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Don't tell these librarians to be quiet
"Miss Information" (a.k.a. Patt Colwell), a Medford branch children's librarian, helps break ground for the new Jackson County Central Library Saturday. She and other librarians dressed up in wild costumes for the ceremony and accompanying "lollapalooza parade." The library groundbreaking parade features unicyclists, go-carts, bagpipes, a teen band, a dragon and even a llama By MEG LANDERS So much for the grumpy, bespectacled, shushing librarian image. These folks rock. "This is the true side of librarians, this is who we really are," Collection Development Manager Lorrie Kovell yelled above the music of the teen band The Barracudas. "We're putting the 'rarian' back in librarian." Kovell was part of the gleeful troop in the "earthshaking, asphalt breaking, claimstaking library Lalapalooza parade and groundbreaking ceremony" Saturday morning in downtown Medford. The event celebrated the pending construction of a new, 80,000-square-foot, $18 million library building on Ninth Street and Central Avenue. The parade began at the Justice Building parking lot and cruised down Eighth Street past the old Carnegie library building to the new site. The promenade featured police escorts, a fire engine, unicyclists, a dragon, Shriners in go-carts, bagpipes, a llama, and groups such as the Friends of the Ruch Library chanting, "Ruch is good, Ruch is great, Ruch is in the Applegate." The procession ended at the building site, and book lovers of all sizes and hair color were treated to free food, balloons, music and speeches by everyone from state Rep. Cherryl Walker to Jackson County Library Foundation President Alison Rilling. The rain clouds even parted for the event. "It has been a long time coming," said Ronnie Lee Budge, library director, dubbed "Librarian of the Millennium" for the day. "It's wonderful to be celebrating the groundbreaking of the Central Library." The parade and ceremony are the brainchild of Meghan O'Flaherty, library headquarters manager. "Not a cent of taxpayer money went into this," she said. It was all done on donated time, materials, food and money. Even library staff were on unpaid time, she said. And the library staff seemed to be having fun. "I always wanted to race a book cart," said children's librarian Kim Wolfe, dressed as a clown and dancing while pushing a cart as part of the library Book Cart Precision Drill Team. Even spectators were laughing and having fun. "I think it shows that we have spirit and that there are a lot of readers that can't wait to have a new library," said Barbara Griffin of Medford. Griffin said she planned to walk from her house to the new library when it's open. "I already have it figured out, down for coffee and down to get my books for the week every Saturday morning," she said. The new building, scheduled to begin construction within the next couple of weeks, will house the Jackson County Central Library and the Rogue Community College Library. It will be the first in the state with both academic and public libraries. "I'm glad we can coordinate with (the county)," said Verne Underwood, chairperson of the humanities department at RCC. He said the Medford campus of RCC doesn't have a print library, so the arrangement is an important opportunity for the college. "And watching librarians dress up as clowns is great," he said. Barbara Seus of Medford said she and her five children have been avid library users. "A library can be like the hub of a community," she said. "I think a library can bring people together." She predicts that with a friendlier atmosphere, better layout and more parking available, library usage will increase. Kovell said the day's celebration is foreshadowing what the new library will be. "It'll be exciting, electric, full of possibility and fun," she said. Reach reporter Meg Landers at 776-4481 or e-mail mlanders@mailtribune.com |
