Gwinnett Library Card Can Get You a State Parks Pass

Supplies are limited.

If you are a Georgian and you hold a valid library card, it can get you a free Georgia State Park "ParkPass" and Historic Site Pass for up to five days from your local library. The passes are good for free parking or admission at any of the 63 parks and historic sites statewide. Families interested in borrowing a ParkPass from the local library are advised to plan early though because of the expected popularity of the ParkPass loaner program. Supplies are limited. Contact your Suwanee library for more information.

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Ads in Gwinnett Libraries? Probably

GCPL's new plans call for 'non-tax' revenue of millions of dollars annually.

Don't be surprised if you soon see one of those illiterate, chicken-loving cows in your local Gwinnett Public Library branch. Advertising in libraries and business marketing initiatives are part of the GCPL's effort to make up funding cuts by reaching out to the private sector. Philip Saxton, chairman of the Gwinnett library system, said Monday that he hopes the library can raise at least $4 million annually through private initiatives as it seeks to become less dependent on tax revenue. "We're not the same library we were a year ago," he told Gwinnett Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash and other county government leaders during the final day of budget review sessions. The Gwinnett government is preparing its fiscal year 2012 budget and is…

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Steve Burns

10:41 am on Wednesday, September 14, 2011

A good suggestion. Perhaps you should sent it to them, too.   more ›

Gwinnett Libraries To Reduce Days, Hours Soon

Officials planning five-day, 40-hour week sometime in 4Q.

Updated 3:00 p.m., Sept. 12, 2011 Get ready for your local Gwinnett Public Library branch to be open fewer days and hours this fall. GCPL officials described the changes Monday as part of the budget-review process with county government leaders in Lawrenceville. The plan includes a "non-tax revenue" plan that could raise $4 million annually. GCPL Chairman Philip Saxton said library officials were "shocked" when their funding was reduced 15 percent, to the current level of $16.1 million that is currently in force. With the reductions and increasing dependence on non-government funds, "we hope you will give some back." The most immediate change will be that all branches will be reduced to a five-day, 40-hour week (from the current seven days…

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Library Corner

Story Time for Kids and Dogs

The Suwanee library lets dogs join in the fun.

This week at the Suwanee branch library on Main Street, toddlers are invited to enjoy story time. Parents can bring their little ones along for a day of reading fun at 10:15 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 21,  and Monday, April 25. Parents and toddlers can also join in on child-play songs and hand-game activities. But the fun doesn’t stop there.  After being read to all week, on Saturday children are invited to read to some cuddly friends. Yes, the children get up close and personal  to read with the therapy dogs during the event called Doggy Tales, held every second and fourth Saturday of the month.  The kids love it. They don’t have to worry about missing any words because dogs are only concerned about the "jest" of the story.

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Recycle, Repurpose Books in Green Bins at Libraries

Gwinnett Public Library partners with Better World Books to collect unwanted books in green bins.

Just in time for Earth Day April 22, the Gwinnett County Public Library announced a partnership with the popular online book retailer Better World Books. Better World Books (BWB) has installed green book collection bins at each library branch. Books collected at these bins will be sold, donated or properly recycled. A portion of the sale of these books will benefit the library.  Filling these bins will not only benefit Gwinnett’s libraries but the environment as well, according to the announcement. Every book that BWB collects whether from these bins or some other method, never makes it to a landfill. To date, Better World Books has successfully re-used or recycled more than 40 million books while raising over $9 million in funding for …

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Gwinnett Library To Host Teen Event

April conference geared towards middle school and high school students.

The Gwinnett County Public Library will host a “Teen Summit” to bring together teens, their parents and community organizations to explore social issues and other topics of interest. The event, scheduled for Saturday, April 16, will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Aurora Theatre in Lawrenceville. The conference-style event will include more than a dozen workshops and discussion groups covering topics including living green, cyber privacy, understanding depression, gang awareness, distracted driving and mastering finances. “Library-sponsored events like Teen Summit 2011 create a neutral environment allowing for a free exchange of information and ideas. Our goals for Teen Summit 2011 are to help parents and teens become more aware of …

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Out Of Work, But Not Out Of Hope

An unemployed Suwanee woman has not let hardships dampen her Christmas spirit.

On Thursday, at the Suwanee public library branch on Main Street, families dressed in holiday clothing dashed in and out spreading holiday cheer, checking out cookbooks to bake holiday treats, and sending holiday greetings via e-mail on the library's computers. Rosemary Hightower, 41, performed her daily routine of checking her e-mail with hopes of receiving a message from an employer offering her a job before Christmas. Hightower's unemployment wages stopped last year, and she said she's received no steady income since. "I was making (six figures annually) when I was laid off," she said, while applying for jobs listed on different Web sites.   Hightower went to the library's parking lot and pulled paycheck stubs and unemployment …

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