What do you want in a new library?

The library will host a series of Focus Groups to get community input on the design and services of the new Bedford Public Library. Your input is essential in order to create a library that meets the needs of the community! Even if you're not a regular library user we still want to know what you think.

There will be two general public meetings and several targeted meetings for families, teens and seniors/disability services. All meetings will take place in the Council Chambers at 2000 Forest Ridge Drive. Each meeting will last about an hour.

Here's the schedule:

Seniors & Disability Services - Tuesday, April 22 at 10:00 am

General Public - Wednesday, April 23 at 7:00 pm

Families - Thursday, April 24 at 10:00 am

General Public - Saturday, April 26 at 12:30 pm

Teens -Saturday, April 26 at 3:00 pm

So attend a meeting, or several, and be sure to express yourself. Help us plan the best library ever. For more information call 817-952-2332 or email mredburn@ci.bedford.tx.us

Cake Decorating Contest at Celebrate Seuss Festival

Come show us your skill and originality at the cake decorating contest at our Celebrate Seuss Festival on Sunday, March 2nd from 1:00 - 4:00 pm. The registration deadline is Friday, February 29, 2008 (no pressure, right?). View the full flyer and entry form.

RULES:
•Cake must be based on “Seuss Theme”
• Registration due at library no later than Friday, February 29, 2008
• Bring completely decorated cakes
• Bring entry to library on Sunday, March 2nd from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm
• Awards will be presented at 2:00 pm
• SIZE OF CAKE must fit into a 36 inch square on the surface
• Real cake must be used
• No electricity
• NO burning items: candles, torches...NO FLAMES
• Each person is responsible for setting up/taking down their display/cake
• MUST be set up by 1:00 pm
• One entry per person
• Entries will be photographed and put on display in the library
• The City of Bedford is not responsible for theft or damage, although all possible precautions will be taken

CATEGORY PRIZES:
• 1st Place-- $25
• 2nd Place-- $15
• 3rd Place-- $10

DIVISIONS:
• Professional - has worked in or owns/owned a bakery, in confectionery arts or sales, teaching or taught classes
• Novice- ANYONE
• Youth – 15 years of age and under

JUDGING:
• Display and or appearance
• Degree of difficulty
• Originality

Cool Kids Site of the Week

Visit Science Bob.com to try home experiments, visit Bob's on-line lab and get answers to your science questions.

Official Website for Texas Voters

Another source of information about voting in Texas, how primaries work in Texas, etc., is the official Texas voters' website.

Find out whether or not you're registered.

To find out the location of your Election Day voting site, you need only enter the Voter Identification ID (VUID) from your Voter's Registration Certification or, if you provided a drivers' license number when you registered, you may enter that license number and your date of birth to find your polling location.

You've named your game

Guitar Hero won with 58.7% of the vote. Now you can help plan the Teen Gaming Tournament on Saturday, February 23rd at 3:00 pm. Bring your ideas so that we can plan an awesome tournament. WalMart Supercenter in Bedford has generously donated a Nintendo Wii for Area 51 gaming tournaments.

Have questions about voting? Visit VOTEXAS.ORG

Early voting has started and here's a great web site called VOTEXAS.ORG from the Office of the Texas Secretary of State that is full of information on how to register to vote, where to vote, what to bring, what the process is like, and much more.

Gaming @ Bedford Public Library

AREA 51 is hosting an after-hours Teen Video Gaming Tournament at the library on Friday March 7th from 6:30 to 9:00 pm.

Girl, Casual or Hardcore teen gamers are invited for our first Gaming Tournament. Bring your friends, have some fun, and get ready to play. No registration is required for this free library program.

Bedford Public Library Awarded Teen Tech Mini Grant

The Bedford Public Library was selected as one of twenty recipients of a Teen Tech Week Mini Grant! We were the only library in Texas to receive this grant provided by the Young Adult Library Services Association, a division of the American Library Association. The $450 grant will fund our Teen Gaming Tournament which will be held on Friday, March 7th at 6:30 pm. Teens are already casting their votes for their favorite game. The library will also receive $50 in products to promote the event.

Teen Tech Week is a national initiative sponsored by the Young Adult Library Services Association and is aimed at teens, their parents, educators and other concerned adults. The purpose of the initiative is to ensure that teens are competent and ethical users of technologies, especially those that are offered through libraries such as DVDs, databases, audio books, and videogames. Teen Tech Week encourages teens to use libraries' nonprint resources for education and recreation, and to recognize that librarians are qualified, trusted professionals in the field of information technology. Teen Tech Week began in 2007 and has a general theme of Get Connected @ your library. The 2008 celebration is March 2-8. For more information visit the Teen Tech Week site.

