User:Citizenslibrary/sandbox

Citizens Library is the public library serving Washington, Pennsylvania, and is the District Center for all the libraries in Washington, Greene, and Fayette counties. It coordinates activities by the libraries and acts as an intermediary between the libraries and the state. The Washington County Library System is a loose federation of libraries in Washington County which guarantees library service to any county resident. The Greene County Library System is comprised of Bowlby Public Library and Flenniken Public Library. Fayette County consists of four state-aided libraries.

Mission
The mission of Citizens Library is to provide the resources to enrich, inform, and educate the public.

History
Citizens Library was founded in 1870 by Dr. Francis J. LeMoyne, a leading citizen of this area in the 19th century. Until 1965, when the new building was dedicated, Citizens was located in the Town Hall for which the cornerstone was laid in 1869 by President Ulysses S. Grant. In 1904, the Current Events Club of Washington persuaded the Washington Borough Council and the Washington School Board to contribute equal sums yearly to the library, transforming it from a fee to a free institution.

Additions
In 1990 a campaign was initiated to raise money to enlarge both the Children’s Room and the cultural meeting area in the library. In June of 1992 the new Children’s Room was dedicated along with the Cultural and Educational Center.

In the Summer of 2003 the library launched a fund drive to raise money needed to complete the renovation of the adult department, the first renovation since the library opened nearly 40 years ago.

Funding
The library is funded with money from the state, Washington County, the townships of Amwell, Canton, North Franklin, South Strabane, South Franklin, the city of Washington, East Washington Borough, the school districts of Washington, Trinity, and McGuffey, and the remaining boroughs and townships that make up the McGuffey School District. In addition, Citizens Library receives money from generous donations by its patrons and the Friends of The Library Organization.

Malcolm Parcell Mural
Books are Many Lives is the title and central theme of Malcolm Parcell’s mural which was commissioned by Mr. and Mrs. T. S. Fitch in memory of Mrs. Fitch’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Colin McFarquhar Reed, for the Citizens Library building.

The eighteen by five-and-a-half foot mural symbolizes man’s limitless literary horizons. The figure in the lower center of the mural represents mankind who, reading, is brought into contact with all the symbols of knowledge. At the left of the painting, Parcell has depicted children’s fairy tales and the land of enchantment. Moving to the right are the large figures of the three fates who spin, measure, and cut the thread of life and symbolize mythology and the mystery of life.

The missile and artist’s palette represent the arts and sciences while the large central figure shows the vast store of fiction, drama, and romance. They are the faces of life as portrayed by books. Next are represented the world’s great religions and religious writings. The two large figures at right symbolize mankind’s disputations in law, philosophy, and religion, and the books represent man’s knowledge of himself. The final section depicts the study of nature.

Malcolm Stevens Parcell was an artist of international fame, whose portraits, murals, and historical scenes won numerous awards. His work is best known locally from the series of historical murals in Martha’s Pub in the George Washington Hotel.

He was born in Claysville, Pennsylvania in 1896, a son of the Reverend Steven L. and Emma Minor Parcell. The family moved to Washington where his father for many years served as the pastor of the Broad Street Baptist Church. Mr. Parcell graduated from Carnegie Institute of Technology in 1918.

Several other works of Parcell are displayed in the library. An original portrait of Steven Foster hangs in the public meeting room on the main floor.

Children's Department
The Children’s Department opened in its present location May of 1992. The area, located on the lower level of the library, was designed with toddlers, preschoolers and children through grade 5 in mind. There is a well balanced collection of recreational and educational materials, which includes over 25,000 books, paperbacks, magazines, CDs, DVDs, and puppets. In March 2010, the Friends of the Library paid for new carpet throughout the whole department. The library also painted and rearranged during the process, and the result is that after eighteen years it looks like a brand-new place.

In 2009, Citizens was designated a “Family Place Library”! Family Place is a national initiative that expands the traditional role of children’s library services by supporting the family and the parent, as their child’s first and most important teacher. Family Place builds on the knowledge that good health, early learning, parental involvement and supportive communities play a critical role in young children’s growth and development. Upon entering the Children's Room, to the right there is a secluded area with a comfy couch, a play rug, and toys and puzzles to play with while patrons visit. Just beyond that is the Teacher/Parent Resource Center & Study Room (TRC). There are many parenting books and materials dealing with children’s issues on the red shelves in the TRC, and all of these may be checked out.

There is a play area, a listening center, Early Learning Station computers, Internet access computers, a Game Corner with board, card and block games to play, with comfortable areas to sit and read. Among the many programs offered are weekly Toddler and Preschool Story Times, “Play & Learn” Parent-Toddler Workshop, monthly Family Story Nights, Discovery Club in the fall, Chess Club & Tournament in the spring, and Summer Reading Club to name just a few. The Citizens Library Children's Department welcomes the opportunity to serve children of all abilities. Patrons requiring a program to be signed for the hearing impaired can request this at least 48 hours in advance so arrangements can be made. The library also has a stroller-and-wheelchair-friendly ramped entrance, and the Children’s Department is accessible by stairs or elevator.

Programs and Services
Established in 1956, the Foundation Center is the nation’s leading authority on organized philanthropy, serving grantseekers, grantmakers, researchers, policymakers, the media, and the general public.

Nonprofit organizations and other grantseekers in Washington County looking for funding sources that provide access to a valuable collection of resources at Citizens Library. Citizens is a part of the Foundation Center’s Funding Information Network.

As a Funding Information Network partner, the library provides under-resourced populations in need of vital information and training with tools they can use to become successful grantseekers.

The Foundation Center’s core collection includes The Foundation Directory Online (available on site at Citizens Library), profiling more than 91,000 U.S. grantmakers, Foundation Grants to Individuals Online (available on site at Citizens Library), print directories, and proposal writing guides. Network partners also hold training sessions on the effective use of these resources and how to identify potential funders.