From Our Corner

Beekeepers at the Airway Heights Corrections Center

From the desk of Sue Box, Library Associate at the Airway Heights Corrections Center. Image On February 15, I had the pleasure and privilege of watching sixteen men be congratulated on a one-of-a-kind accomplishment. About two years ago, Mr. Jim Miller, a master beekeeper and longtime member of the West Plains Beekeepers Association, decided to give of himself and his time to help the prison really get the beekeeping program going. He helped set up… Read more

Archives Spotlight: Weird headstones of Washington

The Washington State Archives comes across some strange findings, and we truly embrace the state’s oddities. You should see us around Halloween. Recently, one of our researchers came across a series of weird headstones in Washington. We suppose the families would be ok if you chuckle. Perhaps that’s what they would’ve wanted. A sample of our findings: 5 Bratty Kids Done Her In Image Coy B. Shillinger, who is buried at Green Hills Memorial… Read more

WSL Updates for February 22, 2018

Volume 14, February 22, 2018 for the WSL Updates mailing list Topics include: 1) INCREASE YOUR EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE 2) FINANCIAL LITERACY – FACTS VS. FICTION 3) FREE EXHIBITS – WILL TRAVEL 4) LC – FREE TO USE AND REUSE 5) OCLC – CONNECTING WITH YOUR COOPERATIVE 6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK… Read more

Veterans in Washington – Creating a Stronger Library Connection

From the desk of Jeff Martin, Manager, Library Development, Washington State Library Image I didn’t realize how many veterans, active duty and reserve personnel, and their family members exist in Washington State. The Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) reports the figure as roughly 2.6 million persons… Read more

All Aboard for Storytime!

Image From the desk of Carolyn Petersen In the spirit of it takes a village to raise a child Washington libraries offer preschool storytimes because attending storytime has been proven to increase the kindergarten readiness skills a child needs. This spring the Washington State Library will debut a series of trainings, All Aboard for Kindergarten, around the state. The trainings are intended to strengthen youth services staff skills around the five… Read more

Archives Spotlight: The Seattle team that became America’s first Stanley Cup champion

This week, Seattle took a giant step closer to procuring a National Hockey League franchise. On Tuesday, February 13, Oak View Group Seattle — an ownership group headed by Hollywood producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who has given us such classics as Armageddon and Top Gun — formally submitted an application for expansion along with a $10 million application fee. The same group has also agreed to renovate Seattle’s Key Arena (sigh, come home, Sonics) at a $660 million expense. They will also pay a… Read more

WSL Updates for February 15, 2018

Volume 14, February 15, 2018 for the WSL Updates mailing list Topics include: 1) TRAVEL AND TRAINING MONEY 2) STAND UP FOR HEALTH 3) HOPE FROM OUR GRANDMOTHERS 4) LATINO STEM LEARNING 5) DIGITAL LEARN TOOLKIT 6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

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“Connecting Washington through the power of libraries”

Image Our mission statement is a short and simple, yet powerful statement of what we do here at the Washington State Library. We see ourselves as an umbrella that hovers over all the wonderful libraries in our state, offering unique resources, expertise, training opportunities and grants which help you fulfill our common goal: to provide excellent service to our states residents. We look with amazement at all that happens in our state; the… Read more

Archives Spotlight: Hungry for wealth, 'starvation healer' ran deadly Olalla clinic

[caption id="attachment_24046" align="alignleft" width="194"] Image Cover of Dr. Hazzard's book, Fasting for the Cure of Disease.[/caption] Dr. Linda Burfield Hazzard was an infamous fraud and a crook. She was known for her… Read more

WSL Updates for February 8, 2018

Volume 14, February 8, 2018 for the WSL Updates mailing list Topics include: 1) SCREEN SCENE FOR CHILDREN 2) WSL & WEBJUNCTION OFFER SKILLSOFT 3) TAKE OUR SURVEY—PLEASE! 4) AMERICA SAVES WEEK 5) BREAKING THE FOURTH WALL – PNLA 2018 6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK… Read more

