It is, indeed, painful for all of us. I agree with Nancy that it would be an excellent research topic. It is societal change in information search and entertainment in general, not just in synagogue libraries. The synagogues themselves are being challenged to remake themselves – to attract a new generation of members with a different Jewish identity. It is difficult for synagogue administrators to justify investing in the library when its resources are used so much less than in the past. It does take vision and transformation as well as a professional librarian to keep it vital, a constant struggle when we don’t have adequate hours and resources. Despite my best efforts, adult circulation has gone way down and even B’nai MItzvah students do not take advantage of the incredible resources in front of them at our synagogue. As we all know, library advocacy is a huge and never-ending part of our jobs now. Being asked to do more with less has always been a theme in libraries but truly ridiculous ideas abound now – such as Liza working one day a week for a collection of 20,000.
It still makes me smile to enter any library. It is one of the joys of life for me. How can we share the richness of experiencing a library? We must support and speak out about the value of encounters with tangible objects and offline human contact! I’m using my adult book budget to come to DC and I can’t wait to be with all of you like-minded souls! Best, Toby Toby Harris, Librarian Temple De Hirsch Sinai 1511 E. Pike Street Seattle, WA 98122 206-315-7398 Seattle 206-323-8486, Ext 7481 Bellevue Catalog, hours & events at http://lib.tdhs-nw.org Over 10,000 Judaic books & CDs! Library Hours: Wednesdays, 10:30-1:30 Bellevue & Thursdays, 1:00-5:00 PM Seattle [cid:[email protected]]<tinyurl.com/prideshabbat2015>[cid:[email protected]]<tdhs-nw.org> From: Hasafran [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of N. K. Poole Sent: Wednesday, May 27, 2015 10:51 AM To: <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [ha-Safran] Library Position Eliminated Greetings to all, I have shared my thoughts with Liza privately - this is such sad news. How much research do we have on the number of positions that have been lost (and why) over the past 5 - 10 years? I am assuming that it is, like most library problems, a matter of limited funds and other priorities? An excellent reseach topic. l'shalom, Nancy N.K. Poole, MBA, MLIS Adjunct Instructor & PhD Student Department of Library and Information Studies 336-272-9000 [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> On Tue, May 26, 2015 at 1:17 PM, Elizabeth F. Stabler <[email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>> wrote: Dear Safraniyot and Safranim, It is with great sadness that I announce that as of June 1 Temple Emanu-El, New York, NY will eliminate the position of Temple Librarian. I have been offered a once-a-week position to maintain the almost 20,000 item collection. Unfortunately I will not be able to attend the annual conference as I had planned. Liza Stabler Elizabeth F. Stabler Librarian Stettenheim Library Temple Emanu-El 1 East 65th Street New York, NY 10065 __ Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) ================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Ha-Safran Archives: Current: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html Earlier Listserver: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org -- Hasafran mailing list [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
__ Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author and are not necessarily endorsed by the Association of Jewish Libraries (AJL) ================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: [email protected] To join Ha-Safran, update or change your subscription, etc. - click here: https://lists.service.ohio-state.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran Questions, problems, complaints, compliments send to: [email protected] Ha-Safran Archives: Current: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.service.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html Earlier Listserver: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org -- Hasafran mailing list [email protected] https://lists.osu.edu/mailman/listinfo/hasafran
