contents
closeups 3
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Jenny Mcgee ...lobby stops the art of playing ... andi gabor
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BobSima’s Next big thing ... with divine purpose
porch talk 4 ..5 7
on the porch...life in fredericksburg Messages
Our Heritage history’s stories.: rappahannock canal cornerstone
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canine companions: patience mandatory
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autoknown better: resolutions
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Senior Care: back from the holidays
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double-blinded by science
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Art in the ‘burg: new artists to fcca
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scene & heard...in the ‘burg!
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collect locally poetryman: inversion
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community link: .........trista chapman & empty bowl
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my own path
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porchlight: the rest of the story
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stacey & Amy market your business
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the diplomacy of marketing Quiet Moments: dilaudid & crushed ice
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retired on the back porch: names that tame stafford 350
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rogers ford farm winery
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Vino: the importer at work Cooking with kyle
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season’s bounty
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art of the brew: david achkio
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libations: normandy coffee
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Calendar of Events
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...And more! 6
haaaaie’s phoebe...forever changed
9
oral history: sib silver remembers
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farewell tracey clarke
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new art: post holiday hangover relief
Lobby Stops Jenny McGee aand her crrl Family “The CRRL is like an extension of my family,” Jenny Mc Gee tells me as she loads 10 bundles of Front Porch Magazine onto her workplace truck. “From the beginning, as a part-time page, I felt like I belonged. I took pride in my work even though I was only stocking the shelves, but organization is very important for a library and I was happily meticulous.” That was 15 years ago, and Jenny is still with her happy family. Her beloved mother (beloved by both her family and the community) passed away in 2011 after a tough battle with ALS. Jenny’s dad, John, and her share the same house. Together, they have three cats, a bird, “and a superstar of an amazing dog, Stella.” From there, she is focused on her own growth and health while still reaching
Cover Photo byruth golden
Jack Frost Nipping At Your Nose?
Have A Hot Drink where warm hearts wish you Happy Holidays
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January 2014
Front porch fredericksburg
out to others, including her father, and all those wonderful elders she meets on her lobby stops throughout the region. Her work shows her sincerity toward people, especially those who could stand a volume of compassion. She does not just drop off books at the various nursing and senior care facilities in the area. She builds relationships with the residents of those facilities, and it comes naturally to her. Few people I know can do that better than Jenny. She is a model for bright disposition, encouragement, and nurturing. Her compassion is unmatched; her wisdom beyond her 30-something years. And she still loves her job: “It didn’t take long to start the ascent up the biblio-ladder, and I started checking out
Where Fredericksburg Gets Engaged
606 Caroline Street 373-7847 www.gemstonecreations.org books at the circulation desk. I loved interacting with the patrons and getting to know their families and interests. I worked at many different branches’ circulation departments, assisted in the revision of two new branches in Colonial Beach and in Montross, and eventually subbed on the bookmobile.” Jenny worked part time at the CRRL all through college until a full time position opened up on the bookmobile in the Outreach department. She started that job in ‘04 and stayed on the bookmobile until its retirement in 2010. “Though we retired the RV, the Outreach department continued. On the bookmobile, I’d visit daycares, preschools, senior living facilities, and neighborhoods significantly far from a library branch. With so many new branches, most of the
library provided a van equipped with a cargo lift for deliveries. I started providing the daycares and preschools with a book deposit every two weeks as well as doing story times. The seniors began participating in my new service, called The Lobby Stops.” The Lobby Stop closely resembles the bookmobile in that she visits bimonthly, provides at least three carts of circulating library materials available for checkout, and has a computer linked to the library database for accessing patron records and placing requests. She visits 45 different places, providing people ages 2 to 102 with library materials. “It’s a truly unique position and I love doing it.
neighborhoods could make do without the bookmobile visits, but we still wanted to provide the children and seniors with library materials. In lieu of the RV, the
Link to lobby stop schedule: www.librarypoint.org/lobby_stops
Call for Special Holiday Hours
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