Boro Book Bites

The theme for the 2025 Summer Reading Program is “Color Our World.” Programs and activities will be focused on art, as participants of all ages will be invited to take the reading challenge of completing 600 minutes, or just 20 minutes a day, for 30 days to be eligible for prizes. Libraries will have separate prizes for children to age 12, teenagers, and even adults.

Registration starts May 27, and Linebaugh’s kick-off party, with special guest Rapunzel, is Monday, June 2, from 10AM until noon. Katie Turner, Ollie Miller, and Taylor Davis, the Youth Services team at Linebaugh, have some new programs to highlight this year, including Make-It Mondays, STEAM Splash for kids, and the Um, Actually…Book Club for teens. The Rutherford County Library System (RCLS) is thrilled to share that the International Folkfest dancers will not only be at Linebaugh and Smyrna, but will also have performances at the Myrtle Glanton Lord (MGL) and Eagleville branches this year during the week of June 9th.

Friends of Linebaugh Library (FOLL) is an annual sponsor of the Summer Reading Program, providing needed additional funding for special programs and prizes for the Linebaugh, MGL, and Technology Engagement Center (TEC) branches.

Share the news of the upcoming program with family and friends, and be ready to sign up and participate as well. It’s going to be a colorful summer of reading!--Carol Ghattas, FOLL Media and Marketing Committee

Dear Friends:

WELCOME TO SPRING!

Here is what we have been up to since the last newsletter:

1) 2025 Author Luncheon featuring Ariel Lawhorn on January 25th

2) Celebration of the 2nd Anniversary of the Bookstore on February 15th

3) Funding an event with Bluey at Linebaugh, and

4) So much more!!!

We have supported our library branches with funding for storage on the Bookmobile, gardening and programming at the TEC, children’s activities at MGL, and supplies for the Historical Research Center (HRC). We are happy to help fund these fun and practical items that allow the libraries to enrich the lives of their patrons.

On April 26th, we will be giving away free books at Pioneer Days at Cannonsburgh Village from 10AM to 4PM. On May 10th, from 8AM to 1PM, we will be giving away books at the Saturday Market on the downtown square in Murfreesboro. Please stop by and see us at these events.

In closing, please join us in celebrating National Library Week, April 6-12, by thanking the library staff for all they do. Our group will be providing cookies and gift cards to celebrate the work that these dedicated employees do throughout the year.

Sincerely,

Leslie Collum

President, Friends of Linebaugh Library

It has been many years since I was a student, but I recently returned to school as an adult and started taking literature classes at Middle Tennessee State University. Being a graduate student of American literature has changed both what I read and how I read. I have put aside my usual fare of hot-off-the-press bestsellers and turned my attention to the classics.

I’m re-reading books that I haven’t read in years: Alice Walker’s The Color Purple (1982), Carson McCullers’s The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter (1940), and William Faulkner’s The Sound and the Fury (1929). I’m also reading books that I should have read but have somehow missed out on until now: Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), Richard Wright’s Native Son (1940), and Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man (1952). Books by Edith Wharton, James Baldwin, and Eudora Welty are waiting patiently on my nightstand.

One of my professors recently asked our class to think about why we read and study literature. As a result, I am now reading with more intention, considering how each work of literature has the potential to tell us something profound about ourselves and our place in the world.

I am grateful to live in a community with a strong public library that supports this kind of work through its diverse collections, Libby audiobooks, and the Friends Bookstore (for books I can mark up and annotate). Overall, I am enjoying my new reading focus. My only regret: I totally forgot that taking classes means that you also have to take exams!

FOLL Pen Pal Author Program Featured in FOTL Newsletter

The February 2025 e-newsletter of the Friends of Tennessee Libraries featured our 2024 Pen Pal Program with author Kristin O'Donnell Tubb. The article included insights from Debbie Perry, the chair of the FOLL's Literature, Arts, and Culture Committee. The feature also gave readers a lot of information about the Pen Pal Author Program and FOLL. Several photos were included.

RCLS Board Vote

By voting 5-3 in March to remove materials related to "transgenderism or 'gender confusion' in minors," the RCLS Board has received national attention. Three national organizations, the Freedom to Read Foundation, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, and the National Coalition Against Censorship, have written letters to the Board asking it to reconsider the policy and pointing out the ways in which the policy violates the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

Garrett Crowell Staff Development Fund

Established by the FOLL, this memorial fund supports library staff for the purpose of professional development and educational opportunities. The fund is named in memory of former Linebaugh Circulation Supervisor Garrett Crowell, who died suddenly in November 2023. Garrett was a dedicated librarian with a wonderful sense of humor who always looked out for his staff. Donations can be mailed to Friends of Linebaugh Public Library, P.O. Box 2903, Murfreesboro, TN 37133.

