BITS OF
GOLD 
Montana Talking
Book Library
Regional Library of the National Library Service
For the Blind and Physically Handicapped
(NLS/BPH)
Volume 102, Number 2 2002
NORTHWESTERN
ENERGY AWARDS GRANT TO LIBRARY
On July 12, Fran Galvin from
NorthWestern Energy (NWE) presented a $1500 grant to the Montana Talking Book
Library (MTBL) to purchase “Talking Book Markers” for loan to patrons. Larry Thompson of the Butte Division of NWE
and Howard Skjervem of the Helena Division of NWE also attended. Christie Briggs, MTBL’s Regional Librarian
received the grant. Jim Daily, a patron
of MTBL and inventor of the “Talking Book Marker” was also on hand for the
presentation. He found that not only
did his invention hold your place on the tape but it also saved energy.
The “Talking Book Marker”
was designed to “mark” the spot on an audio book. A patron holds the marker in the palm of his or her hand. If he or she should fall asleep while
listening to the audio book, the lever on the marker will stop the tape and
“mark” that spot.
AMERICAN
FEDERATION FOR THE BLIND (AFB) CONDUCTS STUDY ON “LIVABLE COMMUNITIES”
AFB’s research team wants to
identify those communities where those who are blind or visually impaired would
have the best accessibility and living accommodations. They hope to identify criteria for
communities to use as a tool to implement improvements. AFB will provide a list of the most highly
rated “Livable Communities” for visually impaired.
As a blind or visually
impaired person, where would you choose as the most livable
community that meets your
needs in the US? Anyone that would like
more information or would like to participate in this study, please contact
AFB:
CALL: 1-800-232-5463
E-Mail: livability@afb.net
Website: www.afb.org/livability.asp
LIBRARY HOURS: Mon-Fri 8am-5pm PHONE HOURS: Mon-Fri 9am-5pm
PHONE NUMBERS: 1-800-332-3400 or 406-444-2064
For patron requests or if you’re not sure who to contact, e-mail us at:
MTBL WEBSITE: http://www.msl.mt.gov/tbl
WEBOPAC WEBSITE:
http://www.klasweb.msl.mt.gov
REGIONAL LIBRARIAN: Christie Briggs, cbriggs@mt.gov
COORDINATOR VOL SVC: Diane Gunderson, dgunderson@mt.gov
CIRCULATION CLERK: Carolyn Meier, cameier@mt.gov
MACHINE LENDING AGENT: Lee Madison, lmadison@mt.gov
READER
ADVISORS: Patrons
with last names A-G contact:
Moriah Haley, mhaley@mt.gov
Patrons with last names H-O contact:
Cheryl Christopher, cchristopher@mt.gov
Patrons with
last names P-Z contact:
Lee Madison, lmadison@mt.gov
BITS OF GOLD EDITOR: Cheryl Christopher
_________________________________________________
LIBRARIAN’S LOG: from the desk
of Christie Briggs, Regional Librarian
After
you become familiar with the MTBL services, you may be interested in exploring
other services that are available. Some
of these include:
Montana Association for the
Blind’s (MAB) Summer Orientation Program
MAB
sponsors this every summer for one month, starting in mid-June, at the MSU
campus in Bozeman. The program is an
adjustment and training program designed to help people with failing eyesight
acquire the skills and attitudes that will enable them to remain independent
and self-reliant. “Students” (those 18
& older) stay in dorm rooms on campus for the entire four weeks. Classes include mobility techniques, coping
skills with personal daily living activities, cooking, household tasks,
individual and group counseling, woodworking, computers, braillers, and much
more. There is no cost to the
student. MAB is an organization that
supports the independence of our patrons.
For an application form,
CONTACT: by mail MAB State Office, PO Box 465, Helena,
MT 59624 or call 406-442-9411 or e-mail
gailb@mt.net.
LIBRARIAN’S LOG (continued from page 2)
Montana Radio Reading Service (MRRS)
This
is a 24-hour, closed circuit radio service providing readings from 15 Montana
newspapers from 9am to 4pm and 6:30pm to 9:30pm, Monday through Friday. Local broadcasts include public and social
events; engagements, weddings, and birth announcements; obituaries, grocery
ads, editorials and opinions. This is a
free statewide service for any person who cannot see or handle printed material
because of a visual or physical disability.
CONTACT: by mail MT Radio Reading Service, PO Box
4126, Missoula, MT 59806 or call 406-721-1998 or 800-942-7323 or e-mail radread@bigsky.net.
