Friends of the Santa Cruz Public Libraries

Construction is underway at the Garfield Park branch!!!

Want a sneak peak of the new Capitols Branch Library? Join the Capitols Friends on May 8th at 1PM for a guided tour by Gayle Ortiz, Capitola business owner and former Mayor. She’ll take us on a walk through highlighting all of the great new features of the building. After the tour Gayle and Eric Howard, Assistant Director of Libraries, will be available to answer questions about the new library. We’re very excited for this event here at the Friends and hope you’ll join us for... this chance to see the beautiful new library and find out about all of its fantastic features. What: Tour and question and answers about the new Capitola Branch Library When: Saturday May 8 1:00 PM Zoom Webinar link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89752943013 Participants: Gayle Ortiz and Eric Howard will answer your questions. Contact: Keith Gudger, [email protected]

Throwback: did you know that, in the past, ‘Friends of the Santa Cruz Public Libraries Day’ has been an official day in the City of Santa Cruz? Check out this mayoral proclamation which turns 29 years old this month (along with an additional shout out from the County in 2002).

To close out National Library Week we wanted to highlight a special project that just wrapped up in Felton! Last month, The Discovery Nature Park at our Felton Branch received a big upgrade by a dedicated Americorps team. In just one week, this team transformed the very weedy area hillside into an attractive and wood chipped area for people to enjoy. Felton Library Friends helped with the planning process, participated in a presentation with the team on community activism in Felton, and, finally, took the team out to dinner!

In conjunction with National Library Week, The Friends of the Santa Cruz Public Libraries are delighted to announce the hiring of our new Executive Director, Bruce Cotter! Bruce has decades of management and non-profit experience including a position on the board of Shakespeare Santa Cruz (where he briefly served as Chair), the New Hampshire Library Trustees Association, the Friends of the Santa Cruz Public Libraries (as Vice President), and the Library Advisory Commission. In addition, Bruce has a background in high tech where he managed a sales team. We are looking forward to the future under Bruce’s leadership!

Thanks to the generosity of the @shopcapitolamall, the Friends of the Capitola Library have reopened their bookstore in a new, spacious location in the mall, next to Hallmark and across from Express! There are currently thousands of used items in the shop: books, CDs, DVDs, and more. Most items sell for $1 or $2 each and all funds will be used to enhance the new Capitola library. The store is cash or check only; masks and social distancing are required. HOURS: Saturdays: 12:0...0-4:00 Sundays: 12:00-4:00 More hours will be added soon. Check out the Capitola Library Friends website for updates.

Curious what the Garfield and Branciforte library branch may look like after their renovations?Check out these spiffy architectural renderings of potential redesigns.

Halloween has come early! Check out this very spooky spider web that a spidey friend constructed over the camera at our Capitola branch this past week. This video was taken from early this morning up to this afternoon. Thanks for getting us in the Halloween mood Mr. Spidey!

Did you know that almost all branches of the Santa Cruz Libraries are currently going through a renovation process? Take a look at these sneak peek photos of the progress thats being made on the La Selva Beach Library Branch. This progress is due to a prop called Measure S that passed in 2016. It’s a great reminder of what can be achieved simply by voting thoughtfully for local measures!

We are thrilled to announce that we have exceeded our fundraising goal for our ‘Ebooks for Students, Teachers and Families’ campaign! Because of the support of the Santa Cruz community, students will now have an expanded array of electronic resources and are better prepared to meet the challenges for the academic year that is 2020. Thank you everyone!

Our special author event with Susan Orlean is only one day away! Join us today by donating to the Ebooks for Students, Teachers and Families campaign!

Our very special author talk with Susan Orlean is only three days away! Donors who contribute $100 or more to our ‘Ebooks’ campaign to put electronic resources in the hands of Santa Cruz County students will receive a invite to this event that will occur on October 1st at 4PM. Join us for this special event and in making our school year a successful one today!

Curbside pickup is in full swing and CZU fire is 100% contained. A good day for the Santa Cruz community!

The word is already partially out but we are thrilled to announce our upcoming live event with author @susanorlean! Orlean is a staff writer for @newyorkermag and has appeared in other magazines such as @voguemagazine and @rollingstone. She is also the author of ‘The Orchid Thief’, which was made into the movie ‘Adaptation’ (2002) in which Meryl Streep won an Oscar for her portrayal of Orlean. Her most recent work is ‘The Library Book’, an account of the mysterious LA Public ...Library fire of the 1980s. Donors of $100 and up will be invited to this very special event taking place on October 1st. Orlean will be in conversation with Nikki Silva of @kitchensisters, known for their work on NPR. Join us for this special event by donating to our Ebooks Campaign: https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/WebLink.aspx

We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with Santa Cruz County Schools: the Ebooks for Students, Families, and Teachers Campaign. This school year is one of unprecedented challenge. Our partnership aims to increase the availability of online books, databases, and videos for students and teachers in our schools. There will be much greater demand for these items due to students learning at home and we want to meet that demand accordingly. Our students and teachers need ...the tools to be successful. Please join us in putting materials in their hands and making this school year one of accomplishment. Donate here today: https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/WebLink.aspx See more

How do libraries play a role in community safety? Here is a brief guide on a a few different roles that a library can play that amount to a healthier and safer community for all

Although it seems like all library activities are halted, be not fooled: the construction of the Capitola branch remodel is currently going full steam ahead (with help from yours truly ). This video here brings you up to speed to what the site looks like today