Black History Month Celebration 2013

The Smyrna Public Library will offer two exciting programs for children, families, and adults in celebration of Black History Month. Thanks to the generous donation and support from the Friends of the Smyrna Library, these programs are free of charge and are open to the public. No reservations are necessary to attend. Both programs will be held in the first floor meeting room of the Smyrna Public Library.

On Saturday, February 23rd, the library will host a storytelling program for children and families from 11:00 AM- 12:00 PM. The Cobb Cluster of the Southern Order of Storytellers, members of the Kuumba Storytellers, and the youth Tattle Tales group will be featured. Children and adults alike will share stories about notable African Americans and African dolls will be featured at the program as well. Storyteller Margaret Edinburgh says, "We can preserve our history by preserving the art of storytelling." These storytellers will educate and entertain while also paying homage to important figures in black history. Edinburgh will be joined by storytellers Esther Culver, Amy Johnson, and Mama Koku, as well as by several youth storytellers. This program will be fun for the whole family!

On Sunday, February 24th from 2:00-4:00 PM, the library will offer a special Black History Month program for adults featuring two speakers, Ms. Robin Washington Banks and Mr. Charles Black. This program, also sponsored by the Friends of the Smyrna Library, is open to the public and will offer light refreshments.

Ms. Robin Washington Banks, educator and author, is the great-granddaughter of Booker T. Washington and the daughter of a Tuskegee Airman. Her great-aunt was also one of the co-founders of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the first African American sorority. Ms. Washington Banks focuses on promoting the philosophies of her great grandfather. "It has become my life's work to keep my great grandfather's legacy alive by doing things that will draw attention to his philosophies and his work." Ms. Washington Banks' presentation, "Colors, Character and Choices," will include stories about her family and will highlight character as a powerful tool in bringing our diverse nation together in harmony.

Mr. Charles Black is a professional actor on stage, screen, radio, video and television, a Special Correspondent for The Atlanta Inquirer newspaper, and a community activist. Mr. Black served for many years on the Executive Committee of the Atlanta Branch of the NAACP of which he is a Life Member. While attending Morehouse College, Mr. Black was one of only eight students taught by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Mr. Black served as chairman of the Atlanta Student Movement in the 1960s, where he implemented the desegregation plan for lunch counters in Atlanta, negotiated desegregation of all theaters and movie houses in Atlanta and negotiated desegregation of Grady Hospital. He will focus on "Hidden Heroes of History" and will share his experiences as a civil rights figure in Atlanta.

First Sunday Lecture Series Announcement

April 16, 2013: The Friends of Smyrna Library announce a new monthly program to bring speakers to the Smyrna Public Library. The First Sunday Lecture Series will begin on May 5 and the lectures will be held in the 1st floor conference room. Details on upcoming lectures are posted below.

Inaugural First Sunday Lecture



Susan Kendall
Sunday May 5, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Susan Kendall, Head Librarian of Cobb County's Vinings Branch Library, will discuss her recently published history of Vinings, Georgia.

This photography history, published by Arcadia publishing in the "Images of America Series" contains over 200 vintage photos of the fascinating neighboring community of Vinings, Georgia. Copies will be available for purchase.

First Sunday Lecture Series

Idorenyin Uyoe
Sunday June 2, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Idorenyin Uyoe, a historian of the Olympics, will speak about the history of the games, will show his video "Blacks and the Olympic Games: Contributions and Controversies," and answer your questions about this fascinating topic.

The Olympic Games have now become the single most visible sporting event of our time, evolving into a $6 Billion franchise. This presentation will discuss the contributions people of color have made in building the Olympics into the successful cultural phenomenon it is today.

First Sunday Lecture Series

Dr. William P. Marchione
Sunday July 7, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Historian Dr. William P. Marchione, who is at work on a history of Smyrna due for publication by The History Press this November, will present a slide/ lecture on "Smyrna, 1900 to 1930."

The 1900 to 1930 period was one of rapid growth as well as fundamental change for the town---a period that saw the beginnings of its transformation from an agricultural village into a fast-growing commuter suburb.

First Sunday Lecture Series

The Lockheed Plant
Sunday August 4, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Speaker: Joe Kirby, Marietta Daily Journal editor and author of The Lockheed Plant and The Bell Bomber Plant

An experienced and entertaining lecturer, Mr. Kirby has written two books on the rise of the local aeronautics industry, The Bell Bomber Plant and The Lockheed Plant. His presentation will focus on the history of the Lockheed facility and the transformational impact that the Marietta industrial complex, which at its height employed more than 30,000 workers, had upon surrounding communities like Smyrna. Autographed copies of Mr. Kirby's book will be available for purchase.

