the F.O.L.der - Friends of the Watauga County Public Library

the F.O.L.der
Newsletter of the Friends of Watauga County Public Library
Fall 2014
Friends’ 40th Anniversary Celebration
and Holiday Book, Basket, & Music Sale
........................................................... By Claire Olander
To celebrate our 40th Anniversary and just in time
for holiday gift shopping, the Friends are bringing
back their popular Holiday Book and Basket Sale in
the Main Library’s Evelyn Johnson Meeting Room,
with some fabulous additions! As always, there
will be a great selection of cookbooks, children's
books, hobby and craft tomes, biographies, historic
accounts, a splash of politics, religion and inspiration, Christmas books, hardback fiction and more.
Thanks to a generous donation, over 800 music CDs
will also be available to choose from! We’re featuring a select number of gift baskets this year, so get
them before they sell out. Sale hours are:
Thursday, November 13, 3:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Friday, November 14, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM
Saturday, November 15, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Best of all, Friends Members, visit the sale Thursday, November 13 to celebrate the Friends' 40th anniversary by enjoying cake and punch, and choose a
free book while they last. Celebrate, get prime
choices, and continue the Friends’ 40 year tradition
of library support.
Thanks to Friends members for supplying homemade cookies. Call Joan Hearn at 295-4767 to volunteer as a cookie baker.
Friends’ 2015 Restaurant “Fun”raiser
.............................................................. By Beth Mueller
Do you enjoy eating out? Would you like to help
the library by working on a restaurant raffle? Then
join the Friends Committee working on this “fun”
fundraiser: Pat Alexander, Maggie Christenbury,
Joan Hearn, Mary Sue Morgan, Claire Olander, and
Suzanne Thompson. Contact Beth Mueller at (828)
265-2963 and we’ll plan to get together for a meeting at the library in January to discuss how you can
help. We hope to hear from you!
Fabulous at 40!
Friends of WCPL
Celebrate 40 Years
Of Library Support!
Thursday, Nov 13
3:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Cookies, Cocoa & Christmas Parade
.............................................................. By Beth Mueller
Continuing another popular tradition, the Friends
will host our hot cocoa and Christmas cookie open
house Saturday, December 6 at the Main Library as
soon as the Boone parade is over. Everyone is
welcome! Watch newspapers or the Internet for the
parade time and drop in at the library one hour afterwards to enjoy treats including children crafts.
Fine books, music
CDs & gift items for
sale  Proceeds
benefit WCPL
Refreshments
Connect with your library and get Friends updates at www.wataugacountylibrary.org
Access the Friends’ website directly at www.friendsofthewataugalibrary.weebly.com
Letter From the President
Dear Friends:
Saturday, November 13 from
3:00 PM to 6:00 PM at the
Main Library we launch the
Holiday Book Sale with a
“Friends Only” celebration
of our 40th Anniversary.
Not a Friends Member? It’s a
great time to join! Enjoy
refreshments, review Friends’ highlights, and
choose a free book with our thanks for your support.
Thanks to Book Sale Coordinator Claire Olander
and the volunteers helping with this special event.
In the Friends archives we’ve found Past-President
Jack James’ “Top Ten Reasons to be a Friend of the
Library,” dated 1997. It got us thinking how personal everyone’s reasons can be for becoming a
member. Want to get into the book sale a day early
for first picks? Enjoy supporting children’s activities and Summer Reading? Perhaps you’re grateful
a librarian helped you write a winning resume, or
that your group uses the library’s meeting room?
Joining Friends of the Library gave me the opportunity to support an institution that has always been a
part of my life. From toddler story time to a college
part-time job in Periodicals, I literally grew up in
libraries. As a Navy wife, the first step was to get a
library card each time we moved. My Top Ten
Reasons to be a Friend of the Library are synonymous with how much the library means to me:
#10 The fish tank
# 9 Meeting new people at book sales
# 8 Downloading free books to my Kindle
# 7 Great book selection at book sales
# 6 Sharing the love of books
# 5 Seeing parents who have to drag their kids out
of the library
# 4 Books still beat the Internet for research
# 3 Library staff are AMAZING
# 2 Meeting authors at the Book Festival
# 1 Ask a librarian; if they don’t know they’ll find out!
is why we are calling our celebration “Fabulous at
Forty.” See you at the party! I invite you to share
your own Top Ten Reasons to Be a Friend at
http://friendsofthewataugalibrary.weebly.com.
