ONE-sTOP sPOT FOR DisCOvERy

I have loved the library ever since I was 8 years old and borrowed my first book, “Peony,” by Pear Buck from the Brooklyn Public Library on 53rd street.

There I was allowed to borrow books from the children’s collection that was just to the right of the front door. We moved before I was old enough to sample more than that. Our library on Maple Street in Marcellus has made up for that. But then, how do I share the “more” that I found there?

Let’s say, for the sake of opening this exploration, that you are planning a trip to one of the national parks. You will be driving and taking the family. Where would you start your planning? Why, at the library.

The Marcellus Free Library is a phenomenal access point for a trip. First, there are the books that open the doorway to sites along the way, histories of people and places that can add a richness to your travel, periodicals that feature travel points and tips and books of all sorts that those who are not driving might bring along to enjoy on the journey, books that will entertain the little ones, teens, young adults and all the rest of us.

Alternately, there are audio books that can provide a story along the way for everyone in the car or individual ones connected to mobile devices and earbuds.

Nothing like a good mystery to keep you occupied and to take away the “are we there yet?” comments.

Of course, you can also pick up your free pass to the national park of your choice at the library.

If you were planning a more local visit, there are free passes to the state parks at the library.

If you are the more adventurous type and are going somewhere called the “middle of nowhere,” you can borrow a hot spot from the library and stay connected with your mobile device.

You can even borrow a “tech pack” for three weeks which includes a device to create a WiFi network and a computer to use the network. My response to this is … wow! I mean, “who knew?”

Thinking of providing some entertainment around a camp fire or on a beach or your back porch?

Borrow a ukulele from the library.

Or, if you are bringing your favorite computer, you can borrow a Nintendo Switch game.

Sick of staying home?

How about a free pass to the Everson?

But let’s say you are staying home this time.

Entertainment and education are yours, from the many publications such as NY State Commission on Rural Resources to more common and sometimes pricey if you subscribed at home, e.g. Country Living, Golf, Archaeology , newspapers, etc.

You can borrow books and periodicals and take them home or, as I did last Thursday, get comfortably seated in any of the armchairs and read without distraction. A vacation in itself… One of the wonderful things about the library is how it opens its arms to you. Walking in the door, you are greeted by a knowledgeable and friendly staff ready to help you navigate the library’s resources and programs or provide that special service that we all love … ref - erence. You can be quickly seduced by the shelves of new books, fiction, mystery and non-fiction ... all with delicious slipcovers to entice you to take one or more home.

Need to use a computer for school or work? There is a bank of them awaiting your attendance. Have a computer or other digital device at home and find yourself flummoxed about how to use, fix, etc.? The library has professional technical help available for those of us who are happy to still remember how to use a rotary dial telephone.

Want to see a first run movie for free? Check the library’s monthly newsletter for the times and dates. These are so well received. Go to lunch with a friend in the village and then take in a fee movie! Bring a date.

Story time for the little ones, chair yoga (sponsored by the town,) book clubs for any genre with a few for specific interests, e.g. mystery and romance meet regularly – and books for these are available for all who want to participate. Offered are classes on topics from gardening to sign language and arts and crafts projects for all ages to engender inspiration and creativity.

I will be offering two classes in May-June. A beginning class for newbie crocheters and a filet crocheting class for more experienced crafters with an opportunity to design your own creation.

The Friends of the Library operate a book store within the library, The Book Nook, selling donated books and other genres at ridiculously low prices on everything from the printed page to DVD’s and games. Check it out. You never know what you can find … think gifts, an afternoon read for yourself

Automated trash collection is the wave of the future

Trustee Dennis Hebert has been studying the new trash-removal system in the town of Salina.

The town’s contract with Superior Waste Removal ended in 2022, so Salina officials signed a contract with Syracuse Haulers for a new automated trash system. The town had no choice. Superior Waste never even submitted a bid.

The new trash receptacles are designed to be lifted by robotic arms, and their contents poured over the side into the truck-bed. Truck operators are able to control the lifting, emptying and return of a cart without leaving the cab.

The receptacles weigh about 35 pounds, but you can pack a lot of garbage into each one.

Residents in the town receive two 95-gallon carts, one for trash and one for single-stream recycling. All recycled material goes into one bin.

Some elderly and disabled town residents have complained about the large size of the receptacles. Others have been concerned when they saw the town consolidated refuse tax jump from $219 in 2022 to $395 this year, according to Town Supervisor Nick Paro.

“But I really haven’t heard many complaints about the new system,” Paro said.

Coming here sooner or later Anyhow, Hebert is thinking hard about on the future of trash collection here in the village.

“We see what’s happening in Salina,” he said at the April 10 meeting of the village board. “And the City of Syracuse is doing it too. Eventually everybody is going in that direction.” com Display Ads: lori lewis, ext 316, llewis@eaglenewsonline com

Automated trash pickup is a 21st century trend.

“The question is,” Hebert said, “do we get an [automated side-load] truck and do it ourselves or do we hire a contractor to handle it.”

Currently the village department of public works pick up trash bags throughout the village every Tuesday morning and then pick up recyclables in blue bins on Wednesdays.

