Library Update

The Observer reported last month that the Permanent Building Commission voted to reject all of the several proposals that had been submitted on April 18, as the lowest offered a contract price of $1.45 M for the necessary PCB remediation work. Facilities Manager Julie Oakes quickly changed the Request for Quotation, allowing a new choice of coating removal method, including grit blasting, and allowing the work start date to slip to the fall, when labor costs would likely be lower. Three bids for the newly defined task were received by May 16 and discussed by the Commission at their May 17 meeting.  The lowest was $1.298 M, from Bestech of Ellington; the next was $1.385 M, from Hazpros, of West Hartford; the highest was $1.498 M, from AAIS, of West Haven. All three are creditable companies in the field, according to consultant Bob May. The Commission decided to invite each of the bidders to separate interviews on May 30.

Walking the Streets of Dublin

Recently, I was in Dublin, Ireland with my husband. We walked the same streets that Maeve Binchy, Roddy Doyle and James Joyce walked. One rainy day, we posed for a group photo in front of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, where Dean Jonathan Swift, author of Gulliver’s Travels, presided. We visited the quirky Little Museum of Dublin where author John Banville (also known as Benjamin Black) promises to donate his brain.

Teen Programs

Teen Programming is in full gear this Spring. Cat Carter from Asnuntuck Community College shared job search tips on March 27 with a roomful of teens and a few parents as well. Important tip: Make sure your voicemail is clear and professional! On April 7, teens designed and built chariots to be raced around a track using Mini-Spheros as the engine. And, April 27 was scheduled for the Dance Moves for Prom program.

May Movies

Seating is limited at 61 Ffyler Place. Please register for a showing at 860-668-3896. Downsizing

Wed., May 2 at 2 p.m.

Thurs., May 3 at 6 p.m.

Fri., May 4 at 2 p.m.

12 Strong

Sat., May 5 at 2 p.m.

Mon., May 7 at 2 p.m.

The Last Movie Star

Wed., May 9 at 2 p.m.

Thur., May 10 at 6:30 p.m.

Fri., May 11 at 2 p.m.

Phantom Red Thread

Wed., May 16 at 2 p.m.

Thur., May 17 at 6:15 pm. Fri., May 18 at 2 p.m.

The Post

Wed., May 23 at 2 p.m.

Thur., May 24 at 6:15 p.m.

Fri., May 25 at 2 p.m.

The Greatest Showman

Wed., May 30 at 2 p.m.

Thur., May 31 at 6:30 p.m.

Fri., June 1 at 2 p.m.

KML General Programs

For more information or to register for programs, stop by the library, call 860-668-3896, check suffield-library.org, or follow us on Facebook. All of our programs are free! Most of our programs are funded by The Friends of the Kent Memorial Library. Become a member! Please register for programs.

Continuous Programs

New members welcome!

Winners of the Lester Smith Photography Contest

The contest was conceived as a celebration of Lester Smith, our inquisitive man of Suffield, and his first ninety years. The prize awards were funded by the Friends of the Library. Best in Show

Robert W. Lyons for Autumn at 467 S. Main

Faces in Suffield

1st prize Emily Boone for Charlotte Loves Hastings Farm! 1st prize Jenna Sun, grade 10, for (Untitled)

1st prize Ethan Coleman, grade 5, for (Untitled)

2nd prize Stacey Coleman for (Untitled)

Suffield Landscapes

1st prize Adaline Coates-Cooney, grade 11, for Suffield in a Bubble

1st prize Rebecca Rowe-Kent for After the Storm

1st prize Isabella Coleman, grade 3, for (Untitled)

2nd prize Ariel Gragnolati for Fog on White’s Pond

2nd prize for Cormac Sullivan, grade 8, for Eagles at Hilltop

3rd prize Arthur M. Sikes, Jr. for Suffield Tenement

3rd prize Olivia Zacchia, grade 10, for Summertime Vines

Suffield History

1st prize Joan Heffernan for Mapleton Hall

1st prize Sean Noble, grade 4, for Central New England Railroad Cow Pass

2nd prize Vincent James Barnes for Thank You

3rd prize Bev Sikes for At Rest Alone

The Short on Short Stories

Traditional modern short stories were published in the early 1800s in the United States. Shortly afterward, in 1821, The Saturday Evening Post appeared, one of the most widely circulated magazines. The great demand for short stories in the 1920s insured high prices paid to writers. F. Scott Fitzgerald sold short stories to magazines to pay off his many debts. He received the equivalent of $50,000 for each story placed in The Saturday Evening Post.

Contest Winner

This photo, judged Best in Show in the recent photo contest at Kent Memorial Library, was titled “Autumn at 467 South Main Street” by its creator, Robert W. Lyons, who reported that it was taken a few years ago.

Surprising Library Bids Change Plan for Recovery

On March 28, Julie Oakes, Facilities Director of the Public Works Department, issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) for remediating the PCB problem at the Kent Memorial Library. Under the direction of the Permanent Building Commission, the RFP had been prepared by their environmental consultant, Bob May of Fuss & O’Neil. On April 4, seven companies sent representatives to the mandatory walk-through at the library building to evaluate the task. Bids for the work were opened on April 18. The response was a disappointing surprise.