Library News

Jacob Edwards Library

September 2023

Library Hours

Monday & Thursday 9 am - 8 pm

Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday 9 am - 5 pm

Saturday 9 am - 1 pm (beginning 9/9)

Curbside pickup is available during library hours!

Coming Soon to JEL!!

We are excited to announce that hoopla will be available soon!

Borrow and enjoy audiobooks, eBooks, comics, movies, TV, magazines, or music everywhere you have a screen-your computer, your phone, your car, even your TV. All you need is a library card. hoopla syncs across all your devices, so you can stream titles immediately or whenever you're in the mood. Most titles can also be downloaded to your phone or tablet. hoopla offers more content, in more places, than any other digital library platform and it's all FREE thanks to your public library!

A library card is elemental! Get yours so you are able to borrow through hoopla and avail of the other materials on offer through the Jacob Edwards Library!

Join TLGV for the 33rd Annual Walktober, from September 16 to November 5, 2023. There are wide-open spaces to explore with more than 280 walks, hikes, historic tales, paddles, bike rides, farm visits and more offered by dedicated and passionate Walktober leaders and the generous sponsors that make it happen.

Click here to explore the online Walktober Calendar!

Massachusetts DPH Community Health Equity Survey

To improve the health of everyone in Massachusetts, we need to center the voices of people and communities who have been long denied an equal chance at health. The Community Health Equity Survey is an opportunity for residents to share their experiences and priorities to help shape the future of our health. The Massachusetts DPH will use survey results to improve our programs, make decisions about funding and resources, and support policies to improve health inequities. We will also share the results of the survey with partners across Massachusetts to support the important work they are doing to improve health in their communities.

The survey will be open from July 31, 2023 through early Fall 2023. Anyone aged 14 and older can take the survey. It takes approximately 15 to 30 minutes to complete and is available in 11 languages. The survey will also be available in ASL later this summer.

Click on this link to get started: www.mass.gov/healthsurvey

For more information about the Community Health Equity Initiative and the survey, please visit our website: www.mass.gov/CHEI

Massachusetts Statewide Digital Equity Survey

The Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI) wants to hear from you about your experiences with getting and using internet service. Your input will help the State make sure that everyone can have access to high-quality and affordable internet service, devices, skills training, and digital support.

The survey is completely anonymous. Questions are optional, unless specified otherwise. You may skip all optional questions. You can exit the survey at any point and return to the same page where you left by coming back to this website. We do not ask for any personally identifiable information (e.g., name, email, address). We collect demographic information so that we can make sure we are representing all neighborhoods, towns, cities and demographic groups across the Commonwealth, and to enable municipal planning efforts as well as statewide planning.

Thank you for your time and participation. Information you share here will help us develop the Massachusetts Digital Equity Plan and ensure equitable internet access for all.

Click here to take the survey!

September Art Exhibit

Vulnerable/Endangered Species

by Anne Tisdell

Meet & Greet

Thursday, September 7th

6:30 - 7:30 pm

JEL is pleased to host the work of artist Anne Tisdell.

Artist's biographical sketch and statement:

"I have dabbled in art all my life with sketching and drawing. I grew up in Swampscott, MA., an oceanside community north of Boston. Professionally, I have worked as an RN and a Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner for 45 years. I had a few courses in art as a teen and took 2 courses at Montserrat School of Art in Beverly, MA in pastels and watercolors with artist/teacher, Mimi Johnson. Retiring in 2016, I have had the time to pursue my interests in art, music, dance and photography.

Many of the paintings that I create are based on my photographs, images in public domain or photographs by friends with their permission. Artist, Elaine Griffith, (now, Artist, Janice Legare) taught classes at Holden Senior Center in acrylic painting which I started in October 2017. Since then, I have exhibited in various places in Central MA. I started Art Classes with Bill Griffiths at the Worcester Art Museum in 2018, which brought me to a new level as an artist. He has taught in all mediums and students work in the medium of their choosing. I have exhibited at the Museum’s Adult Student Art Exhibit and at Arts Worcester. In 2018, I started watercolor classes with Charlie Grey in Rutland, MA., a local well-known artist who has been instrumental in improving my watercolor technique. In July 2021, I participated in an intense workshop under the direction of Artists Mimi Johnson and Mark Hayden in multiple art forms. I am also a musician and singer, studied vocal technique and have sung in choruses and churches in Greater Boston. The Pandemic in 2020 cut into my exhibition time. Booklovers Gourmet in Webster, MA resumed my exhibiting in 2020, 2021. Recently, I have exhibited at the Gale Free Library and 122 Diner in Holden, Pearle L. Crawford Library, Dudley and Booklover’s Gourmet in Webster. This will be my first exhibit at the Jacob Edwards Library in Southbridge, MA."

Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

Paranormal Hot Spots with Ronny LeBlanc

Thursday, September 14th

6:30 - 7:30 pm

JEL is pleased to welcome Massachusetts native Ronny LeBlanc, who stars in the shows "Expedition Bigfoot" and "Paranormal Caught On Camera" for Travel Channel and Discovery+. LeBlanc will highlight some paranormal hot spots where people have experienced encounters with UFOs, orbs, and Bigfoot, including some right here in New England.

Ronny is a globally recognized figure in the world of paranormal, Bigfoot and UFOs. Ronny is an independent researcher and author of the critically acclaimed and best-selling book “Monsterland: Encounters With UFOs, Bigfoot and Orange Orbs,” which details the history and connection between the various phenomena, highlighting his experience and a research area called Monsterland in central Massachusetts. The follow up was released in 2019.

Ronny was the first person ever to cast a Bigfoot print in the Bay State from a trackway discovered by a couple in Leominster State Forest in the summer of 2010.

He is a regular speaker at UFO, Bigfoot and Paranormal Conferences around the country and has appeared on Coast to Coast AM, CBS and cover stories for Boston Herald, Sentinel & Enterprise and Telegram & Gazette. He has been featured on “In Search of Monsters”, Shock Docs “This is Halloween”, “Conjuring Kesha”, “Finding Bigfoot”, and “Bigfoot: Fear in the Woods."

Container Gardening Workshops

Monday, September 18th

2:30 - 4:30 pm

5:00 - 7:00 pm

No land, no worries! Join CMRPC for one of two workshops designed around the health and wellness benefits of gardening in small spaces. These engaging and educational sessions will foster gardening skills and promote community connection through the joy of cultivating plants. All materials provided!

Space is limited -

please register in advance by calling the Library at 508-764-5426. 

Sponsored by Central MA Regional Planning Commission (CMRPC).

In September, the group will be discussing "Hang the Moon" by Jeannette Walls - the latest title from the #1 bestselling author of "The Glass Castle."

Multiple copies in various formats will be on hold - ask for a copy at the Information Desk!

From the publisher:

"Most folk thought Sallie Kincaid was a nobody who'd amount to nothing. Sallie had other plans. Sallie Kincaid is the daughter of the biggest man in a small town, the charismatic Duke Kincaid. Born at the turn of the 20th century into a life of comfort and privilege, Sallie remembers little about her mother who died in a violent argument with the Duke. By the time she is just eight years old, the Duke has remarried and had a son, Eddie. While Sallie is her father's daughter, sharp-witted and resourceful, Eddie is his mother's son, timid and cerebral. When Sallie tries to teach young Eddie to be more like their father, her daredevil coaching leads to an accident, and Sallie is cast out. Nine years later, she returns, determined to reclaim her place in the family. That's a lot more complicated than Sallie expected, and she enters a world of conflict and lawlessness. Sallie confronts the secrets and scandals that hide in the shadows of the Big House, navigates the factions in the family and town, and finally comes into her own as a bold, sometimes reckless bootlegger."

Recommendations for future titles are always welcome!

Mark Mandeville and Raianne Richards

Thursday, September 21st

6:30 - 7:30 pm

JEL is pleased to welcome back Mark Mandeville and Raianne Richards.

Little by little, you will get to know Mark Mandeville & Raianne Richards through their unmistakable vocal harmonies, poetic lyrics and down-to-earth personae. They are a married musical couple based out of Webster, Massachusetts. These prolific and hard working Massachusetts-based artists have contributed over seventeen albums within their first decade and toured consistently throughout the US and Canada.

Touches of Nature & Post-Industrial Era

Their songs poetically reflect personal experiences as factory workers, teachers, community organizers, and natives of post-industrial mill towns in central Massachusetts. The memories of days gone by and toils of history can be better remembered through songs such as “That Old Machine” or “Winds of Change.” Listeners feel refreshed lyrics with references to elements in nature.

