It's Reading Fair Time

The Mississippi Department of Education has announced their 12th Annual Reading Fair, and students all across the state are now working on their Reading Fair Projects. Local winners will be chosen in all the categories - and they may go on to District, Regional, and State level competitions.

It is important to remember that parental involvement in a child’s education can be a valuable part of student development. While completing a project together can be an enjoyable task for students and their parents or other adults, please remember, projects should be completed by the student. You do your children no favor by doing their work for them. The purpose of the Reading Fair is to develop reading skills and creativity in the children. Learning is more important than winning - and should be its own reward.

In helping your child pick a book. be sure to bring them to see us. What better place to get help than your public library! We have lots of fiction and nonfiction books in all age categories, and our librarians can help children to pick one that will be right for them.

For details and more information on the Reading Fair, go to the Mississippi Department of Education website or check with your children's school.

Thank You, Dr T! (1920 - 2009)

Dr Clifford Tillman, Chair of the Armstrong Library Board of Trustees and member for 46 years, died on Wednesday, November 11 at the age of 89. He will be sorely missed by all of us at the Library. (See article and obituary in the Natchez Democrat and the tribute on our website.)

Receiving a Resolution from the Mayor

on the occasion of his retirement from the Board.

No one in Natchez has had more of an impact on our Library than Dr Tillman. If it wasn't for him, we wouldn't even have our building. Getting financing and approval for a new library in 1964 was a real political feat, and he took pride in his ability to pull it off. He was a visionary leader who steered the Library through good times and bad.

We are pleased that his family has asked that donations in his memory be made to the Friends of the Armstrong Library. If you wish to make a donation, you may bring it by the Library or mail it to 220 South Commerce Street, Natchez MS 39120. Contributors will be acknowledged on our website. These funds will be used for a special memorial yet to be determined.

We thought a good way to honor him would be to ask some members of the Library community for their memories of him. We hope you will also add your memories in the comment section.

Susan Cassagne, Director of the Library: "His dedication to the community was apparent in all of his activities. Even after he retired from the Board of Trustees, he asked about the Library each time he saw me. I'll always be grateful for his leadership and fairness - not mention his sense of humor. We'll miss him."

Lucy Miller, President of Friends of the Library: "He was a recognized and steadfast friend of literacy and the Armstrong Library. He will be missed by all of us in the Friends of the Library."

Beverly Aldridge, former Member of the Board of Trustees: "Dr Tillman was a dedicated member of the Board of Trustees from the time he was a young man. He firmly believed that information should be available to all and that our public library was one of Natchez' most important institutions."

Casey Hughes, Library Administrative Assistant: "I loved it when he would come into my office and tell me tales of the Library. He was so witty and had so many stories to tell."

Larry Buckley, newest Member of the Board of Trustees: "Even though I did not know Dr Tillman very well, I would always see him at Rotary. He was always a very cordial person and always asked how I was doing. He always spoke when I would see him out. He will be missed greatly."

Archie Hall, Library Clerk: "Dr Tillman was a very fun loving person with a great laugh and personality. He will be greatly missed throughout the community of Natchez and surrounding areas."

Genny Harrison, Member of the Board of Trustees: "One day I ran into Dr and Mrs Tillman at the UPS store, and Dr Tillman said to me that he understood that I was going to replace him on the Library Board of Trustees.....I immediately said, 'Dr Tillman, NOONE could ever replace you!!!' He just smiled and gave me a hug!! His love of Natchez, and most especially the Library, will always be an inspiration to me!!!"

Anne White, Assistant Director of the Library: "At Dr Tillman’s retirement reception last summer, he seemed delighted and not a little amused at all the attention he was getting. It was wonderful to see his obvious enjoyment as more and more people arrived to celebrate his years of service."

Janet Minor, Children's Librarian: "Dr Tillman was a very dedicated person to the Armstrong Library and the Community. He will be greatly missed."

Ella Young, Friends of the Library: "Dr. Clifford was always so very interested in our library and participated in so many of our events. His legacy will long remain."

Jacqulyn Williams, former Member of the Board of Trustees: "My respect and admiration is very deep for Dr Tillman, both as once being my personal physician and serving with him on the Library Board. He was a doctor that I could call on after office hours and was also an adamant supporter of the Armstrong library."

Marianne Raley: Reference Librarian: "Dr Tillman loved the library and was always inspiring us to do great things for the literacy of the Natchez community. He will be greatly missed."

Duncan McFarlane, Chair of the Board of Trustees: "Dr Tillman was my mother's doctor for about 50 years, and I went to him as a teenager. His dedication to the Armstrong Library was amazing; as a trustee, I hope I can continue the work that he started."

Delores Mullins, Library Clerk: "I have known Dr Clifford Tillman for forty years. He was a great person and doctor. He was always there for you anytime you needed him. He did a lot for our library. I sure am going to miss him."

Chris Shirey, Library Head of Technical Services: "I knew Dr Tillman before coming to Armstrong Library; he was my dad's doctor. So I got to see him as very good and caring doctor. After coming to the Library I also got to know the caring and concerned man that he was. He knew how important Armstrong Library is to the community and was behind everything that would help the library. He will be greatly missed by all."


More quotes are coming.

Fun and Interesting Random Facts

When it comes to random facts, not all of them are created equal. I have pulled just a few interesting facts that you might not know. See if there're at least a couple of random facts in the post that you did not know.

Do you know how to determine when Easter is? Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first Full Moon after March 21. Using this method, Easter can only occur between March 22 and April 25.

It is impossible to fold a dollar bill in half eight times, doubling it each time. In fact, it cannot be done even with a large piece of paper. Try it.

To keep a banana from ripening too quickly, keep it at a temperature of 57 degrees. A bunch of bananas is called a hand while a single banana is referred to as a finger.

Get out your five dollar bill. All 50 States are listed across the top of the Lincoln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill.

The city of Los Angeles' full name is "El Pueblo de Nuestra Senora La REina de Los Angeles de Porciuncula." ("The Town of Our Lady the Queen of the Angels on the River Porciuncula")

Dogs have no sense of "time" and are NOT 100% color blind.

4 of the 5 original designers of the Macintosh computer were left-handed.

Honey is the only food that doesn't spoil.

The average major league career of a baseball is 5 to 7 pitches.

Elvis had over 600 recorded songs, but never wrote any of them. He was the biggest tax payer in the US in 1973.

Hopefully you've learned at least one new thing by reading this fun post of interesting random facts. If you knew everything in this read, you should apply for Jeopardy!

You can find more interesting facts like these online, there are lots of different topics. It was fascinating to read some of them and there where so many I really had a hard time deciding what to post.

One Can Never Have Too Many Friends

The Library is looking even better now that we have our new stands for the “card catalog” computers. For a long while now we have been needing replacements for the old ones which did not match our beautiful light colored Circulation and Information counters. Our warm thanks go out to our Friends of the Library for purchasing all seven of the stands.

Friends groups support libraries in very special ways. Public libraries are forbidden by law from fundraising, so the Friends are frequently true life savers. By raising funds through book sales and the annual Christmas House Tour, items are purchased which fill needs that are not part of regular Library budget expenditures. Sometimes it might be a special set of books, a display unit, or in this case a much needed upgrade to our fixtures.

Come by the Library and see some of the improvements our Friends group has provided us, including the cozy glider rocker in the Children’s Department. And if you would like to join the Friends of the Library, we can help you with that, too.

After all, one can never have too many Friends.

Don't forget the Friends Christmas Tour of Homes on December 6, 2 - 5 pm.