Monday, March 31, 2008
Investor Education at the Library
Have you worried lately about where you are as far as investing for retirement is concerned?
Maybe you think you are on track but would welcome more information or a knowledgeable second opinion.
On Monday, April 7 at 6:00 p.m. at the Portage District Library you have the opportunity to learn more about the world of investing and have your personal financial situation evaluated by a seasoned counselor—for free! We are proud to provide a program developed by The Investor Protection Trust and the American Library Association, and provided by the Michigan Office of Financial and Insurance Services.
The 90- minute seminar will offer participants a chance to learn about common investment terms, where wealth comes from, the fundamentals of stocks, bonds and mutual funds, diversification, and how to select a financial services provider. Then, afterward, you have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with a financial expert from the state of Michigan, who will review your finances with you—at no charge. Space is limited for this event, and only people who respond by March 30 will be eligible for the free personal financial evaluation. On registration, we will let you know what financial information the counselors will need. This is a rarely available, wonderful opportunity!
Monday, April 7, 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Registration Begins February 21, 9:00 AM
Location: Lower Level Meeting Room
Cost: Free
Teen Program: Get a Job!
Looking for your first job (summer or now)? Maybe an internship? Want to start earning a paycheck but aren’t sure how to begin?
Come to this hands-on workshop, led by Cecilia Phillips, Case Manager and Trainer for Youth Opportunities, Unlimited, a career counseling agency geared to youth. Learn to put together a resume and cover letter, successfully fill out an application (not to mention what to wear to that interview), and be on your way to your first career! If you have a resume, bring it--we will look it over for you. Munchies will be served.
Monday, April 7 2:00 -3:30 p.m.
Location: Portage District Library
Eyes on the World
This photography show features winners of a scholarship grant from the Alexia Tsairis Foundation for World Peace and Cultural Understanding. Parents of Alexia Tsairis, who was killed by a terrorist’s bomb aboard the Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie Scotland, established this student competition to give voice to social injustice, history, cultural
differences and to promote global understanding through photojournalism. This exhibet runs March 10th to April 15th.
On Sunday, April 6, at 3:00 pm, there will be a reception featuring a presentation by Peter and Aphrodite Tsairis, founders of the Alexia Tsairis Foundation for World Peace and Cultural Understanding.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Read and listen to children's books online through our website!
To reach TumbleBooks, visit the Portage District Library’s website, click on Kids Connect and then Good Books. The TumbleBooks link is at the bottom of the page. Enjoy!
Monday, March 10, 2008
4th Annual Easter Egg Hunt
Sponsored by the Friends of the Portage District Library
Saturday, March 22nd, 2008
Portage Celery Flats Historical Area
10:00 am- 12pm
Egg Hunt Events by Age Group*
11:00 am 2-5 yrs old
11:15 am 6-9 yrs old
11:30 am 10-12 yrs old
If weather conditions seem unfavorable, please visit the Event Calendar at www.portagelibary.info for cancellation information. If you are interested in volunteering to help with this event, please contact Fran Cooper at 353-8419.
*Events start promptly and are over very quickly. To assure that all children have an enjoyable time, some emergency eggs are held back for late arrivals. See any volunteer at the event for more information.Thursday, March 06, 2008
2008 Winter / Spring Adult Programs
For more information about Portage District Library Programs, you may go here.
Art Exhibits
March 10-April 15Meet the Artist Reception/Presentation
Brian Tilbury
Oil Acrylic
Eyes on the World: a photojournalism exhibit (Reading Together Program)
Black and white photography
Sunday, April 6 3:00 -4:00 pm
Meet the Artist Reception /Presentation
Peter and Aphrodite Tsairis, founders of the Alexia Tsairis Foundation for World Peace and Cultural Understanding, will explain why they established their foundation and what it has a student competition to give voice, through photojournalism, to social injustice, history, and cultural differences and to promote global understanding
Genealogy: Why America Hunter shafted my great, great, great, great grandfather, Cortice Hunter, her brother-in-law. How happiness was found on a summer's day in a room full of Public Records.
By traveling to a county court house and digging into the public records with your own hands, you may find very informative bits of knowledge beyond the mundane standard data. This information will fill in the genealogical skeleton that you are building of your ancestors. Metaphorically, you are going from a black and white to a color photograph. This knowledge will help you understand your forefathers' life experiences.Wednesday, March 12
6:30- 8:00 pm
Sustainable Exterior Scapes for a Green Environment
Join us for a panel discussion on the use of affordable, sustainable, attractive resources in residential yards and gardens including planting native plants, rain gardens, and building to suit the land. The discussion will also address exterior building materials including roofing, windows, and siding. Panelists will include a landscape designer, an architect, a specialist in rain gardens, a master gardener and founders of the Wild Ones. Area conservation organizations and residential exterior building and garden retailers will host informational tables from 6:00 -6:30 pm.
