Meet Miss Mary Puppet: An Interview with Jan’s Puppet

Miss Mary Puppet and her special quilt
We recently decided to interview Jan’s friend Miss Mary Puppet.

Us: Hi, Miss Mary! Let’s cut to the chase. What’s your story?

Miss Mary: (waving) Hi back! Right now my main thing is helping Jan do the Fabulous Fours & Fives program in the Great Beginnings Series.

Us: That’s the Early Literacy series of programs, isn’t it? Tell us about it.

Miss Mary: Sure, there are different program series for babies, one-year-olds, 2 & 3-year olds, and 4 & 5-year-olds. Babies are a lot different than five-year-olds, so the programs are different too. The Children’s Room people are always learning more about the best ways to do those programs. You could probably ask them if you want to know more about it. I know it’s educational but it just seems fun to me. That’s the idea, I guess.

Us: Interesting! How do you help?

Miss Mary: I always start the program by waving or saying hello, it’s a great welcome for the kids who are new. I love it when they wave or say hi back! We all have a little chat about the stories or something about the program. Sometimes I even lead the first song.

Us: Sounds fun. Do you listen to the stories too?

Miss Mary: Oh, sure. After my part I sit on my special quilt and enjoy the rest of the program. I love it all, especially the stories… and the Dance Along Gong Song at the end. It’s always fun to say hello to new friends.

Us: Why do you call your quilt special?

Miss Mary: Jan’s daughter made it for me a long, long time ago. It is yellow with buttons sewn on it.

Us: Have you known Jan a long time? You seem to work well together.

Miss Mary: I’ve known her since… practically forever. I guess I have been helping her for 20 years or more, pretty long. Before that I was a stuffed animal. That was a great job too. Jan bought me at a garage sale, washed me, and took out the stuffing. Then I could finally get a job where I move my hands!

Us: Wait, so you have been here for 20 years?

Miss Mary: Or more, yes. It sounds like a long time but Jan has been here doing programs for 26 years – and this isn’t even her first library! Sometimes she schedules a vacation for me and sends in another puppet, Zelda or Luna Bella, they like to get a chance too.

Us: It sounds like you have a great career at the library.

Miss Mary: I sure do. Being a favorite teddy bear and then becoming a puppet… who could ask for anything more?

Us: Thanks for telling us about your job, Miss Mary.

Miss Mary: Before we are done, can I add a *special hello* to my 4 & 5-year-old friends, and to my older friends who used to come to the programs?

Us: Of course.

Miss Mary Puppet: (waves) Hello!

Are you familiar with Miss Mary Puppet? Have you ever been to a program with her or with Jan? Comment below and let us know; we’re sure they would both love to hear of it!

Meet Jessica

Working upstairs in Administration at the library means I don’t always have the opportunity to meet everyone, so I thought I would introduce myself. My name is Jessica, and I am the Financial Manager. Once a month I have the privilege of helping out downstairs, which I really do enjoy. I have been working here for just over a year, but because I have been a library fan and patron for almost 15 years, it feels like I’ve been here all along.

The primary reasons for my visits early on were for the wonderful children’s programming. My children were signed up for just about every age-appropriate program possible. I’d get the most current program calendar to see what they could do next! After the program was over, exploring books and puzzles and toys was just another reason they couldn’t wait to get here. And, I’ll be honest, it was a great break for me too! The activities that are currently offered here continue to be outstanding. And though my kids have outgrown the programs that they attended as little ones, (we do still love Silly Safaris! Sign up for the June 2 Silly Safaris “Creatures of the NIGHT” after May 1!) there are great activities in the children’s and teen area for them as they get older.

My mom is another big library fan, and would be the first to tell you that she would not have ever considered the idea that she would enjoy reading books electronically. But because of the great services offered here, she found the joy of virtual book borrowing. She still loves to thumb through the pages of a good book, but now knows she has the best of both worlds. So, from kiddos to grandmas, our library is a treasure for everyone, no matter what age, and continues to be a place where we love to be.      

~Jessica

Judging a Book by the Cover

Some very plain books have wonderful, exciting stories inside. That’s why we say “Never judge a book by the cover.” It’s true of people too, that’s why we say “Still waters run deep.”

But let’s face it, when it comes to picking library books, what the cover looks like is a factor, and it’s hard to know much from the spine! That’s why in the Children’s Room we have put a whole lot of books ‘face out’ to inspire you. If you want help, ask us – we are experts at finding things and pretty friendly, too. If you see a book on display that looks good, of course you can check it out- and 99 of its friends!

The Bad Beginning is the first book in the funny and sarcastic Series of Unfortunate Events. Full of orphans, despicable villains, and plenty of melodrama, this cover doesn’t begin to suggest the humor inside.

The Story of Ferdinand has been around since 1936 (not this copy.) If people didn’t love it, it would be long gone -like nearly every other book from 1936. The cover doesn’t shout READ ME! but that might be too screechy for this story of a gentle bull who prefers to sit in the shade and smell the flowers.

~~Jan