Resource of the Month

Ocean Springs Municipal Library

The Ocean Springs Municipal Library is a community resource open to everyone. A full-service public library located at 525 Dewey Avenue, its days and hours of service are Monday-Thursday from 9 am to 6:30 pm and Friday and Saturday 9 am to 4 pm. Library visitors may use public computers, LeapPads, printers, and a copy machine. Books, CDs, and DVDs are available for borrowing. The library provides access to e-books via Libby https://libbyapp.com/library/jgrls and free access to thousands of movies via Kanopy https://www.kanopy.com/en/jgrls  Click here for links to other online resources https://jgrls.org/e-resources/  This branch of the Jackson-George Counties Regional Library System has free wifi and community meeting rooms available. 

FEMA Guidance on Extreme Heat

• Do not rely on a fan as your primary cooling device. Fans create air flow and a false sense of comfort, but do not reduce body temperature or prevent heat-related illnesses.
• Identify places in your community where you can go to get cool such as libraries and shopping malls or contact your local health department to find a cooling center in your area.
• Cover windows with drapes or shades.
• Weather-strip doors and windows.
• Use window reflectors specifically designed to reflect heat back outside.
• Add insulation to keep the heat out.
• Use a powered attic ventilator, or attic fan, to regulate the heat level of a building’s attic by clearing out hot air.
• Install window air conditioners and insulate around them.
• If you are unable to afford your cooling costs, weatherization, or energy-related home repairs, contact the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) for help.  

Heat Safety Tips and Resources

Heat is one of the leading weather-related killers in the United States, resulting in hundreds of fatalities each year. Heat can be very taxing on the body; check out the heat related illnesses that can occur with even a short period of exposure. Everyone can be vulnerable to heat, but some more so than others. According to The Impacts Of Climate Change On Human Health In The United States: A Scientific Assessment the following groups are particularly vulnerable to heat; check in with friends and relatives who fall in one of these populations, especially if they don’t have air conditioning.



• Young children and infants are particularly vulnerable to heat-related illness and death, as their bodies are less able to adapt to heat than are adults. 
• Older adults, particularly those with pre existing diseases, take certain medications, are living alone or with limited mobility who are exposed to extreme heat can experience multiple adverse effects.
• People with chronic medical conditions are more likely to have a serious health problem during a heat wave than healthy people.
• Pregnant women are also at higher risk. Extreme heat events have been associated with adverse birth outcomes such as low birth weight, preterm birth, and infant mortality, as well as congenital cataracts.

It is NEVER safe to leave a child, disabled person or pet locked in a car, even in the winter. If you have a toddler in your household, lock your cars, even in your own driveway. Kids play in cars or wander outside and get into a car and can die in 10 minutes! A reported 29 children died in hot cars in 2023.

Welcome Brennan Collins!!!

In June 2024, Brennan Collins joined librarians, Joyce Shaw and Megan Le, at the USM Gunter Library in Ocean Springs as a Librarian Assistant. He transferred from the USM McCain Library in Hattiesburg where he worked as a Project Processing Assistant on the O’Keefe Family Archive. Brennan has a BA from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, TX, and graduated with a Master’s in Library and Information Science and an Archives and Special Collections Certificate in December 2023 from USM. He currently resides in Bay St. Louis, MS.

SFP Session II

Library Assistants

Welcome New Hire!

Please join us in welcoming a new GCRL employee:

Tammy Hyche – COA Administrative Specialist

Summer Field Program

In June the Oceanography class attended the OS Town Hall meeting about the East Beach sidewalk project. They voiced their opposition to the project. They also saw extreme high tide events the next week when a tropical storm passed by the southern GoM, and tidal flooding was to the road at east beach, emphasizing the negatives of the sidewalk proposal.

-Laura Blackmon

SFP Session I Winners of the

“Let’s Go Fishing” game at Gunter Library

Andrew Bishop

Shulamith Jaquez

Mackenzie Loyd

Bryce Coates

SFP Session II Winners of the

“Let’s Go Fishing” game at Gunter Library

Upcoming Events

Join us as Gunter Library holds part IV of it’s "Let’s Go Fishing” game.

Drawing will be July 30th.

More Upcoming Events

• Fall First Week workshops and sessions July 29-August 19

• Strut Your Stuff Walk & Talk lead by Gulf Park Health Center August 6 at noon (meet up in front of Caylor)

• “This is Home” Medgar Evers exhibit at Ocean Springs Municipal Library, August 15-Septmber 15

• COA new student orientation Friday, August 16

• Classes start, Wednesday, August 21

GCRL Science Café takes a break in July and will resume in August.

"Like" the GCRL Science Cafe Facebook page for more information about upcoming Science Cafe events.

If you missed any of our Zoom GCRL Science Cafes or prefer to attend the event via Facebook Live, visit our Marine Education Center’s (MEC) Facebook page at the link below.

Gulf Coast Research Laboratory

703 East Beach Drive

Ocean Springs, MS 39564

Joyce Shaw, Head Librarian - 228-872-4213