Understanding the February Special Election

Did you know there's an election coming up on Tuesday, February 13th? Springtime special elections sometimes get overlooked, especially when it feels like the recent November election is so fresh in mind. But in the February 2018 special election, 65 percent of Washington's registered voters are eligible to participate — that's 2,753,553 people. Voters from all but two counties have issues and/or races on the February ballot. San Juan and Skamania are the exceptions, but not all other… Read more

Archives Spotlight: The top secret Hanford Project

More than 51,000 people worked at the Hanford site between 1943 and 1945. Less than 500 knew what they were making. Image Plutonium is a radioactive element derived from uranium, and was discovered at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1941. Scientist Glenn Seaborg wrote a detailed description of plutonium and its potential uses. It could be a plentiful energy source, or used as a component in a major explosive weapon, he wrote. Of… Read more

How your donations to the Institutional Libraries makes a difference.

[caption id="attachment_18281" align="alignleft" width="291"] Image In two weeks 45 books and 2 DVDs have been donated to Institutional Library Services for their ILS Reads Program. Thank you to everyone who donated!”[/caption] The Clallam Bay Corrections Center is trying something different. They are reconsidering the usefulness of solitary confinement. According to… Read more

WSL Updates for February 1, 2018

Volume 14, February 1, 2018 for the WSL Updates mailing list Topics include: 1) FREE UPCOMING WORKSHOPS 2) SAVE AMERICA’S TREASURES 3) LIBRARY VOTER SERVICES SURVEY 4) TOPNOTCH NONPROFIT TRAINING 5) LEVY LID LIFT WEBINAR 6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK… Read more

Archives Spotlight: Seattle's first retail store sat on Alki Point

Image “That’ll be six dollars,” Charles C. Terry probably said to J. N. Low on November 28, 1851. Low bought two axes from Terry, the first sale at Seattle’s first store, located in the town of New York, which is now known as Alki Point. The next time you tell yourself… Read more

Announcing a new home for the Washington Center for the Book!

Image Image Way back in May we made an announcement that the Seattle Public Library (SPL) and the Washington State Library (WSL) were joining forces to grow the Washington Center for the Book (WCB) into a powerful statewide program. Since then we have been diligently working behind the scenes to create our digital space. Today we launch… Read more

The remarkable, formidable Lois Spellman

Former Washington State First Lady Lois Spellman died Thursday, January 25th, just days after the passing of her husband, former Washington State Governor John D. Spellman. Lois Elizabeth Murphy was born in 1927 in Havre, Montana. She and her husband prayed the Rosary together every… Read more

WSL Updates for January 25, 2018

Volume 14, January 25, 2018 for the WSL Updates mailing list Topics include: 1) CE NEEDS ASSESSMENT 2) HEALTH NUMERACY AND YOU 3) COMIC CON AT THE LIBRARY 4) RURAL PUBLIC LIBRARY GRANTS 5) ONLINE CONGRESSIONAL RECORD COMPLETED 6) FREE CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK… Read more

Learning through play

Image With Microsoft, Amazon, Google and many other companies based in Washington we are a technology state. Washington State is endlessly hungry for skilled technology workers and STEM learning is an important component of educating our future workforce. The State Library, seeing this need, has invested in many STEM kits which we circulate to interested libraries around Washington. Coding and robotics are work skills that are highly prized, and one… Read more

Archives Spotlight: The Hollywood Bandit

Image “I don’t want any bait bills or dye packs, got it?” Scott Scurlock, known to police as “Hollywood,” clutched a black pistol. He didn’t point the gun at anyone. He didn’t wave it around. But he made sure everyone knew he had it as he confidently made simple demands. Heeding Scurlock’s warnings, a bank teller escorted the robber to the vault, while two henchmen manned the lobby. Within minutes, Scurlock wielded a duffle stuffed with over a… Read more