Future Friends of the Library Meeting

Thursday, April 8th at 3 p.m.

Columbia-Marion County Public Library

900 Broad Street

(601) 736-5516

Calling all Future Friends of the Columbia-Marion County Public Library! We will be electing officers and discussing other issues to get the ball rolling as we spring into an official Friends group. Come one, come y'all.

DO YOU KNOW A CHILD WHO NEEDS HELP WITH READING?

FAMILY READING BONDS

What it is:
Family Reading Bonds is a program that helps children and families with literacy. It is sponsored by the Mississippi Humanities Council from Jackson, MS.
The program focuses on children ages 6 to 12, and a parent is required to attend the program along with participating children.

When is it:
The program starts Tuesday, April 13 at 5:30 p.m. and lasts about an hour an a half. It is a six-week program and continues the following Tuesdays: April 20, April 27, May 4, May 11, and May 18. There will be a small meal provided for the families.

Where is it: The program takes place here in the Auditorium at the Columbia-Marion County Public Library, 900 Broad Street.

How it works:
A storyteller and humanities scholar present reading and children's literature to the families. Reading-aloud and discussions techniques will be used in presenting these award winning children's books. Books have been selected to address ethical and values issues such as environmental responsibility, fairness, courage, coping and determination. Upon completing the program, the children and parents will receive a certificate and free books.

How to sign up: Fill out the registration form and return it to the library by Wednesday, March 31.
If you have any questions, please call the library at 601-736-5516
or visit http://www.mshumanities.org/pages/family.asp

Mississippi Poet speaking March 13

The Columbia-Marion County Public Library is excited to have Mississippi Poet Gary McGregor on Saturday, March 13 from 2 to 3 p.m.

Gary McGregor has had many fascinating careers and is an incredibly talented poet. He decided to publish his book of poems, Faces and Feelings, to have as keepsakes for his children but when Diane Sheperd, the owner of Main Street Books in Hattiesburg, saw his poems, she not only sold them but also had him as one of the authors at the Christmas Extravaganza this past December.

McGregor grew up in Hattiesburg and is married with four children and has several grandchildren. He has a BS degree in design from the University of Cincinnati, and has designed for both residential and commercial interiors. He has written poetry for years and is influenced by the poems of Billy Collins, Robert Frost and others who write to be easily understood by their readers. Having also written short stories and had articles published in magazines, he is a member of the Mississippi Writers Guild, and is a self published poet.
McGregor and his wife collect the folk art textiles of different cultures and enjoy traveling around the world. He also raises orchids and enjoys painting. The cover his book "Faces and Feelings" is a painting by McGregor. He is currently working on a new book which will have 50 new poems.

Refreshments will be provided by Second Street Bean of Columbia.

Katrina by Gary McGregor

She came in rising winds
clothed in veils of driven rain.
Screaming as she flung
the trees and gashed the earth.
Pushing tides before her,
land became the gulf,
obliterating all in furious flood.
years swept away in her frenzy.

Night rose from the ground
to hide the tortured landscape.
Stars blinked and closed their eyeswhile we slept in ignorance
of what the morning brought.

Now I cry too easily.