Suzanne Thompson
From the Friends’ Archives
In forty years, countless supporters have been library users, volunteers, Friends’ Members,
Committee Chairs, Friends’ Board Participants
and Officers—too many to name in our limited
space. We thank each for their efforts over the
years, which continue to bear fruit in the remarkable library we proudly support today. Below are
listed all our Friends of the Library Presidents,
for whose vision and leadership we are so grateful:
1
3
5
7
9
11
13
15
Allie Hodgin
2 Mary Lee Cooper
Bob Agle
4 Rose Marie Feemster
Jean Towers
6 Margaret Agle
Kay Wilson
8 Margaret Bishop
Shelby Lane
10 Debra Perri
Pat Morgan
12 Jack James
Dot Barker
14 Jack James
Claire Olander
16 Jack James
17 Suzanne Thompson
Regional Benefits
..........................................................By Jane Blackburn
Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Jane Blackburn,
Director of Libraries for Appalachian Regional Library. You may be saying “The Appalachian Regional what?” if you didn’t know that Watauga
County Public Library isn’t a county department but
a member of a regional library system. Surprise!
Other libraries in this system? Western Watauga
Branch Library in Sugar Grove, Ashe County Public Library in West Jefferson, Wilkes County Public
Library in North Wilkesboro, and Traphill Branch
Library in…wait for it…Traphill.
If the regional system is news to you, that’s okay.
Regional library systems don’t exist to tout ourselves; we operate to benefit our member county libraries. We provide higher quality public library
service than counties can afford alone, with cost
savings like economies of scale in purchasing, resource sharing, and administrative support.
Forty years is quite a triumph for any organization,
and it’s exciting to reflect on all the accomplishments that our Friends group has achieved over the
years. With each passing year we get better, which
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2
An important Regional activity for this year is a
$34,000 federal planning grant through the Library
Services and Technology Act (LSTA) to explore
what our future services should be for the next five
years. As you know, budgets are tighter these days,
so we need to plan how to spend taxpayer funds in
the most efficient, effective ways possible. We are
looking at this imperative in two different ways.
First, what does our community say are the most
valuable services their library can offer? With the
help of consultant Dr. Robert Burgin, we’ve done
surveys, held one-on-one interviews, met with focus
groups and community forums, and queried staff to
understand the priority needs of the community and
the services our libraries can provide that will best
meet those needs. We can’t do everything, but we
can focus on what you tell us is most important and
create a plan to do those things. With this new plan
of action, we’ll invest our money and efforts for the
next five years in the priorities you’ve chosen.
Next, we’ll examine how libraries in the regional
system operate. Can we be more efficient? Streamline processes? Share resources and ideas more
freely so more patrons benefit? Can we reduce unnecessary duplication of effort? How can we build
on strengths of our libraries and staff?
As part of this strategic planning process, County
Librarian Monica Caruso will convene a local steering committee of community representatives, some
of whom will also serve on a regional steering
committee. LSTA funds are allocated through the
Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services
and administered by the State Library under the NC
Department of Cultural Resources.
I enjoyed introducing you to the Regional Library
System concept and what we’re up to these days.
Stay tuned for more in future newsletters!
Volunteers for Tax Assistance
...........................................................By Monica Caruso
WCPL will once again host the Volunteers for Tax
Assistance (VITA) program from February to April
2015. VITA offers free tax return help to people
with incomes $53,000 or less, persons with disabilities, elderly people and taxpayers whose English is
limited. We need volunteers to prepare tax returns
for eligible patrons. Volunteers must pass tests to
become IRS certified tax preparers. Interested in
volunteering? Attend a one-hour orientation at the
Main Library Tuesday, November 18 at 6:00 PM or
Friday, December 6 at 12:00 noon.
Last season, 177 tax returns were electronically
filed at the library and our volunteers helped taxpayers claim $161,946 in refunds. The average
gross income of the taxpayers participating in this
library service was $18,435.
Main Library and Branch Library
HOLIDAY CLOSINGS*
Tuesday, November 11.... Veterans Day
Thursday, November 27 .. Thanksgiving
Friday, November 28 ....... Thanksgiving
Saturday, November 29 ... Thanksgiving
Thursday, December 4 ....Staff Training
Wednesday, December 24.... Christmas
Thursday, December 25 ....... Christmas
Friday, December 26............. Christmas
Thursday, January 1 .... New Year’s Day
Monday, January 19 ............................. ..