Recordings for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D)
RFB&D
is the main resource for educational and reference materials (textbooks) that
are not available on tape or disc from other sources. It was originally created to provide textbooks to veterans
blinded in World War II. This service enables
those with print disabilities to complete their education, advance their
career, and gain
self-esteem. Different types of membership services are
available for various fees.
CONTACT: by mail RFB&D, 20 Roszel Road,
Princeton, NJ 08540 or call 800-221-4792 or website www.rfbd.org/ for an application.
VOTE...VOTE...VOTE...ELECTION DAY IS NOVEMBER 5,
2002
In
collaboration with the Secretary of State’s office, we have completed the “2002
Voter Information Pamphlet (VIP). Ask
for MCB 651. It was recorded at 1-7/8 speed on two sides
and contains three tapes. Bob Brown,
Secretary of State, included the following “rights as a voter with special
needs” in the recorded version of the VIP:
1. You
have the right to vote at an accessible polling place. Ask your county election official to assign
you to one.
2. You
have the right to vote from your vehicle if a disability prevents you from
entering a polling place. A friend or
relative may ask an election judge to bring a ballot to your car.
3. You
have the right to have a ballot delivered to you if you are homebound or in a
nursing home.
4. You
have the right to use an absentee ballot even if you’re capable of voting in
person on Election Day. You may request
an absentee ballot from your county election official any time from 75 days
preceding Election Day until noon the day before.
5. Finally,
at your polling place, you have the right to ask an election judge for help
marking your ballot if you’re unable to read it for any reason.
The
audio version of the VIP has a listing of all county election offices, their
addresses, contact names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses. Check it out!
Your vote DOES make a difference.
LIBRARIAN’S LOG (continued from page 3)
Patron Survey Results
THANK
YOU for responding to our annual survey.
We appreciate you taking the time.
Your comments and concerns are important to us! Here are some survey highlights:
A. PATRON SERVICE SATISFACTION.
1. Survey
results revealed that of the 90% who responded, 89% of our patrons are
satisfied with our services. It is
GREAT to know we are doing a good job of serving you!
2. Some
patrons expressed not liking their reading preferences, authors, types and
number of materials received. I
encourage you to contact your Reader Advisor to make changes in these
areas. We can increase and decrease the
amount of books sent to you as often as you need as well as change your
preferences and author likes.
3. The
most common patron comment was “waiting too long for bestsellers”. We receive between 5 to 9 copies of each
bestseller title. Patrons receive these
on a first come, first serve basis by being added to a request list. We can make more copies of the title if the
request list gets greater than 20 patrons waiting at a time.
B. PERSONAL COMPUTERS.
1. Computer
Use. Of the 17%
who have computers, 6% search our online catalog either through WebOpac or the
MTBL website; 2% correspond with their Reader Advisor through e-mail; 2% order
books through WebOpac.
2. Magnifiers
and Screen Readers. The
most common responses were: Smart View,
Deck Talk, Scan Jet 5470 C, Textassist, Flipper, JAWS, Magic Zoom Text Extra or
Version 7.0 level 2, CCTV, Web TV, Open Book Ruby, large screen, hand held
magnifier, Sony audio speakers, Double talk ASAW Program, large computer
monitor screen.
3. Patron
Software Recommendations.
Vocal Eyes, JAWS, EZ Keys, Open Book Ruby, Macintosh, Zoom Text,
Duxbury, Braille Blazer, Braille Lite 20, Kurzweil 1000 scanning software.
C. READING INTERESTS.
How do you choose what to read
next? Here are some patron tips:
1. Topics
that arouse your curiosity or you wish to research.
2. Titles
recommended by friends, children, librarians, parents and teachers.
3. Consider
your personal hobbies or recreation interests.
Our
collection titles cover most topics and our staff loves to research them.
LIBRARIAN’S LOG (continued from page 4)
Patron Survey Results
D. SUMMER READING PROGRAM.
1. Forty-eight
percent (48%) of our patrons indicated they were not aware that we provide a
summer reading program for students age 5-14.
2. Eleven
percent (11%) indicated they are interested in an “adult” summer reading
program.
3. Since
this interest isn’t strong enough for us to start an adult summer reading
program at this time, we encourage those interested to join a local book
club. Have the book club submit a list
of book titles to us. We will research
the list and find out for you which titles have been recorded.
E. COMMUNICATION WITH THE MTBL.
1. Seventy
percent (70%) prefer using the telephone.
2. Twenty-six
percent (26%) prefer sending “free matter” mail.
3. Four
percent (4%) prefer a combination of e-mail, mail, phone and
in-person visits.
