91原创鈥檚 Serendipity program opened its 18th year with a guest speaker Ashley Ziegler, award-winning Library Media Specialist of Riverside Public Schools. The Mobile Library project to widen access to books which launched earlier this summer dovetails with Serendipity鈥檚 opening book, The Giver of Stars, a work of historical fiction centering on the Depression era 鈥淧ackhorse Librarians鈥� of Kentucky. In the book, five women brave hardships to heed the call of Eleanor Roosevelt to听 鈥渂ring books to people who have never had any, arming them with facts that will change their lives.鈥�
The novel, written by JoJo Moyes, focuses on an actual New Deal project, while Riverside鈥檚 鈥淲ords on Wheels鈥� is an effort by Riverside Public School to increase the students鈥� and local community鈥檚 access to books and materials from birth to adult.听 It also serves as a makerspace area that offers activities geared towards science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics (STEAM) education.
The mobile library was created through the collaboration of Riverside Superintendent Jeff Priest, High School Principal Matt Ziegler, Library Media Specialist Ashley Ziegler, IT Director Shaun Foster, and the Maintenance Department composed of Chris Snyder, Michael Adams, and Tyler Bounds. Gibson鈥檚 Sign Mart installed the vinyl wrap on the bus. In its initial months of operation, the mobile library has proved popular to young and old in the rural Craighead County communities.
Serendipity is a lifelong learning project designed to ensure those served by BRTC to have opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of their culture and environment.听 Through monthly book readings and discussion, the organization is designed to encourage civic engagement in a diverse, multicultural society and globally connected world.
鈥淲e so appreciate Ashley鈥檚 willingness to share the Riverside mobile library with us,鈥� said Serendipity facilitator Dr. Jan Ziegler.听 鈥淪he has received statewide recognition and a well-deserved award from the Arkansas Literacy Council for her dream and her vision and her work to make this a reality.鈥�
Find more information about the mobile library project, as well as future programming and engagements on the mobile library鈥檚 Facebook page: @RiversideMobileLibrary.
Next month鈥檚 Serendipity will feature another special guest, author Adele Holmes. An Arkansas native and retired pediatrician, she will speak about and read from her debut release Winter鈥檚 Reckoning, a recently released book which is already receiving high acclaim.听 One critic writes, 鈥淪et in the brooding rural South, and for a good portion of the novel in the challenging and crystalline world of a deep snowstorm,听 Winter鈥檚 Reckoning听 is rich in storyline and character with plenty of mystery woven throughout. Simply put, here鈥檚 a story that takes on issues whose harm remains with us today.鈥� Pre-publication her book won Honorable Mention in the William Faulkner Literary Competition and was short-listed for the Chanticleer International Book Awards-Goethe Award.
For more information about BRTC鈥檚 Serendipity program, contact Patti Blaxton at (870) 248-4181 or pattib@blackrivertech.edu.