Adults

Remembering television in the 60s

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In May 1961, Newton N. Minow, the new chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, called television “a vast wasteland” – but was it? Certainly, it was the time of programming like “The Monkees”, “Batman”, and “The Flying Nun.” But television also brought the nation and the world into our homes with President Kennedy’s assassination, coverage of the war in Vietnam, and the Apollo 11 crew’s walk on the moon. How was television censored to keep us “safe”?

The Peters Township Public Library will host “Remembering Television in the 60s” on Sunday, September 30 at 1:30 p.m. Robin Jordan is the guest speaker for this entertaining and informative afternoon. She has shared this program as part of the University of South Carolina Beaufort Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.

Register online to attend this event or call 724.941.9430 #1.

About the Speaker: Robin Jordan has a Ph.D. In Chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh. During her career at Bell Laboratories, she worked as a system engineer on large development projects. Upon retiring, she earned a Masters in Accounting. Robin and her husband were members of the Peters Township Public Library afternoon and evening book clubs before relocating to Hilton Head, South Carolina.

https://youtu.be/mjKyGs-G6Sg

PT Library screens documentary about women combat veterans

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Film director JulieHera DeStefano traveled to Afghanistan in 2011 to learn more about the experiences of women serving in the combat zone. As she gathered stories, one driving question led to the feature-length documentary Journey to Normal: Women of War Come Home – What happens when they come home?

The Peters Township Public Library will offer a screening of the documentary on Sunday, September 23 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. followed by a discussion led by DeStefano. The Peters Township Library Foundation is partnering with the library to offer this program. Register online to attend or call 724.941.9430 #1.

Women now make up 15% of our military force, and roughly 300,000 women are combat veterans from our most recent conflicts. In order to learn their experience beyond the “happy homecoming”, this documentary tells the stories of eight women over a three-year period.  The film follows these veterans through reintegration after combat deployment, through marriages and divorce, through the birth of children, and the search for new jobs. From their collective stories, we can learn about changes in our society and the broader implications for women and men, for veterans and civilians.

Producer/Director JulieHera DeStefano graduated from Carnegie Mellon University (BFA, School of Drama), and has built a career both in front of and behind the camera. She served as the Managing Director and Producer of an award-winning off-Broadway theater company and as the Business Manager of a New York-based film and photography studio. Her acting credits include the films The Preacher’s Wife and The First Wives Club.

PT Library first in PA to offer QPR suicide prevention training

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VIEW THE LIST OF LOCAL RESOURCES SHARED DURING THIS PROGRAM.

Since 1999 the suicide rate in Pennsylvania has increased more than 30 percent according to a report released this summer by the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

September is National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Due to the dramatic rise in suicides in Pennsylvania and across the nation, the Peters Township Public Library will host Question, Persuade, Refer: Suicide Prevention in partnership with Prevent Suicide PA on Tuesday, September 4 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.The library is the first site in Pennsylvania to offer this suicide prevention training called QPR which stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer – the 3 simple steps that anyone can learn to decrease suicidal behaviors and save lives. The session will discuss how to recognize risk factors and the tools available to help prevent a suicide.

Register to attend online at https://tinyurl.com/ybjpkyjc or call 724.941.9430 #1. A certified QPR trainer from Prevent Suicide PA will run this free training session which is open to all members of the community.

QPR is one of the leading evidence-based programs in suicide prevention in the country. The intent is to recognize and interrupt the crisis and direct that person to proper care. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade, and refer someone to help. Each year thousands of Americans, like you, are saying “Yes” to saving the life of a family member, a friend, a colleague, or a neighbor. For more information, visit preventsuicidepa.org.

Prevent Suicide PA is a new partner organization with PA Forward, a statewide program that works through five key literacies – Basic, Information, Civic & Social, Financial, and Health – connecting Pennsylvania residents with information at their local library to enhance their quality of life. The Peters Township Public Library is recognized as a PA Forward Gold Star Library for bringing quality programming and resources to the patrons they serve.

New Service – Book-a-Librarian!

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Would you like a personal introduction to the electronic resources available to you at the Peters Township Public Library? Do you need more in-depth help than you can get when you just walk into the library? Try our new Book-a-Librarian service! You can schedule a personalized, one-on-one lesson tailored to meet your specific information need.

