Bookmobile News

Our friend Catherine Borchert has many gifts to offer (see 9/1 entry below). One of her strengths is inspiring excitement about an idea, and she did just that when she approached students in Lorraine Martinez-Ohlsen’s Leadership Class at Marilla Carillo High School about boosting the Bookmobile. These enterprising teens took on a monster of a book drive, relentlessly pitching the need for donations to family, friends, and fellow students. And they came up big: 1,398 books of very high quality collected. That’s half again as much as we’ve given away in total!

Meeting this group was a special event. They were very curious about where their books were headed, so I drove the trailer right onto the quad so they could hop in and load it up themselves. They had great questions; some had never heard of a bookmobile before embarking on the project. Does that make me feel old? Nah, just lucky. And a little sad that the county hasn’t funded this service for well over a decade.

Please read the article and check out the pictures on the Press Democrat website:

http://extracredit.blogs.pressdemocrat.com/11090/carrillo-students-support-bookmobile/

I’ve ranted enough about how much fun this project has been – time to take a look at what the numbers say. We’ve hosted a total of 16 events thus far since our inaugural stop in Occidental back in late July. During those 16 events, we have:

• Visited 12 different towns (though I suspect Santa Rosa may have achieved ‘city’ status a while back)

• Served 193 children, including 60 who are ages 0 – 5

• Served 531 adults, including 184 who are ages 55 and up

• Given away 1,254 children’s books

• Given away 1,554 books for adult readers

• Told lots of total strangers that we love them

As you can see, adults are taking an average of about three books each (we don’t impose a limit), and kids are helping themselves to about six books each. Though the kid’s book average is a bit misleading because some adults take kids books too. I’m not sure what the numbers really mean except that we are having a ton of fun. Oh wait, we already knew that. Perhaps we should be measuring smiles per hour?

The grand totals are: 2,808 books given away to 724 people. And we’re just getting started! Hey, anyone have a waterproof cargo bin we can use for the winter?

Stay tuned…

…and a gorgeous day for sharing love of reading. Aficianados of the printed word descended on Old Courthouse Square in downtown Santa Rosa on September 19th to browse and chat and celebrate one of our deepest common bonds. Thanks to the good folks of the organizing committee, the Free Bookmobile was there.

This was a unique event for us for a few reasons. First: We stood to gain a significant amount of awareness for our mission. Though several individuals approached to say they’d seen our story in the newspaper, or had actually been to one of our previous giveaways, most were new to the concept. Continuing to spread the good word is crucial to our success given that we rely solely on donations to replenish our stock of books. Thanks to these generous souls, we experienced a nice surge in deliveries to our drop-off locations after the Fair.

Second: We had a new friend joining us to create custom bookmarks for our guests. Rita Planchon performed her dazzling calligraphy for young and old alike, scribing names on a choice of two designs we printed specially for the occasion. Rita had a line at her table virtually the entire day as word spread around the square. The success of the free bookmarks helped me realize that it would be much more fun to promote the project in this fashion instead of with business cards.

Third: This was not a target area. Of course the Book Fair drew throngs of people from all over the county (and beyond) but let’s face it – we we’re only a few blocks from the excellent downtown Santa Rosa library. Our primary mission is to reach folks in rural areas or those with mobility challenges, and this didn’t quite fit that bill. Fortunately we aren’t much for discrimination and the opportunity to reach so many book lovers was too good to pass up.

As well we anticipated making lots of new friends, which naturally came to pass. Some of them even invited us to come visit their schools in disadvantaged neighborhoods, schools that lack libraries. One fellow told me that the Bookmobile was a good start, and urged me to take it to the next level by throwing televisions off of rooftops, “like the mullahs do in Saudi Arabia”.

I love making new friends.

Rain! Rain has come to Sonoma County after a nice long summer. It was a lovely renewal, a reminder that this too will pass. It also started me thinking: how am I going to keep all the books dry during winter giveaways?

We were spreading the love of reading in Bodega Bay on Sunday, celebrating what looked like a decent break in the weather and a new outlying town to permanently add to our schedule. After a couple of hours a light drizzle set in so Catherine, her daughter Maddy and I set up our newly donated canopy (thanks, Mom!). The canopy edge slid neatly over our trailer side window and still offered enough room in front for all four rolling carts. People kept coming over to browse and it was a satisfying moment for the project – a hurdle apparently cleared.