MAB’S
2003 CALENDAR’S NOW AVAILABLE
Calendars are $3.00
each. Contact your local MAB Chapter to
purchase one:
Anaconda...........406-563-7453 Svend Wind
Billings................ 406-259-3729
Jim Aldrich
Bozeman............ 406-586-2276 John
DeHaas
Butte................... 406-494-4140 Dorothy
Dunn
Dillon..................406-683-6809 Mavis Pawson
Great
Falls..........406-452-1455 Dick Howse
Helena................ 406-458-9111 Peggy
Barnekoff
Kalispell..............406-257-8859 Nancy
Buhre or 406-837-3888 Flo Nelson
Lewistown...........406-538-7151 Ed Durbin
Livingston...........406-222-4490 Beth Wichs
Missoula.............406-243-4424 Dan Burke
******************************************************************
MUSIC BY MAIL
Recordings
for Recovery (R4R) is a music library.
Their national headquarters is located in Midland, Michigan. They have over 1200 musical selections; covering
classical, country, jazz, rock, nature sounds and more. The loan period for these cassettes is 60
days. Anyone who is an MTBL patron may
become a patron of Recordings for Recovery.
Memberships are $10 per individual.
To obtain a membership form and a catalog, contact R4R at www.r4r.org or 1-800-798-1192
GREEN
THUMB IS NOW “EXPERIENCE WORKS”
The US Department of Labor
sponsors this Senior Community Service Employment Program. It formerly was called “Green Thumb”. This program provides employment training to
older Americans who wish to rejoin the workforce. While learning new skills or refreshing former ones these
citizens provide valuable service to our communities. MTBL is privileged to have two “Experience Works” trainees—Billie
Cooper and Quentin Schroetter. Their
duties for MTBL include receptionist, clerical support and special
projects. We are able to increase
service to our patrons with their assistance.
Billie also volunteers for
the VFW Auxiliary and the LDS Church in Helena. In her free time, she reads, studies history and genealogy
(including her own family), collects angels and calls herself a “rock
hound”. She enjoys spending time with
her sons and their families.
Quentin has lived in Montana
since 1947. He also likes to read and
walk.
When he is not playing his
violin, Quentin enjoys listening to his many classical CD’s. Other favorite things he likes to do are
attend concerts, movies and plays. He
has two things he likes to collect: one
is cross pendants and the other is Central European and Bohemian glass.
Thank you Billie and Quentin
for your hard work and welcome to MTBL.
SUMMER
READERS ARE MEDAL WINNERS!
Webster defined a winner as
“one that is successful through praiseworthy ability and hard work; a
victor”. Since this is an Olympic year,
this year’s participants in MTBL’s Summer Reading Program—Join the Winner’s
Circle-Read—had an opportunity to win a Gold, Silver or Bronze medal.
Along with their reading
contracts, they could also choose to read one each of several genres
(biography, classic, folklore, sports, etc) and a specific total number of
titles to earn their medal of choice.
We had 70% of those participating who met or exceeded their goals to
earn their medal and prizes. Each one
of our young patrons are winners. Congratulations!
VOLUNTEER
APPRECIATION DAY
This year MTBL staff
celebrated the volunteers who provide valuable assistance to our library on
October 1st at the Elks Lodge #193 in Helena.
Awards were presented to those with several years of service--Donna
Anders for 20 years, Frank Graham for 10 years. Five-year awards went to Bonnie Anderson, Dorothy Carpenter, Jim
Daily, Brittany Eldredge, Sharon Larson, Glen Rasmussen and Helen
Williard. Diane Gunderson, new
Coordinator of Volunteers, presented to Darlene Lloyd, Cyd Slattery and Gil
Gilbertson the Recording Team of the Year award. The Special Appreciation award was presented to Edith (ET) Tanna
by Christie Briggs, Regional Librarian.
Herb Blunn was given the Telephone Pioneer award by Darlene Staffeldt,
Director of Statewide Library Resources.
Karen Strege, State Librarian, presented Kenzie Clark, Alexis Lund and
Erin Vashro with their Youth Volunteer awards.
All the volunteers received appreciation gifts. Without their help, we
would not be able to deliver the level of services we provide.
Terry Dwyer, our keynote
speaker for this event, retired in 1988 as the Managing Editor of the Great
Falls Tribune. Terry is also a patron
of MTBL. With the help of his family
and in spite of his loss of eyesight, he has finished his first book. In By Way of Hope: The True Story of
Three Women Homesteaders, he talked about his mother, grandmother and
aunt’s lives on the prairie in the early 20th century.