American High grants a wish Director Jeremy Garelick’s Liverpool-based film company, American High, has helped an ailing kid make his wish come true. Marshall is a 9-year-old wish kid from the Southern Tier who is living with congenital heart disease. He had had written a comic book starring himself as an orange-caped super-hero called “Marshall Man,” and his wish was to adapt that story as a film.

American High coordinated with the Make A Wish Foundation to adapt Marshall’s comic book illustrations into a professional script.

Then we hired an amazing crew – even including score composers, animators, visual effects artists and stunt people – to help shoot the project over two days in April,” said Matt Sacca, one of six producers of the 37-minute film. “And then we completed the project during three weeks of postproduction.” l andmark Premiere s aturday

Songwriter Tamaralee Shutt, who lives in Liverpool, wrote the theme song which will be played live at the premiere of “Marshall

Classified Advertising: Patti Puzzo, ext 321 ppuzzo@eaglenewsonline com

Billing questions: alyssa dearborn, ext 305, adearborn@eaglenewsonline com legal Advertising: luba demkiv, ext 303, ldemkiv@eaglenewsonline com

Publisher: david tyler, ext 302, dtyler@eaglenewsonline com

Creative Director: Gordon bigelow, ext 331, art@eaglenewsonline com

Man” the movie, on World Wish Day at 6 p.m. Saturday, April 29, at the Landmark Theatre, down city. The “orange” carpet event will feature a talk back led by WSYR-TV9 producer Tim Fox and is free to the public. Reservations are required at tinyurl.com/ RunwayMMTi x

While Marshall himself starred and directed the film, American High staffers who worked on the movie were producers Molle DeBartolo, Axelle Azoulay, Ana Olano and Matt Sacca along with executive producers Will Phelps and Jeremy Garelick.

“It is clear to me that this project was not just a job for them, but a labor of love,” Garelick said. “They all went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure that every detail was perfect, and that Marshall’s dreams could become a reality.”

Diane Kuppermann, the president of Make A Wish CNY, was overwhelmed by the film company’s support of Marshall’s wish.

“His wish displays all that is good in this world,” Kuppermann said. “When a company with the global reputation of American High can interrupt its business, recruit incredible professionals from throughout the region and beyond, and devote countless hours to making a little boy’s wish come true, we see the incredible power of a wish.” l ast word

“Our staff has truly made this the greatest achievement that American High has ever accomplished.”

–American High founder Jeremy Garelick, commenting on “Marshall Man.” or a rare and beautiful “find.”

Mondays are Trading Card

Game night in the Community Room. The Art Guild, a group of mahjong devotees, a senior exercise class, the Thumbstall Quilt Guild and others meet regularly in the library. Home schoolers can take advantage of Awesome Art, an art class designed for them. The library has a special section set aside for resources for homeschooled residents.

Genealogy buffs can use the access to Ancestry to do research with no fees attached.

Outdoors, the library has a friendly spot to eat your lunch, a bicycle repair depot and an absolutely charming amphitheater and gazebo for sharing stories, music and performances heard by the creek. What a treasure.

There is the local history section where you can find books like “Clark’s Onondaga,” a compilation of the location and description of both European and Native settlements. You can also find Marcellus Central School yearbooks. The latter are of special interest to someone like me who taught in the district and those who just want to see what we thought was a great hairdo at the time.

Access through interlibrary loan and on line borrowing of digital content is yours with your mobile device and a library card. Check the website: Marcelluslibrary.org.

Printing, copying, scanning and faxing services are available at reasonable prices.

Talking about price … Beyond the printing, etc. for which there is a cost, the other services are already paid for by you and me. Their value and there is so much value here is at least on two levels, the first being the ability to attend to individual interests and the second, the role of the library as a point of access for the entire community as a community to come together to share and grow. It is a prime example of “it takes a village” from its earliest founders to all who have worked and volunteered for its continuation and development with a special shout out to the Friends of the Library who work tirelessly to provide support for those extras and must have that make this institution shine.

More information is available online at the website, but even more fun is to spend some time wandering the library, talking with the staff and discovering more of who you are, who you might be and can become.

Ann Ferro is a mother, a grandmother and a retired social studies teacher. While still figuring out what she wants to be when she grows up, she lives in Marcellus with lots of books, a spouse and a large orange cat.

What’s in a name

Liverpool, Westhill, Canastota, Weedsport, Hannibal, Fulton, Clinton, MorrisvilleEaton, Utica Proctor, Whitesboro, Hannibal, Indian River, Oriskany, Sauquoit Valley, Waterville, West Canada Valley.

Put together, they make up nearly 20 percent of the schools in Section III and contain a good chunk of the history of area high school athletics, excelling in every sport imaginable.

And they’ll all need a new nickname soon.

Effective May 3, the New York State Department of Education has asked each of these schools to move away from the monikers they have held which, directly or indirectly, had Native American roots.

To say this won’t be easy might understate things.

Nothing stirs up a community more than a government entity telling them that the way they’ve done things for generations must change, and soon. Add to it the pride and passion of high school sports and, well, you’ve got a chance at a real tempest.

We’ve seen how this plays out. Go to the Buffalo area, where the Lancaster School District, in 2015, decided to eliminate the ethnic slur it used as a nick-