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Library closings are on the library’s website
at wataugacountylibrary.org and on the
library’s phone system
*The Main Library will close at 5:00 PM
Wednesday, December 31 for
New Year’s Eve
Cypress Resume
...........................................................By Monica Caruso
Is resume-writing a challenge? Are you a first-time
cover letter writer struggling with wording? Cypress Resume to the rescue! Thanks to Watauga County Library
Endowment’s generosity, Appalachian Regional Library’s newest resource helps users craft resumes
and cover letters for the changing job market.
Cypress Resume is a free resume-building program
available in the library or over the Internet to library
card holders. It differs from other programs by letting you choose from thousands of professional
Connect with your library and get Friends updates at www.wataugacountylibrary.org
3
Access the Friends’ website directly at www.friendsofthewataugalibrary.weebly.com
statements for your resume. Simply input your information, complete a job title search and choose
desired statements. The software does the formatting.
Scholarship for WCPL staff to further their professional educations. Five staff scholarships have been
awarded beginning fall 2014.
Cypress Resume is useful for cover letters and reference lists, helping build cover letters tailored to
specific jobs. Users may create their own accounts
and save documents to the website for later use.
Additionally, the Evelyn Johnson Scholarship fund
in partnership with Kiwanis awarded scholarships to
three Watauga High School graduating seniors:
Thanks to the Library Endowment
...............................By Monica Caruso & Jackie Cornette
WCPL’s Endowment began in 1997 to solicit support for a new building. Today, the Endowment still
sustains and nurtures the library. Gifts to the Endowment "keep on giving," applied to the Endowment principal with only earnings used annually for
the library. The Endowment is also a planned giving option for long term support of local literacy.
Recent Endowment support funded the following:
DVDs for branch library
PC wireless system
Patron PC print management system
Upgrade of main nonfiction collection
Patron checkout receipt printers
Update of branch reference collection
Paperback book covering system
Gates match for 17 computers
Software
Staff education
Matching funds for StoryWalk® grant
Public copier
Youth popular titles for Emergent Readers
Books for “Battle of the Books” contest
Cypress Resume subscription
Evelyn Johnson Scholarship Award to staff
Watauga Library Endowment funds are administered through the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina. Contributions are tax deductible. For information, call (828) 264-8784 ext. 4 or
use the library website “contact us” tab. Brochures
are available at Watauga County Public Library,
140 Queen St., Boone, NC 28607.
Evelyn Johnson Memorial Scholarships
........................... By Monica Caruso and Jackie Cornette
In spring 2014, the Watauga County Public Library
Endowment established the Evelyn Johnson Memorial
4
Serena Carroll, $700, Caldwell Community College
Madison Casey, $300, University of North Carolina
at Chapel Hill
Hannah Nicole Reeves, $1,000, University of North
Carolina at Wilmington
New Staff
.......................................................... By Monica Caruso
The Main Library welcomed
Circulation Assistant Amy
Jones June 2. Amy grew up
in Ashe County, earning an
Elementary Education degree
in Berea, Kentucky. She
worked at Ashe County
Public Library before WCPL.
Her hobbies include yoga,
painting, and concerts.
Main Library Reference
Services welcomed part-time
Adult Services Specialist
Nicole Holladay July 30.
Nicole
graduated
from
Appalachian State University
(ASU) with a Bachelor’s
Degree in Public History and
hopes to complete a Master’s
Degree in Library Science.
Her favorite reads include J.D. Salinger’s The
Catcher in the Rye, Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre,
and Junot Diaz’s Drown. She enjoys cooking, hiking, and crocheting.
Book/Movie Discussion Clubs Update
...............................................................By Ross Cooper
The Book Brewers meet on odd numbered months
at Peppers Restaurant (240 Shadowline Drive,
Boone) for dinner and discussion third Wednesdays
at 6:00 PM. The remaining 2014 discussion is November 19 on Firoozeh Dumas’ Funny in Farsi: A
Good Friends make great libraries! Become an active Friends member today
Memoir of Growing Up Iranian in America. We’re
finalizing 2015’s book selections. To join the group
or for information, e-mail Ross Cooper at
[email protected] or call (828) 264-8784 ext. 2.