To register for a free, 45-minute appointment with a library information professional, please complete this online form or call 724.941.9430 ext. 5767.

Please allow 2-3 days for a response, especially when submitting questions over the weekend.

Library prepares for Read Local/Eat Local event

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Peters Township Public Library will gather over 20 local authors to shine and share their talents at a new event called Read Local/Eat Local on Saturday, June 23 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The library is encouraging the community to read books by authors from the southwestern Pennsylvania area that represent all genres for all age groups. The library plans to offer storytimes and activities for children at this family-friendly event. No registration is needed to attend.

“The library is frequently contacted by local authors when they have a new book to share,” explained Sue Miller, Assistant Library Director. “And that is how we discovered so much talent right in our backyard. With the Read Local event, we have an opportunity to showcase these authors to the community. They offer everything from children’s books, fiction for young adults, romance, fantasy, mystery, science fiction, history, and self-help. I think the event will offer something for just about everyone, including some tasty food available for purchase.”

Authors to date that will be available for two hours of conversation, book readings, book sales and signings include:

Plan to Eat Local while at this free event or passing through the area as three food trucks will be in the library parking lot with refreshments for sale that afternoon. Trucks on-site will include Hott Dawgz, Revival Chili, and Kona Ice.

Kicking off Read Local/Eat Local will be a pre-event from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. with bestselling author J.D. Barker who will discuss Making the Leap from Indie to Traditional Publishing. Barker successfully published his debut novel as an indie and sold enough copies to land on the radar of the traditional publishers in a big way including seven-figure advances, two feature films, and a television program. He’ll open his toolbox and explain exactly what he did to make it happen. All are welcome to attend this session, especially any aspiring author or seasoned veteran trying to find their place in today’s publishing world. J.D. Barker is an international bestselling American author whose work has been broadly described as suspense thrillers, often incorporating elements of horror, crime, mystery, science fiction, and the supernatural. Register online to attend his talk.

Concluding the afternoon will be Susan Hans O’Connor from 1:00 to 1:30 p.m. with her talk Authors and Independent Bookstores: Working Together for Mutual Success. Independent bookstores are a vital piece of the book publishing puzzle.  Partnering with local stores can be one of the most effective tools authors can use to promote their books.  O’Connor will share her insights from the perspective of both a current bookstore owner as well as a former book editor.  Susan Hans O’Connor has been the owner of the Penguin Bookshop since 2014.  She began her publishing career at Viking Penguin where she worked as an editor for over a decade. Register online to attend her talk.

Hamilton the focus of a talk and exhibit in June

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The Peters Township Public Library will welcome Denver Brunsman to present Hamilton, Washington, and the Creation of the United States on Thursday, June 14 at 7:00 p.m. Register here or call 724.941.9430 #1.

As Hamilton: An American Musical makes clear, it was crucial for Alexander Hamilton to have George Washington “on his side.” Brunsman will discuss the collaboration between Hamilton and Washington in creating the United States from the Revolutionary War and Constitutional Convention to launching the federal government and America’s financial system. Twenty-five years Washington’s junior, Hamilton acted as both a surrogate son and equal to the nation’s first president. Together, they made history in helping to shape our country as we know it. The talk will weave references to songs from Hamilton and the national traveling exhibition, Alexander Hamilton: Immigrant, Patriot, Visionary, which will be on display during library hours from Thursday, June 14 through Saturday, July 7.

Using primarily reproductions from the Gilder Lehrman Institute’s renowned collections, and drawing on recent scholarship about Alexander Hamilton, the traveling exhibition will examine Hamilton’s role during the Revolutionary War and Founding period (1774-1804) in creating the economic, constitutional, social, journalistic, political, and foreign policy templates for modern America. It will acquaint visitors with a statesman and visionary whose life inspired discussion and controversy and shaped the America we live in two hundred years after his death. The exhibit from the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History is made possible by the Rockefeller Foundation.

Denver Brunsman, Associate Professor in the History Department at George Washington University, where his courses include “George Washington and His World,” teaches annually at Mount Vernon. He is a coauthor of a leading college and AP U.S. History textbook, Liberty, Equality, Power: A History of the American People and an e-book, Leading Change: George Washington and Establishing the Presidency. The recipient of numerous teaching honors, Brunsman was inducted into the George Washington University Academy of Distinguished Teachers in 2016.