BPL is now on Flickr

The library just started a Flickr account so that we can share photos with you. Right now you can view photos of the Food Lion before it becomes our new library and photos of some of our past events such as Summer Reading Club 2007, the Harry Potter event and Super Seussical Sunday.

We hope to keep you updated with photos of the new library as the renovation progresses and share photos of our many events.

Which Dr. Seuss book is your favorite?

Our Celebrate Seuss Festival is only about two weeks away on Sunday, March 2nd. We want to know which Dr. Seuss book is your favorite so we've launched a poll to find out. The winning book will be read aloud at the festival. Be sure to vote then view the results so you can see which title won. The poll closes on February 29th.

View photos of the Food Lion before it becomes the new library

View the Food Lion building - home of the new library - before any changes are made.

Architectural Design Contract Approved by Council

On Tuesday night, City Council unanimously voted to approve the Architectural Design Services contract with Hidell Architects and Associates. Councilman Orean moved to approve a budget of 6.6 million dollars to renovate the Food Lion Building. William Hidell has built 170 libraries and his firm has built over 200 libraries. You can view Hidell's PowerPoint presentation made to City Council.

Hidell Architects and Associates renovated the downtown Fort Worth Public Library. The firm is nationally recognized for designing the Farmington Public Library in New Mexico, known as one of the most staff-efficient libraries in the nation. Take a look at the virtual tour of the Farmington Public Library.

Keep updated on all the latest news about the new library by reading the Bedford Public Library blog! We're excited about creating a new library and look forward to reading your comments.

Bedford Bookworms to discuss Murder on the Orient Express

Join the Bedford Bookworms on Thursday, February 21st at lunch to discuss Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. Christie's famous murder mystery follows Hercule Poirot as he unravels a murder when the train from Istanbul to Paris--the Orient Express--is stopped by a snow drift in the Balkans.

Bedford Bookworms meet the third Thursday of each month from 12:00 - 1:30 pm. No registration is required for this free library program, sponsored by the Friends of the Bedford Public Library. Copies of the selected titles are available for the discounted price of $5 at the library.

Surrender to Romance

Feburary is the season of love and romance. We hope you have time to stop by and see our romance display in the lobby - if not then see the photos below (click on the photo for a larger image). And be sure to check out some of our newest romance titles.

Fiction Poll Results

Thanks to everyone who voted in our fiction poll. We wanted to know what type of fiction our users most enjoy reading. A total of 59 votes were made. Here are the results.

 30%   Mystery
 25%   Romance
 22%   Historical Fiction
 18%   Inspirational
 13%   Science Fiction
 13%   Suspense Fiction
  13%  Adventure
   6%   Fantasy
   3%   Horror
   0%   Western

Cool Kids Site of the Week

SurLaLune Fairy Tales - presents a collection of books, nursery rhymes and songs geared toward preschoolers. Each week focuses on a different theme. Make note of the books you like then check them out at the library.

Library Lover's Month

February is Library Lover's Month, a time to celebrate the wonder of libraries. The Bedford Public Library has published a Library Annual Report to give you even more reasons to love us! We invite you to post a comment on why you love the library on our blog.

Top 5 Ways to Show Your Love

1. Be our Valentine! There are red hearts located at each of the service desks. Fill one out with a reason you love the Bedford Public Library. We will post it for everyone to see.

2. Join the Friends of the Library. An Individual membership is only $10.00. You can be a Benefactor for $30 or more.

3. Renew your Friends of the Library membership. Friends memberships must be renewed on an annual basis. Your membership fees help support author events, children's programs, and purchase books.

4. Make a Memorial Gift in honor of someone you love. The Library will purchase a book and place a plate in the book honoring the person you love. It's the perfect Valentine's gift for the Library Lover in your life. It won't melt like chocolate or die like flowers.

5. Read our blog. The Bedford Public Library blog is a great way to stay in touch with what is going on at the library. It's also a great way to give us feedback on our programs and services.

Name your Game!

AREA 51 will be hosting a free Teen Gaming Tournament on Friday, March 7 at 6:30 pm. We have a date BUT WE NEED A GAME!

Vote for your GAME at the Teen Gaming Tournament Survey. Voting ends Wednesday, February 20.

Attend the AREA 51 meeting on Saturday, February 23 at 3:00 pm in the library to see which game will be played at the Tournament.

Learn Spanish

Learning Spanish has never been more convenient. The Bedford Public Library offers free adult Spanish Classes on Wednesday mornings and evenings. Our magnificant volunteer, Ms. Bianca Zayas, is teaching Basic Spanish skills including pronunciation! No need to register, just show up with a notebook and pen. Classes are held in the Bonnie Finn Room of the library.

AM Spanish Class
Wednesdays from 8:30 - 9:30 AM

PM Spanish Class
Wednesdays from 6:30 - 7:30 PM