The Book Bunch meets last Tuesdays monthly (except December) at 1:30 PM in the Main Library’s
Evelyn Johnson Meeting Room. 2014’s last meeting is November 25 to discuss Denise Kiernan’s
The Girls of Atomic City: The Untold Story of the
Women Who Helped Win World War II. Selections
for the start of 2015 are:
January: Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
February: The Art Forger by B.A. Shapiro
March: The Lemon Orchard by Luanne Rice
April: The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout
May: The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin
June: Subtle Bodies by Norman Rush
To join the group or for information, e-mail Michelle Bowers at [email protected] or call
(828) 264-8784 ext. 2.
Cook the Books! A Mystery Book Club meets
first Tuesdays monthly at 4:00 PM in the Main Library Evelyn Johnson Meeting Room. This mystery
book club has a twist: snacks each month based on
clues from the book! Upcoming reading selections
are: Wicked Girls by Alex Marwood, November 4;
Tenderness of Wolves by Stef Penney, December
2; and Sandrine’s Case by Thomas Cook, January
6. To join the group or for information e-mail Angela
Constantino at [email protected] or call
(828) 264-8784 ext. 2.
The Third Thursday Movie Group meets third
Thursdays monthly from 6:30 to 8:30 PM at the
Main Library’s Evelyn Johnson Meeting Room.
Remaining film selections for 2014 are: November
20, Pink Floyd: The Wall (1982, MPAA rated “R,”
95 minutes) and December 18, The Big Lebowski
(1998, MPAA rated “R,” 117 minutes). To join the
group or for information, e-mail Darren Smith at
[email protected] or call (828) 264-8784 ext. 2.
Watauga’s History @ the Library
............................................................. By Ross Cooper
WCPL continues to preserve
and share Watauga County
history thanks to Friends’
support
and
growing
cooperation between local
organizations and community
members. Archives of the
Historic Boone society were
officially given to the library in 2013. Over 500 pictures from this valued
collection have been catalogued, scanned by the
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill digitization lab and made available worldwide through the
North Carolina Digital Heritage Center. View images from the late 1800’s to the 1960’s such as the
old Boone Post Office under construction, above, at
www.digitalnc.org/exhibits/historic-boone/. WCPL
Adult Services Specialist Nicole Holladay is progressing rapidly on remaining documents, creating
descriptions and finding aids for UNC to upload.
Library staff and community members are meeting
to discuss digitizing and preserving more local history records for future generations. Watauga Community Foundation generously donated $2,000 and
Downtown Boone Development Association $1,000
for museum-quality archival storage at WCPL.
The Watauga County Historical Society, publishers of 2009’s Architectural History of Watauga
County, North Carolina, will act as the nucleus of a
new, expanded association for local historic preservation and digitization. For more information visit
www.wataugacountyhistoricalsociety.org.
StoryWalk,® Story Books & Story
Readers
........ By Monica Caruso, Judith Winecoff & Lisa Flanigan
The Appalachian Regional Library was awarded a $41,000
LSTA grant for “StoryWalk®,
Story Books, Story Readers”
that will serve children ages
Kudos to the Friends for generously supporting the
four through eight and their
library’s discussion clubs by funding the purchase
families in Watauga, Wilkes
of additional copies for discussions.
and Ashe Counties.
Connect with your library and get Friends updates at www.wataugacountylibrary.org
5
Access the Friends’ website directly at www.friendsofthewataugalibrary.weebly.com
StoryWalk® lets participants read stories page by
page while walking, incorporating exercise with
reading. Children visiting the library because of
StoryWalk® get library cards, attend a special story
time, and enter to win a StoryWalk® book. Kindles
purchased through the grant will be checked out
first to families completing at least one StoryWalk®, and then to other library card holders.
Five StoryWalks® are set up throughout Watauga
County thanks to the grant and partnership with
Downtown Boone Development Association, with
StoryWalk® maps available at WCPL. StoryWalk® locations are:
Blowing Rock Memorial Park
Boone Tot Lot (bilingual)
Sugar Grove at the Old Cove Creek High
School Walking Path near the Western Watauga Community Center
Downtown Boone businesses starting at Lost
Province Brewing Company
Main Library grounds
StoryWalk® was developed by Anne Ferguson of
Montpelier, VT with the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition and Kellogg Hubbard Library.
