Simon Fairfield Public Library
The Literary Heart of Douglas, Massachusetts
Online Magazines are here! CWMARS has added a first wave of 50 magazines to our Overdrive subscriptions. These are simultaneous use licenses, so they are always available to you no matter how many people are reading them. You can “borrow” them to download them to your device or read them online. You can find them in the Overdrive catalog, or you can simply click here to see a special page just for magazines.
Looking for entry-level library work? The Simon Fairfield Public Library is looking for you! We need a page who can help us bring order out of chaos every other Saturday from 9 to 1, as well as an additional 4 hours every every week (ideally on Monday and Wednesday). We pride ourselves on offering a congenial, laid-back, but efficient atmosphere for our patrons and staff. We encourage applicants who will thrive in such an atmosphere.
Basic responsibility:
To shelve library materials. In addition, the library page will be trained to perform minimum duties on the circulation desk including but not limited to checking in and out of materials.
Education/Knowledge:
Minimum requirement: High school student or high school degree. Position requires basic knowledge of math and English and the ability to alphabetize and understand Dewey Decimal System.
Experience:
None required
Judgment:
Duties are often routine but may involve making minor decisions. Employee is expected to ask questions rather than complete a job incorrectly.
Supervision required:
Employee works under direct supervision of Library Director; Children’s Librarian and Circulation Librarian.
Accountability:
How well the library page does his/her job has a direct impact on the overall operations of the library. If materials are shelved incorrectly, the efficiency of the library is negatively affected. The inability to find materials results in loss of service to patrons and is unacceptable.
Communications:
The library page will have interactions with the public due to the nature of the job and the environment of a small public library. The page is expected to exhibit tact and courtesy and to refer to other staff if and when it is required.
Confidentiality:
The library page is expected to observe privacy policy and laws applicable to the public library.
Environment:
Normal office conditions.
Manual Skills Required:
Filing, Shelving.
Physical Effort:
Little or no physical effort is required of position.
Occupational Risks:
Little or no potential risk of injury.
Supervisory Responsibilities:
None
Salary:
$11.00/hr
How to Apply:
Please fill out an employment application and email it, along with a resume and any other desired documents, to Justin Snook at jsnook@cwmars.org. Applications submitted by July 7 will be considered. The Town of Douglas is an Equal Opportunity Provider and Employer.
On June 5th, we welcomed 4 local authors and 26 guests to a literary party at the Library. The Friends of the Library put out quite the spread:
Paula Sullivan, Rachel Odell howe, Jane Willan, and Michael Stinger not only sold and signed books, but talked extensively about their writing and publishing processes:
Paula Sullivan is the author of Simply Being Happy, and Rachel Odell How is the author of Ripple:
Michael Stinger is the author of Runner’s Dawn, and Paula Sullivan is the author of The Shadow of Death:
The event drew a nice crowd, and we all enjoyed discussing books until well after the library “closed:”
This little one proved that you are never too young to start thinking about writing your own book:
On May 23, around a dozen library staff and patrons gathered at Cedar Swamp in the Douglas State Forest for a nature hike. Led by Mary Sughrue-Yacino, we heard many bird calls and learned a lot about local flora.
We saw the tiniest lady slipper in the world:
And a very purple bog onion (or jack-in-the-pulpit for you Northern folk):
Cinnamon ferns:
And these things:
The kids got really excited when we started finding a trail of fake money:
And then the adults even got a little excited: 
Finally, we gazed upon the remains of a fire started by Matthew Mcconaughey during the filming of Sea of Trees. Unfortunately, the scene was deleted:
Mary tried calling in an owl, but it just hooted at us from afar. I believe a good time was had by all, though, regardless of the standoffish night fowl.
Please join us at the Simon Fairfield Public Library on June 5 at 6:30pm for a celebration of local literary talent! Local authors will be here to promote, discuss, and sign their books. The Friends of the Library will be supplying delicious refreshments. So come mingle, eat cheese, and have some tea with your writing neighbors!
We have confirmed the following writers:
-Michael Stinger, author of Runner’s Dawn.
-Jane Willan, author of The Shadow of Death.
-Rachel Odell Howe, author of Ripple
-Paula Sullivan, author of Simply Being Happy
Happy Memorial Day, everyone! Please note that the Library will closed on Monday (we will still be open Saturday, though). Also, the catalog will be down Sunday and Monday as we upgrade our Evergreen servers. The servers should be up Tuesday morning. Hopefully, you will noticed better, more accurate search results, faster response time, and a few other quality of life improvements.
There is a parade on Sunday! The program is available here.
Susurrus in the weald, cadence of the wild,
fervidly concealed, a thrum beneath the stars;
eyes of stoic amber, rustling in the grass,
a hunter in the field, some things will always last.
Jester’s moon above the escarpment, a night of pallid grace;
hitherto and thitherto, the shadows in every place.
She sees the firelight flicker as she gazes out the window from her room;
Is that a burning bush she spies, or flames rising up to usher in her doom:
She’s waiting for a message, not sure who’s gonna call;
And she’s hoping for some answers, to her questions one and all:
Down here in the valley, the sky above has formed a roof of tin;
Her prayers bounce off of it, come rushing back to her again:
As gold is tempered, surely she’s a precious gem:
But the sparkle’s all muted, while she’s in this darkened den:
The sun beats down on her, her throat dries up, her skin begins to burn;
They say a barren desert is the only place humility is learned:
She’s pulling on the reigns, but the horse is running wild;
Will she hand them back to you, rest in your arms like a trusting child:
When she gets to the mountains and she feels the cool breeze blowing
through her hair;
She will sing and shout after all her sorrow and despair;
Love can hold a mystery between the lover and the loved;
But it all comes clear once you see the bottom from above:
Yes love can hold a mystery between the lover and the loved;
But it all comes clear once you see the bottom from above:
