Summer News Updates from the Bucerias Library Sue Usry - Biblioteca Rey Nayar
July 17, 2012

Since the election of our new Board of Directors in April a lot has happened…and it is all GOOD! The Board has met six times since the election. We are a good team and everyone is working hard.

Successful Fundraiser

A fundraiser was held at the Shamrock Bar here in town and we were able to raise nearly 7,000 pesos. This money is ear-marked for us to purchase a computerized system for cataloging books, producing library cards and checking books in and out. Now that we have the money to buy a system we are busy investigating which system to invest in.

Air Conditioning                                                                                                                                 

Thanks to the generous donation of an air conditioner from our new Board president Manual Venegas and the donation of time and materials for installation by a local air conditioning technician (who wishes to remain anonymous) the library is now air conditioned. This will allow us to better preserve our collection because the system takes the humidity out of the air and it makes the library a much more comfortable place for both the children and our volunteers.

Outdoor Improvements

The library has hired, on an as needed basis, the services of David Cordova. He has fumigated the library and cleared the weeds in the front yard and is going to maintain the garden on a monthly basis. Manny has donated a shade structure which is now installed in the front yard and adds space that we can use for library activities.

New Librarian

We have hired a new librarian, Ruben Ramirez. I have had the pleasure of knowing Ruben for about a year. In my work with the library I have had occasion to go to the public school nearest the library and Ruben is the English teacher there. I believe that Ruben will be an excellent addition to our team. He is bilingual. He is well known among the children of the neighborhood. He has training as a teacher, a love of books, and skills in the use of computers. He is married with 2 children and has lived in the Bucerias area all of his life. I am very happy to be working with Ruben and he is building a good rapport with the children.

Summer Program

Our summer program began on July 16. The library will continue to be open Monday through Friday from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. On Mondays our volunteer, Santiago, will continue his much loved Lottery Championship. The kids wait in line for the doors to open for this special once a week activity. Santiago brings prizes and a good time is had by all.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, we offer a workshop in English for children ages 5 to 9 years old. We will be reading stories, and doing crafts, cooking and playing games, all in English. Ruben and I will be doing these activities together.

On Wednesdays and Fridays, Ruben will offer a formal 1.5 hour English class to children ages 10 to 12.

Every week day will also include a story time in Spanish and literature based writing and reading activities in Spanish.

As an added bonus, our volunteer and board member Mary Carmen Pickup will open the library every Saturday from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm and offer literature based activities in Spanish as well as lunch. We have 30 children signed up to participate in the English workshop and classes. On a daily basis we have approximately 20 children who "drop in" as well.

You can see that it is going to be a very busy summer.

Summer School at the Library

The local public school had made plans to offer summer classes in math and science. They had everything ready to go; materials, teachers and  kids signed up. At the last minute they were informed that they could not hold the classes at the school.

Lucky for us, Ruben, our new librarian, is a teacher in the program and he asked if we could loan our facility to the school every morning from 8:00 am to 12:00 noon.

It is wonderful to see so many kids (over 60) at the library every morning. This is great publicity for us and is laying the ground work for a good relationship with the local school. The classes will continue through July and two weeks into August.

Pet Clinic

Thanks to the efforts of our new board member Dr. Jorge Gueuvara, the library will be sponsoring a low cost pet clinic every Saturday from 12:00 noon to 2:00 pm in the front garden. For 25 pesos people can bring their dog or cat for a Rabies shot and medication to rid their systems of parasites. This Clinic has been written up in the local news and brings added publicity to the Library as well as offering low cost animal health care to local residents.

Computer Sale

The Board has decided to sell, at a reduced price, all of the used laptops that have been donated to the library and use the money to buy 2 new PC’s. The laptops have all been reconditioned for free by our good friend and computer technician Eduardo Miranda. He has valued each computer and prepared a specifications sheet of information for each unit. At this point we have 4 computers for sale for the very reasonable price of 2,000 pesos each. The new PC’s will better serve the needs of the library as they are easier to service, to upgrade when needed and harder to steal. We are grateful to Eduardo for his advice in this process.

Brand New Brochure

Thanks to the efforts of Barry Munro, a member of our Board of Directors and Jody Wilson, a volunteer who helps us with all of our technology issues, web site design, Facebook postings and publishing, we now have a beautiful new brochure in English and Spanish.

Moving Forward

As we move into summer the Board continues to be proactive in the improvement of the library. Jeanne Thomsen and I  collected the Altruism Funds on July 16. We will use this money, as we did last year, to pay for the calendars. Jean has agreed to coordinate and manage this ever successful fundraiser for this year.

Based on the success of the classical guitar concert last spring, the Board has decided to continue sponsoring small, culturally based events as our primary form of fundraising. Plans are being made for another fundraiser, possibly in September.

The library is moving forward by leaps and bounds. When you all get back in the Fall there will be lots of opportunities to volunteer and participate.

If you are in town please come and visit us. We are open Monday through Friday from 1:00 to 5:00 pm and on Saturday from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm. If you have ideas, suggestions, or thoughts please share them with us at bibliobucerias@gmail.com

I hope everyone is having a great summer where ever you may be.

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