LSTA funds are made possible through the Federal
Institute of Museum and Library Services as administered by the State Library of North Carolina, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources.
Thanks to Blowing Rock Town Manager Scott
Fogleman, Blowing Rock Parks & Recreation Director Jennifer Brown and Boone Parks & Recreation Director Steve Polus for supporting StoryWalk®, and to the Library Endowment for matching funds that helped secure this grant.
Reading & Rolling 2014
...................................................... By Mary Sue Morgan
Reading & Rolling flourished in
the
program’s
eleventh summer,
with 17 volunteers delivering
books to 60 elementary school students in rural Wa6
tauga County. R&R couldn’t happen without our
wonderful partners for whom we are so grateful:
Western Watauga Branch and Main Library staff
who chose and checked out 60 sacks of books
four different weeks this summer. That’s 2,400 books
personally selected for children in two months!
Kudos to our Elementary School Media Specialists’
encouragement of students: Bethel’s Mitzi London,
Cove Creek’s Carolyn Walters, Green Valley’s Rachel Rivenbark, and Mabel’s Jenny Coffey.
WCPL Friends’ cash awards to schools in the
name of each R&R child. School Media Specialists used the funds to buy books for their schools
with bookplates recognizing each student participant. The $990 donation purchased 60 books for
schools as follows: Bethel, $181.50; Cove Creek,
$363; Green Valley, $115.50; and Mabel, $330.
Thanks to 17 volunteers who drove hundreds of
miles to deliver books to children who could otherwise not access library books during the summer. Beyond deliveries, volunteers called parents
before each delivery and interacted with the children often. Hoorah for the dedication of Wynne
Ayers, Toby Cone, Katherine Cornell, Eula Mae
Fox, Kate Hardin, Joan and Dick Hearn, Donna
Helseth, Laura Johnson, Mary Sue and Pat Morgan, Susie Morgan, Beth Mueller, Tish and Tom
Rokoske, and Barbara and Ken Sheldon.
In September, Cove Creek Media Specialist Carolyn Walters organized a gathering to honor her
Reading & Rolling students. Students talked about
the program and made suggestions for next year.
Each student chose a new book, affixed a bookplate
bearing his/her own name and checked out the
book—instant gratification! What a wonderful job
by Carolyn and all our School Media Specialists.
Are you interested in being a 2015 R&R volunteer?
Call Pat and Mary Sue Morgan at (828) 297-3568,
or e-mail [email protected].
Summer’s Fizz, Boom, READ!
.......................... By Judith Winecoff and Jackie Cornette
Summer 2014’s “Fizz, Boom, READ!” was a blast.
Over 25,000 youth books were checked out this
summer and 689 youths registered. More than
3,600 attended at least one summer program. By
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these statistics, we kept youths reading and prevented loss of skills gained over the school year.
The
Western
Watauga
Library Summer Reading
Program’s weekly gift card
drawings were big motivators
for tweens and teens.
Participants who read three
books and wrote three book
reviews were entered in
grand
prize
drawings.
Thanks to local sponsors, winners are listed below:
Week 1, Josiah Isaacs (Chili’s $25), Parker Lawrence (photo above, Taco Bell $15, Chick-fil-A $10)
Week 2, Montana Mills (Walmart $10, Subway
$15), Mackensie Scott (Walmart $10, Subway $15)
monthly. The Branch will also get four Kindle
Fires for check out from the grant, pre-loaded with
popular youth titles.
Our Friends group has grown steadily since May’s
annual meeting. The biggest project yet was October’s Fine Art & Crafts Book Sale, sponsored by
Diane Terry and Silverstone Fabrics. Melanie’s and
Basil’s Deli donated door prizes. A silent auction
included a Ruth Gow weaving donated by Cove
Creek Weavers, a Connie Pelley quilted hanging, a
watercolor by Paula Wancl, and a Sew Original gift
card. Heartfelt thanks to our sponsors and donors.
Saturday, November 8 Branch Friends will host a
holiday book sale of donated books featuring cookbooks and children’s books at the Western Watauga
Community Center, 1080 Old 421 in Sugar Grove.
Call the library at (828) 297-5515 for information.