“No one is useless in this
world who lightens the burden of it for anyone else.” --Charles Dickens
AFB NARRATORS OF THE YEAR
The
American Federation for the Blind (AFB) on June 3, 2002, announced this year’s
Alexander Scourby Narrator awards chosen by a nationwide panel of Talking Book
readers.
Kimberly
Schraf received this year’s fiction award for her recording of RC 50897 Bee Season by author Myla
Goldberg. In the past 14 years, she has
recorded over 130 books. The
non-fiction award was given to Bob Askey for his reading of RC 51912 Life is Good written by George Dawson
and Richard Glaubman. Bob has been
narrating since 1975 and has recorded almost 800 books. George Holmes recording of RC 52409 The Broadview Anthology of Victorian Poetry
earned him this year’s poetry award.
George has recorded over 230 books since 1986. Dale Carter Cooper has been recording for 39 years. She has recorded over 400 titles and is this
year’s recipient of the lifetime achievement award. Many thanks and congratulations
to the narrators!
COORDINATOR OF VOLUNTEER SERVICES
Although
it wasn’t easy to see Susie Merrin leave after four years, it was good to see
her follow a lifelong dream of attending Virginia Theological Seminary. She is doing well and sends her greetings.
As
always seems to happen, good people leave, and good people come to fill those
shoes, bringing different skills and abilities to our library. That is what happened when we hired Diane
Gunderson as the new Coordinator of Volunteers and Recording Program
Services. Diane has over 100 volunteers
to orient, train, guide, follow-up with and praise. It is vital to have someone who successfully balances these
duties, documenting everything as she goes, as well as directing volunteers in
their support of our staff. We are
pleased to have Diane as a part of our team.
“Do what you can to show you care about other people, and you will make
our world a better place.” --Rosalynn
Carter
MONTANA
YOUTH IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Sierra Lode, a senior from
Capital High School in Helena, was selected from 410 applicants to participate
in the National Youth Network Leadership Conference for Youth with
Disabilities. This conference was held
in Washington D.C., July 26th to July 29th.
She has had cerebral palsy since she was 19 days old. Sierra uses a powered wheelchair with a head
array for mobility and a communication device that allows her to “speak”. With the aid of these assistive devices, she
has been able to make many presentations to schools and conferences to promote
awareness and understanding of people with disabilities. Thank you for being such a great advocate
for the young people of Montana.
Congratulations, Sierra.
“A strong positive attitude will create more
miracles than any wonder drug.”
--Patricia Neal
“The small choices and decisions we make a hundred
times a day add up to determining the kind of world we live in.” --Rabbi Harold S Kushner
WHERE DO I FIND ADAPTIVE EQUIPMENT?
The
following companies provide a wide selection of innovative products designed
for individuals visually impaired, deaf, and those with other special
needs. Many products are new. To obtain a current catalog, contact them by
website or phone.
ANN
MORRIS ENTERPRISES, INC. www.annmorris.com 800-454-3175
ASSISTED
ACCESS, INC. www.assistedaccess.com 800-950-9655
INDEPENDENT
LIVING AIDS, INC www.independentliving.com 800-537-2118
L
S & S, INC www.LSSonline.net 800-468-4789
MAXI
AIDS www.MaxiAids.com 800-522-6294
NATIONAL CAPTIONING INSTITUTE (NCI) LAUNCHES
NATIONAL HELP DESK
On
July 4th, NCI was able to offer a free service as a resource for answering
public inquiries about closed captioning and related media access services
including described videos. The
generous support of Microsoft Corporation helped make this possible. There are 14 million people who are blind or
have low vision and 28 million people who are deaf or hard of hearing that
benefit from these services. Consumers
can contact the NCI National Help Desk with their questions at NCI’s website www.ncihelpdesk.org, fax 703-917-9878 or
phone & TTY 703-917-7686.
LIGHTHOUSE INTERNATIONAL—CENTER FOR
EDUCATION
Lighthouse
International has published a new booklet, “When Your Partner Becomes Visually
Impaired: Helpful Insights and Tips for
Coping”. It provides practical tips on
care and coping for partners and family members of those with impaired vision. The booklet is free and available on
audiocassette. Contact Lighthouse
International at
800-829-0500
or www.lighthouse.org.
“A little Consideration, a
little Thought for Others,
makes all the difference.”
--Eeyore
BOOKSHARE.ORG MAKES DIGITAL BOOKS AVAILABLE
Bookshare.org
is a fee for service, audio book vendor.
They offer over ten thousand electronic books online to anyone that is
blind, dyslexic or has other print disabilities.
Subscribers
access and download the electronic books through their computers.
A
special Victor Reader software is offered members so they can download and read
these books in the NISO/DAISY digital book format. Grade 2 digital Braille is the other format offered. Members may
download as many books as desired.