During the first quarter of 2025, FOLL had income of $18,282. The majority of this came from our book sales ($11,296), both in-person at our bookstore ($4,439) and online ($6,857). We also received a check for $1,918 from Barnes and Noble for our book fair day last December.

Support for the Linebaugh, MGL, and TEC branches in the first quarter came to $14,905. This included $2,235 for the Winter Reading Program at Linebaugh, $7,686 for our annual Author Luncheon, $2,913 for new shelving for the Bookmobile, $900 for vinyl wrap for the elevator doors at Linebaugh, $611 for landscaping, bins, and the seed library at the TEC, and $93 for Fall Programming at MGL.

FOLL's support of the library is based on the generosity of our members and friends. Thank you! A listing of all of the FOLL’s income and expenses is available upon request.

Our Board has four new members in 2025, and we asked them to provide a brief description for this quarter's newsletter. You will enjoy getting to know them!

Dianne Hall

This is Dianne’s second stint on the FOLL Board, and she also previously served as Vice President. She shares, “There is really nothing special about me! I love my GRANDS! I love my family! I love to read! You can find me at the FOLL Bookstore most every Wednesday from 10AM-1PM. I appreciate the work that Friends of Linebaugh Library does! Approving requests for funding for RCLS makes my heart happy. I also love that we give away books at community events around town and get to talk to other book lovers about their reading! What could be better than that?"

“Well, one more thing! Every year FOLL's Author's Luncheon is pretty spectacular. This year in January, we hosted a full house at Oakland Mansion's Maney Hall to hear Ariel Lawson, author of The Frozen River. Be still, my heart! That book was one of my #1 Reads for 2024. (If you want to know what my other #1 reads were, drop in to the FOLL Bookstore Wednesdays from 10AM-1PM. Let's chat about books! And maybe GRANDS!)”

Xan Lasko

Xan is a mother of three and has lived in Murfreesboro since 1997 with her husband, Chris. She was a classroom teacher and high school librarian. Xan has also been the Intellectual Freedom Chair for the Tennessee Association of School Librarians since 2019. Xan writes, “As a parent, I took my kids to storytime at Linebaugh many years ago and have always loved libraries. This was instilled in me by my mother, who took my sister and me to storytime at our hometown library in Denton, Texas, where I grew up. I volunteer to serve on the FOLL Board to give back to the library community that has given me, my family, and the community so much.”

Jason R. McGowan

A native of Murfreesboro, Jason is married to Shawnie McGowan, a dedicated elementary school teacher. Jason, a product of the Rutherford County school system, continued his education at Middle Tennessee State University, earning a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Master of Arts in Liberal Arts. Jason's passion is preserving history, and he has received grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Western National Parks Association, the National Park Service, and the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development. He is the Oral Historian at MTSU’s Albert Gore Research Center. Jason is also a member of the African American Heritage Society of Rutherford County and the Oral History Association. He is excited to join the FOLL Board and looks forward to collaborating with everyone.

Jason Vance

Jason is a professor and librarian at MTSU’s James E. Walker Library, where he has worked for the past seventeen years. His research focuses on library teaching and information literacy. He has also published and presented on the historic pack-horse librarians of eastern Kentucky. Jason is married to Amanda Moore, a local attorney who also serves as an elected school board member for Murfreesboro City Schools. Jason and Amanda have a son who attends MTSU and a daughter who is a senior at Central Magnet School. Jason is a member of the Tennessee Library Association, and he has previously served as an appointed Legislative Advocate for the Association of College and Research Libraries. He is excited to join FOLL, where he can continue to advocate for public libraries, library staff, and the Murfreesboro community.

We look forward to seeing you at these events!

Saturday Book Sales, FOLL Bookstore, Linebaugh

Apr. 19, 9AM-1PM

May 3, 9AM-1PM, in conjunction with Free Comic Book Day!

May 17, 9AM-1PM

Jun. 21, 9AM-1PM

Pioneer Days, Cannonsburgh Village, Murfreesboro, Saturday, Apr. 26, 10AM-4PM

Free books! Tell your friends and neighbors.

Saturday Market, Downtown Square, Murfreesboro, May 10, 8AM-1PM

More free books in another great atmosphere!

Renew Your Membership!

If you haven't already done so, please renew your membership for 2025! For questions, contact us at follintheboro@gmail.com.