Multiple Musical Instruments

Accompanying themselves on guitar, harmonica, ukulele, penny whistle, electric bass, and most uniquely clarinet, their live performances are both musically captivating and spiritually uplifting as audiences are carefully balanced between serious songs and humorous commentary – concert goers will leave feeling a bit more human, as if they have experienced something genuine.

Promoting Local Arts

Each summer since 2010, Mandeville & Richards have organized the Massachusetts Walking Tour where they hike the roads and trails of the Commonwealth, more than 100 miles in less than two weeks, in support of the arts in local communities along the way. Each evening they stop over in yet another Massachusetts town, putting on a free concert there, along with local performers and fellow artists who accompany them on their journey. These annual two-week treks raise awareness of the trails and greenways in Massachusetts, including daily public hikes through recreational properties. The Massachusetts Walking Tour has partnered with The National Parks Service, Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC), Freedom’s Way, the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and the Trustees, with primary funding through grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council Program.

This program is supported in part by a grant from the Southbridge Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency. 

Afternoon Author Talk

Gail Ward Olmstead

Wednesday, September 27th

2:00 - 3:00 pm

JEL is pleased to welcome award-winning, best-selling author Gail Ward Olmsted for our September Afternoon Author Talk.

Gail Ward Olmstead was a marketing executive and a college professor before she began writing fiction on a fulltime basis. A trip to Sedona, AZ inspired her first novel "Jeep Tour." Three more novels followed before she began "Landscape of a Marriage", a biographical work of fiction featuring landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted, a distant cousin of her husband's, and his wife Mary. Her latest is a pair of contemporary novels featuring a disgraced attorney seeking a career comeback: "Miranda Writes" (9/8/22) and "Miranda Nights" (7/6/23).



Sponsored by Friends of Jacob Edwards Library.

Carlos Odria Solo Concert

Thursday, September 28th

6:30 - 7:30 pm

JEL is pleased to host a concert by guitarist Carlos Odria, in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

Peruvian-born guitarist Carlos Odria has been described as a "breathtakingly talented musician…with an immense technical skill" (Worcester Telegram) and as a "guitar wizard" (Gamble Rogers Fest). His original compositions and arrangements of jazz standards and Latin American tunes deliver an exciting blend of international styles such as bossanova, Afro-Peruvian festejo, rumba flamenca, and Afro-Caribbean vibes with an improvisational approach inspired by the rich tradition of American jazz.

He holds a Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology from Florida State University, where he also obtained a Certificate in Music of the Americas. He studied classical and Latin American folk guitar with acclaimed Peruvian guitarist Pepe Torres. Later on, he pursued advanced jazz studies with Richie Zellon, jazz guitar arranging with Leo Welch, and Venezuelan cuatro at the Jose Luis Paz Conservatory in Maracaibo, Venezuela.

Sponsored by the Friends of Jacob Edwards Library

Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock

by Jenny Odell

"In this thought-provoking, deeply hopeful reframing of time, the author takes us on a journey through other temporal habitats, urging us to become stewards of different rhythms of life, to imagine an existence, identity and source of meaning outside the world of work and profit.

Saving Time tugs at the seams of reality as we know it—the way we experience time itself—and rearranges it, imagining a world not centered on work, the office clock, or the profit motive. If we can “save” time by imagining a life, identity, and source of meaning outside these things, time might also save us." - From publisher

Database Spotlight

NoveList Select

Have you ever gotten stuck trying to find your next read? NoveList Select is an amazing tool you can use anytime! It adds recommendations from librarians and other experts, as well as fellow readers, at the bottom of each item in the catalog.

And now, NoveList Select has been improved with the following updates:

• Curated Lists: Similar titles, authors, and series lists you love, now with a sleek revamped look and bigger book covers.
• About This Book: Find cards with Reader Reviews, Lexile Measure, and Accelerated Reader.

New Monday Night program at JEL Children's Room

Lego Club

Tuesdays

3:30pm - 4:30pm

Saturdays

10:30am-11:30am

Crafty Wednesday

All Day

 Every Week



Have you noticed that our sign on Main Street has been refurbished? Globe Sign Company did a wonderful job! The Foster Street sign is in process.

See you at the library!

Jacob Edwards Library

508.764.5426

jelibrary@cwmars.org