Library has hired a new librarian to start off the new year. Sydney McCoy came aboard last week from the Walnut Creek branch where she was the children's librarian.

"This is really a great step for me," McCoy said. "I enjoy working with children and a large part of those who use this branch are children."

McCoy has worked in the library system for four years. She graduated from Indiana University with a degree in library sciences and after moving to this area worked at the Brentwood branch for a short time before moving to Walnut Creek a year and a half ago.

She resides in Pleasant Hill, but doesn't mind the commute to Oakley since she is going against the traffic.

She is looking forward to building library programs at this branch by adding more children and adult programs. Recently the Oakley Library has been doing quite well in its programs area, according to Linda Pennock, president of the Oakley Friends of the Library group.

"Oakley was the second highest in participation in the county, which is really good because Oakley is one of the smallest libraries," Pennock said. The idea behind the teen reading program was to encourage teens to spend time reading and discussing what they read in a group environment. "It is something that the library will definitely bring back," Pennock said.

To encourage more active participation in the library system in general and get people into the library and thinking about reading, the library offers several programs for youth and adults.

Children were invited to attend a Chinese New Year crafts day last week, and on Feb. 11 children will be invited to participate in the Valentine's Craft Day. The event takes place from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. and is open to walk-ins. The project classes are usually offered at no charge. There are still special reading times for children from one to five during the week as well.

Adults may be interested in working on a Scrapbook @ the Library program where you can bring your projects in and leave the kids at home. The next event will take place Feb. 18 from 6 to 8:30 p.m.

If you are looking for ways to help the library they are always looking for book donations, but while the county library system is celebrating its 90th birthday this year, they are asking people to donate $25 to help purchase a book for their library. Oakley is in real need of more books. When the new library opened it was great to have a much larger selection than Oakley residents were ever used to, but now that the branch has been open for a while some extra books are always appreciated.

Never have time to make it to the library but still love to read and wished you could get some books every now and then? The library has a new program where you can order your books by mail. This is a service offered by the library that allows delivery of books and books on tape to you through the mail. There is a $3 per item charge for the service. Books can be either called in or ordered through the Internet. When books are due, simply make sure the items are postmarked by the delivery date or drop them in the drop box at the library.

Pennock said that the Friends of the Library is looking for active members who want to get involved in their programs. Membership rates are $10 per family, $5 for individuals and $25 for businesses. She emphasizes active members because the group really needs the community's help. They have lots of people who want to join the group but need people to help make the organization a success. Even a few hours a month could make the difference. For more information, call the library at 625-2400.

Roni Gehlke's column on life in Oakley appears each week in the Brentwood News.

Distributed by the Contra Costa Times

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