New library-on-wheels makes its rounds

Photo by Marika Mirren Books on Bikes Children’s librarian Link Ross won’t shush you at her next event—she’ll be asking for your library card amid the hustle and bustle of a public park, riding her mobile library. “It sort of looks like an old-fashioned ice cream vehicle,” said Ross, who rode Philly’s first Book Bike

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1 min read

The Culinary Literacy Center nourishes more than minds

Free Library of Philadelphia President Siobhan Reardon | photo by Jon Roemer By Marilyn Anthony  In 2008, Siobhan Reardon, the first female president of the Free Library of Philadelphia, had some challenging ingredients to work with when she arrived: a 30 percent budget cut, a stalled capital campaign, pressure to close many neighborhood libraries and the astounding

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3 mins read

Lending a Hand

Library activist engages her community with an award-winning garden
Sheila Washington joined Friends of the Haddington Library after protesting to save it from closure in 2008. | Photo by Jared Gruenwald
On a typical Saturday morning, Sheila Washington can be found in the garden at the Haddington Branch of the Free Library of Philadelphia, watering flowers and

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2 mins read