The "First Sunday" lecture series is held in the Smyrna Public Library Meeting Room and is sponsored by the Friends of Smyrna Library.

First Sunday Lecture Series

The Dispossession of the Cherokee, 1829 to 1838
Sunday September 8, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Speaker: Andrea Searles, Smyrna Resident and Researcher

Ms. Searles' talk will focus upon the factors that led to large-scale white penetration of North Georgia after 1828, and the forces, political, economic, and social, that culminated in the forced removal of 15,000 Cherokee to the Trans-Mississippi west in 1838---in an incident known to history as "The Trail of Tears."

The "First Sunday" lecture series is held in the Smyrna Public Library Meeting Room and is sponsored by the Friends of Smyrna Library.

First Sunday Lecture Series

An Immigrant's Story
Sunday October 6, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Speaker: Forster Puffe, long-time Smyrna resident and former Smyrna City Councilman

Mr. Puffe's presentation is based on a diary that his German grandfather kept while traveling from the Austro-Hungarian Empire to the United States in the early 1890s.

The diary provides fascinating insights into a typical immigrant's experience on shipboard and at the Ellis Island Immigration Station in New York City. The original diary, incidentally, is on permanent exhibit at the Ellis Island Museum.

The "First Sunday" lecture series is held in the Smyrna Public Library Meeting Room and is sponsored by the Friends of Smyrna Library.

First Sunday Lecture Series

Wilbur Kurtz: Artist-Illustrator
Sunday November 3, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Speaker: Wilbur Kurtz, III

Mr. Kurtz will speak on the life and career of his grandfather and namesake, noted Atlanta area artist-illustrator Wilbur Kurtz. The artist moved to Atlanta from the Midwest in 1912. His adventures with pen, paintbrush, and sketchbook spanned 55 years. Mr. Kurtz became technical adviser for three notable Hollywood films that treated of Georgia themes: “Gone With the Wind” (1938); “Song of the South” (1946); and Walt Disney’s “The Great Locomotive Chase” (1957).

The "First Sunday" lecture series is held in the Smyrna Public Library Meeting Room and is sponsored by the Friends of Smyrna Library.

Author Appearance

Quarter-Peeled Oranges: A Poet and Illustrator Collaboration
Tuesday November 12, 2013
10:30 AM
Smyrna Public Library

AUTHOR APPEARANCE

Speakers:
Dr. Bruce Gillett, author of Quarter-Peeled Oranges
Bill Needs, illustrator of Quarter-Peeled Oranges

Mr. Needs will discuss how life events for the author and artist led to the creation of a book by a couple strangers with no practical experience to the process they would undertake. Dr. Gillett will also read a few poems from the collection. Some illustrations from the book will be on display in the Library's Second Floor Gallery.

Questions and Answers will be encouraged throughout the presentation. Books will be available for sale and signing. All proceeds will be donated to Susan G. Komen for the Cure - Atlanta Affiliate. Six books will pay for one mammogram for a woman who cannot afford to pay for the test; it also funds other services for breast cancer prevention, detection, treatment and research.

Refreshments will be served.

About Quarter-Peeled Oranges By Sally Litchfield (Marietta Daily Journal)       

In Quarter-Peeled Oranges, a compilation of love poems, Dr. Bruce Gillett remembers his lovely wife, Dale, who died of breast cancer in 2010. Local artist Bill Needs illustrated the book. Quarter-Peeled Oranges a tribute to wife, a cause for the cure, started as grief writing and eventually took on another purpose. Gillett brings awareness of the need for cancer research and donates all proceeds from the book to Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

First Sunday Lecture Series

Turning Points in the History of Smyrna
Sunday December 1, 2013
3PM
Smyrna Public Library

Speaker: Dr. William P. Marchione, author of A Brief History of Smyrna, Georgia

Dr. Marchione will present a slideshow presentation entitled “Turning Points in the History of Smyrna” that will examine the factors that fostered or retarded growth of the city over the course of its history. Autographed copies of Dr. Marchione’s book, which offers many new perspectives on Smyrna’s interesting history, will be available for purchase.

The "First Sunday" lecture series is held in the Smyrna Public Library Meeting Room and is sponsored by the Friends of Smyrna Library.

Free Admission