Then the rain went medieval on us. You know, coming in sideways with gusting winds. This was not something for which we were prepared.

Retreat! Thanks to the Borcherts, we broke camp and go the books back into the watertight trailer in record time. No damage done and a good lesson learned: check the forecast.

I believe it will be possible to plot out our visits around the weather with a little planning and perhaps a few last minute adjustments to locations. Pouring rain throughout the county, however, might sideline us for a while. Unless someone has a walk-through box van they can offer…

Since its inception, the Free Bookmobile has been continually blessed with new friends who are all smiles and quick to lend a hand. I’d like to take a moment to introduce you to two of them.

Shortly after we started our trailer construction we were contacted by Mike Berry, a former Healdsburg High School teacher who was eager to help in any way he could. Mike began putting together an approach to some of the folks we want to reach up north, particularly senior facilities and communities, that has been valuable. He also gave us a fourth rolling library cart to complement the three provided by Episcopal Senior Communities. Then I called him about making some signs to advertise our service. I though maybe I had finally stumped him – but not for long! Within a few days he had introduced us to Catherine Borchert, art teacher extraordinaire at Maria Carillo High School.

Catherine not only jumped at the chance to paint up some lovely, playful designs, but shared with us her desire to be more involved in the project. She had been trying to reach out to young persons, to offer them opportunities to create, on her own dime and time, yet had run into frustrating bureaucratic barriers. An art table next to the Bookmobile “Kids Klub” sounded like a perfect match and we had a plan.

This past Sunday, we pulled up to the Bloomfield Volunteer Fire Department Fundraiser BBQ and set up shop. Catherine’s students have had their colorful way with her van so it attracted quite a bit of attention. Together we gave out hundreds of books and the children made special wraps for their bundles with colored pencils and butcher paper. What a great day! Please check out the pictures via our “Making New Friends…” photo gallery page.

Catherine has ever more ideas about how to bring more fun to the project, and I think we might just ask her high-schoolers turn a boring white bookmobile into something…fantastic! Special thanks to her and to Mike Berry for their efforts. We look forward to meeting more kind folks throughout the community who wish to be involved.

Thanks, once again, to the positive buzz generated by our friend Katherine Rinehart at the library annex, we have been kindly invited to exhibit our project (and give away books!) at this year’s Sonoma County Book Festival. Held on Saturday, September 19th from 10 Am – 4 Pm on Old Courthouse Square in Santa Rosa, the festival boasts myriad activities, presenters, and vendors for readers of all shapes and sizes. From the website:

“The Sonoma County Book Festival is a free public event brought to you by The Literary Arts Guild. Our event transforms downtown Santa Rosa into the literary capital of Northern California. Thousands of booklovers return every year for a full day of fun under our welcoming white tents. Our rich programs present nationally acclaimed and locally treasured authors, who inspire and entertain festival attendees of all ages.”

This looks to be a terrific day for sharing your feelings about books and reading. Mendocino Avenue between 3rd and 4th will be shut down for this event. This has always been a favorite spot of mine for walking and browsing, and if you ask me, pedestrians should own the entire Courthouse Square all year round. Other arts on display will include live music, poets and playwrights on an outdoor stage, and opportunities for multimedia creativity at the Art Bus and special kid’s tent.

We will be parked right in the center of the action, next to the Art Bus. We might even have a special guest, a calligrapher who makes beautiful custom bookmarks for children. Stay tuned to this column for more on new volunteers who are generously donating their time and talents to the bookmobile.

Remember, the Book Festival is free, so please come by and say hello!

And a glorious day for giving away books it was. The shelves were built, the carts had arrived, and we even had a little cardboard sign. After working for months, and all weekend, my mom and my boys and I packed those shelves and carts full of the wonderful donated books we had received and brought the bookmobile into Occidental on a lovely Sunday afternoon. It was July 26th, 2009, and the sun was shining on the maiden voyage of the Sonoma County Free Bookmobile.