Week 3, Laiken Combs (Fandango Movies $25),
Heather Miller (Fandango Movies $25)
Thanks for Farm Bureau Donations
Week 4, Dustin Pardue (Cracker Barrel $25), Seth
Greene (Cracker Barrel $25)
The Watauga County Farm
Bureau and Helen Moretz,
Chair of the Watauga Farm
Bureau Women's Committee (on right), donate
children's books to WCPL
monthly in support of the
Farm Bureau's goal to and
educate youth on the value
of agriculture. Thanks to
Helen and the Farm Bureau for The Little Mouse,
The Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear,
Tops & Bottoms, The Life and Times of the Peanut,
and many others.
Week 5, Rachel Mosher (Subway $15, Burger King
$10), Brandon Eggers (Subway $15, Burger King $10)
Week 6, Abigail Barry (Applebee’s $25), Cameron
Haury (Chili’s $25)
Week 7, Charis Barry (Regal Cinemas $25), Jake
Haury (Applebee’s $25)
Grand Prize Winners, Josiah Isaacs (Walmart $50),
Naomi Johnson (Walmart $100).
Western Watauga Branch Library News
......................................................... By Jackie Cornette
The Branch book discussion club meets third
Wednesdays monthly from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM.
For upcoming book selections contact the Branch at
(828) 297-5515.
A StoryWalk® is now located along the Old Cove
Creek High School Walking Path in Sugar Grove,
funded by the StoryWalks,® Story Books, Story
Readers grant. November walkers will enjoy Cynthia Rylant’s When I Was Young in the Mountains,
and weather permitting, stories will change
..........................................................By Judith Winecoff
2014 Common Reading Program
.......................................................... By Monica Caruso
Author Allen St. John
(pictured, left) spoke,
and master luthier
Wayne
Henderson
(pictured on right) performed at the library
for over 100 people as
part of the Common Reading Program September 5.
Henderson inspired ASU’s summer reading selec-
Connect with your library and get Friends updates at www.wataugacountylibrary.org
Access the Friends’ website directly at www.friendsofthewataugalibrary.weebly.com
7
tion by Allen St. John, Clapton’s Guitar: Watching
Wayne Henderson Build the Perfect Instrument. In
1995, Henderson received the National Heritage
Award from the National Endowment for the Arts
and established the Wayne C. Henderson Music
Festival and Guitar Competition to provide music
scholarships. He has performed at Carnegie Hall,
the Smithsonian and internationally for the U.S. Information Agency.
Thanks to the Friends for sponsorship of the Common Reading Program. “We were excited to host
Wayne and Allen here and thank ASU for their
partnership,” County Librarian Monica Caruso said.
“It was great to have a local legend here [Wayne]
and such a pleasure to meet him.” Allen read portions of his book and described experiences with
Wayne in his humorous presentation. Additional
photos are on the library’s Facebook page. The library’s Book Bunch Book Club hosted a book discussion of Clapton’s Guitar September 30.
High Country Festival of the Book
Record Attendance!
.................................................. By Suzanne Thompson
2014’s
High
Country Festival of
the Book (HCFB)
topped all records
with 400 people
attending!
Our
kickoff
dinner
“Tales of Mystery
8
and Imagination” featured Mrs. Poe author Lynn Cullen at Boone’s Fairway Grill June 27. 62 guests enjoyed a fascinating talk on Edgar Allan Poe and his
relationship with poet Frances Osgood, featuring
appearances by Edgar Allan Poe and wife Virginia
(aka Owen Gray and Tamara Scanlon). Proceeds
will fund the purchase of children’s books for the
library.
June 28, bestselling authors gave talks at the Jones
House in Boone and signed their books. Robert
Inman, Patti Callahan Henry and mystery writer
Vicki Lane were fan favorites, drawing attendees
from as far as South Carolina. 40 exhibitors participated and offered something for everyone.
Families enjoyed stories with children’s authors,
face painting, live music, balloon art, and crafts at
the Main Library. Young readers raved about the
Graphic Novel Workshop with author-artist Ben
Towle and sketch books and art supplies courtesy of
the High Country Watermedia Society Endowment,
administered by the NC Community Foundation.
HCFB is presented by the Friends of Watauga
County Public Library to highlight the importance
of books, reading and literacy. It would not be possible without the dedicated HCFB Committee and
volunteers, or Festival sponsors including Boone
Mall, Richard T. Barker Friends of the Belk Library, Friendship Honda of Boone and Keller Williams High Country. See www.highcountryfestival
ofthebook.com for sponsor listings and photos.
Good Friends make great libraries! Become an active Friends member today

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