Thursday, March 20
6:00 -8:30 pm
Open for Discussion 2008
Come join us for this monthly drop-in book discussion series.
On December 30, 2003, Joan and her husband, John Gregory Dunne, were just sitting down to dinner about 9:00 pm. They had returned from visiting their daughter, Quintana, who was comatose in an ICU in New York City. They were having a conversation as Joan put dinner on the table. She looked up; it was very quiet. John was not responding.
She realized all was not well, and in that instant her life changed. This book is a memoir of Dunne’s death, Quintana’s illness, and Didion’s efforts to make sense of a time when nothing made sense.
One Oar: A Journey With Alzheimers by Marie Bahlke (local poet)
Winner of the annual Writer’s Digest contest for “International Self- Published Book Awards,” One Oar is a compilation of candid, deeply moving poetry and verse by Marie Bahlke. This collection springs from caring for her husband as he slipped into Alzheimer’s disease expressing how they both dealt with finding threads of joy and connection in the midst of day to day survival.
Tuesday, March 18
10:30-11:30 am
Wednesday, March 19
7:00-8:00 pm
John Rybicki currently teaches creative writing at Alma College. He has taught inner-city children in his hometown of Detroit and serves as a guest lecturer at schools across the country. His first book of poems, Traveling at High Speeds (New Issues Poetry Press), appeared in 1996, followed by Fire Psalm; Yellow-Haired Girl with Spider and his latest collection, We Bed down into Water.
Bill Olsen is the author of five collections of poetry, The Hand of God and a Few Bright Flowers (Illinois, 1988), Vision of a Storm Cloud (Triquagrterly, 1996), Trouble Lights (Triquarterly, 2002) and most recently Avenue of Vanishing. He is co-editor, with Sharon Bryan, of Planet on the Table: Poets on the Reading Life (Sarabande, 2003).He teaches at Western Michigan University and the MFA Program at Vermont College.
Monday, March 10
6:30-8:00 pm
The Fiction Writers Group is a monthly group created to help writers meet fellow writers, workshop each other’s work, discuss and encourage writing and have fun in a relaxed, friendly atmosphere.
Group leader: Kate Rizor. Kate’s first novel is The Governor’s Wife. She is a former newspaper reporter, editor and trainer. She teaches “Elements of Fiction Writing” at the Portage Community Education Center.
For more information, please call Kate Rizor at 271-2948 or contact her website: http://www.katerizor.com/ .
Third Wednesday evening of the month, January-May
6:00 - 8:00 pm
These monthly gatherings are open ended and on-going, serving as a supplement or introduction to writing spiritual autobiography. Both newcomers to the process of writing spiritual autobiography and individuals who have begun the process are welcome. Poetry, prose and writing exercises will be used to share experiences and delve deeper into the seasonal patterns of our lives.
Group leader: Kim Sanwald is owner/facilitator of Full Circle Workshops. Her writing workshops are created as a tool for growth, intimacy and healing. Kim has been published in Messages from the Heart, a journal dedicated to the art of letter writing. and Voices of Michigan: An Anthology of Michigan Writers Volume I & II.
Last Monday of the month, February-May
6:30-8:00 pm
Portage Computer Users Group
Join the Portage Computer Users Group on Thursday mornings, from10 am-12 pm, in the meeting rooms at the Portage District Library. Share information about computers and learn new things about your PC with live demonstrations.
Every Thursday morning, January-May
10:00 am – 12:00 pm
No registration necessary.
Join us once a month on a Monday afternoon as we take you through a number of topics to help you get comfortable using your computer. Please register in advance. If there are fewer than 3 reservations, classes will be cancelled.
The first 13 patrons to show get a laptop with which to work along. You may bring your own laptop and work along with some classes.
Once a month on Monday afternoons
2:00-3:30 pm
Some experience necessary
Learn how to create and save a document, and some simple formatting techniques, in a hands-on computer class.
Monday, March 17
2:00 – 3:30 pm
What is web 2.0? Web 2.0 is a catch phrase that incorporates all the new ways people are finding to use the web. Web 2.0 is about internet users giving feedback, providing content, and using interactive tools. Youtube, Myspace, and Google maps are all about web 2.0.
Web 2.0 classes are lecture style classes with participation. The presenters will talk, but give you a chance to follow along on a laptop or create stuff if you are so inclined. All of our resources should be available through the internet or are standard on many home computers.
Join us on select Wednesday evenings, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
You should be fairly comfortable using a computer if you want to follow along.
Some experience necessary
You have a digital camera, a load of old photos, and a scanner. How do you share them quickly and easily? Many services will allow you to upload and share pictures with the whole world or just a few friends. Come and learn how to use Flickr, and some other sites like it.
Wednesday, March 5
7:00-8:30 pm
Labels: programs