To
become a Bookshare.org member, you must:
1—Register
at www.bookshare.org by clicking on the
“Join” link.
2—Submit
proof of your disability. As a patron
of MTBL, all you need to do is
a) e-mail Bookshare (info@bookshare.org) with your MTBL patron
name
and mailing address. This
information is on the mail card of your MTBL
books.
b) state that you give NLS permission
to verify this information.
3—Submit
payment of $25.00 (one-time set-up charge) and the annual membership
fee of $50.00.
Contact
Bookshare.org for more information or questions at
480
California Ave, Suite 201, Palo Alto, CA
94306-1609 Fax: 650-475-1066
E-mail: info@bookshare.org Website: www.bookshare.org
MONTANA MAGAZINES
Do
you enjoy reading articles about conservation, nature, outdoor recreation,
wildlife and the West? Then you might
want to subscribe to one of the following magazines:
“MONTANA MAGAZINE OF WESTERN HISTORY” (Adult)
The
articles in this magazine concentrate on the Western United States. They discuss the people, writers and way of
life in this part of our vast country.
There are also reviews of recently published books about the West. Published 4 times a year.
“MONTANA OUTDOORS” (Adult)
Outdoor
recreation, people, nature and wildlife are the subject of the articles in this
magazine. Published every other month.
“WOW--WILD OUTDOOR WORLD” (Youth)
This
is one for the young adventurer, conservationist or any one interested in
reading about nature or playing in the great outdoors. Published every other
month.
If
you would like to subscribe to one of these magazines or to receive the
magazine catalog, please contact us at 1-800-332-3400 or 442-2064.
RECENT TITLES FROM THE MONTANA RECORDING
PROGRAM
MCB 591 Forty Years A
Forester by Elers Koch; Narrator-Jim Slack
This book relates the
personal history of Elers Koch as a pioneering
forest manager and a
firefighter in the early days of the US Forest
Service. His memoir gives a colorful account of the
political, practical
and
private struggles of putting together a new agency at the turn of the
century and describes the natural world he worked to conserve.
Adult.
MCB 618 Ten Tough Trips
by William W Bevis; Narrator-Dorothy Harper
William
W Bevis brings together the writing essays of Guthrie, Garcia,
Alderson,
Linderman, McNickle, Welch, Hugo, Doig, Maclean and
Cooper. In these essays, their works are studied for
their revelation of key issues of western identity, including the conflict
between the mythic west and the real complications and austerities of life in
Montana. Adult.
MCB 626 The Diary of Mattie Spenser by
Sandra Dallas; Narrator-Colleen Mockler.
Sandra Dallas, the author of The Persian Pickle Club (MCB 587) and
Buster Midnight’s Cafe (MCB 225), brings us another dramatic and suspenseful
story of hardship, friendship and survival.
Visible in these pages of Mattie’s diary are genuine details of prairie
life and the growth of Mattie as a person.
Contains some violence. Adult.
MCB 625 Great Ice Bear, The Polar Bear and the
Eskimo by Dorothy Hinshaw
Patent; Narrator-Jean Smith. Dorothy Hinshaw Patent explains the polar
bear’s life cycle and day-to-day existence in the wild, its present imperiled
status and its special relationship with humans throughout
history.
Grades 2-4 and older.
Do you have a favorite MCB?
Please let us know—call us at 1-800-332-3400 or 444-2064—so we can share
it with other patrons.
PATRON
PICKS
RC 39963 Legacy:
Journeys of the Stranger by Al Lacy
RC 41334 Shared Values for a Troubled World
by Rushworth M Kidder
RC 46619 The Kid Who Invented the Popsicle
by Don L Wulffson
RC 52275 John Adams by David McCullough
RC 50090 Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T
Kiyosaki
Montana Talking Book Library Free
Matter
1515 East Sixth Avenue for
the Blind
PO Box 201800
Helena, MT 59620-1800
Address Service Requested
This newsletter is available on cassette, e-mail and large print upon
request or visit our website: http://www.msl.mt.gov/tbl
THE LIBRARY WILL BE CLOSED
November 5, 2002 Election Day
November 11, 2002 Veteran’s Day
November 28, 2002 Thanksgiving Day
December 25, 2002 Christmas Day
January 1, 2003 New Year’s Day
January 20, 2003 Martin Luther King, Jr Day
REMEMBER
VOTE...VOTE...VOTE November 5th
Peace will come wherever it
is sincerely invited.
Love will overflow every
sanctuary given it.
Truth will grow where the
fertilizer that nourishes it is also truth.
--Alice Walker