Just as soon as our doors were thrown open and our wares put on display a little crowd began to gather. The Weaver Boys’ anxiety was transmuted into excitement as we surveyed the scene. “Free?” was the most popular question of the day. “Free” was the eager response. “I’ve never seen anything free in America”, said one gentleman with a strong accent, likely of African descent. Ooops…where was my flag? And my national anthem? Oh well, next time. This fellow walked away with several hefty tomes and a slim Danielle Steele novel that he called his “favorite book ever”.

In a few hours time we had met local children, parents, seniors, and singles. All seemed to enjoy their browsing and no one left empty-handed. The statistics: we served 54 persons and gave away 186 books! We also had fun hearing a few tourists say they wished a free bookmobile was cruising their hometowns. Luckily enough, we had some little cards printed to help us stay in touch with those who want to donate toward our future. Which reminds me: we really need drop-off locations in Santa Rosa and somewhere in the northern part of the county. If you or someone you know can receive books from the public during business hours, we’d love to hear from you.

Don’t forget to check out pictures of the inaugural event via our photos page. The best part of the day is easy for me to remember. As one elderly man stepped off the sidewalk to join our party he asked “Why are they free?” I didn’t need my mind for this one, and said simply, “Because we love you”.

The Bookmobile construction team has been hard at work, led with grace by Jeremy Young of Young Massage. Jeremy is one of these multi-talented guys who is tremendous with his hands and healing by his presence. He also drew up and executed all the designs you can see come to life on the new photo page “Making a Bookmobile for you and me”.

We didn’t originally think anyone could board the trailer, given its relatively low head clearance. With a book retaining system on each reinforced shelf plus a carpeted floor, Jeremy has reversed that outlook. Kids up to middle-school height can now board the ‘mobile two at a time. There’s also a cool window box for the passenger-side exterior, the rear of which features a display shelf on which interior books can offer their cover art.

The ramp system is simple and elegant. A couple of steel hooks bolted to the ramp sub-frame grab a custom crossbar that’s been bolted above the bumper. When in transit, the ramp hangs from a couple of exterior loops and cinches down with wingnuts as well. After parking, the ramp will allow us to bring out the rolling carts. With a couple more items and a trip to the DMV, we should be all set for launch, hopefully just as our shipment of book carts arrives.

The shelving project has required several trips to various suppliers and more than a few afternoons. I humbly thank Jeremy for his energies and expertise! With partners like him, how can we go wrong?

Our friend Rayne Wolfe has turned in a very nice bookmobile follow-up on her Good Deeds blog. It celebrates the donation of the trailer as well as other recent contributions. You can check it out here:

http://gooddeeds.blogs.pressdemocrat.com/10020/bookmobile-man-gets-trailer/

If you missed the original print article on May 17, it is now online here:

http://community.pressdemocrat.com/2009/05/bringing-back-the-bookmobile.html

This coverage has connected us with many new supporters and we are ever so grateful! Thanks, Rayne.

The project reached a major milestone a couple of weeks ago when Press Democrat reader Jim Darlington offered his old surveyor’s trailer to the Sonoma County Free Bookmobile. The newspaper story reminded him of opportunities for reading that he didn’t have as a youth and he promptly got in touch with us to see if he could make a difference for this generation, which includes his ten-year-old daughter Amber.

The trailer is based on the bed of a Chevy Luv pickup, with a water-tight shell built up around. It features a cool side window that will make a great browsing port for a couple of long shelves. The trailer isn’t big enough for patrons to enter so we will instead make use of rolling carts to bring most of the books outside of the vehicle via a ramp. In a stroke of perfect timing, Suzanne Brunetti of Episcopal Senior Communities (ESC) got in touch to let us know that ESC has been looking for ways to get books to homebound seniors and wants to support the Bookmobile. They have generously offered to purchase carts so we can get this show on the road!

Our last step before launch is a couple of modifications to the trailer, on which Jeremy Young of Young Massage has been diligently working. He demonstrates a very creative mind and is already drafting up ways in which we can boost overall capacity.

Many thanks to these major donors and to all our friends out there who keep bringing us books and sending us fabulous stories of what the bookmobile meant to them as children. Your spirit of sharing will make new memories possible for our children, our grandparents, and everyone in between.