Thaddeus Lowe & the Mt. Lowe Railway

Tuesday March 2nd
7:00 p.m.

Opened with great fanfare on July 4, 1893, the Mount Lowe Incline Railway was hailed as Earth's Grandest Mountain Ride. Built by Civil War balloonist Thaddeus S. C. Lowe and railroad engineer David J. Macpherson in the mountains above Altadena, this funicular was operated for 43 years and served nearly four million passengers from around the world. Where else could one find four hotels, an observatory, the world's largest searchlight, a dance hall, miniature golf, a zoo, horseback riding, tennis, and snowcapped peaks, all within a day's journey from the Pacific Ocean and downtown Los Angeles? The San Gabriel Mountains continue to be a great natural resource and recreational escape for many Angelenos, but the spectacular railway lives on only in the vintage photographs.

Author Michael A. Patris is a third generation native of Los Angeles. He is the founder of the Mount Lowe Preservation Society, Inc., a California nonprofit educational corporation whose archives contain thousands of photographs, ephemera, and souvenirs. All of the images contained in his book come from the society's archives.

Aim your trolley for the Barth Community Room at Crowell Library for a fascinating hour of local history.

Getting Started on Your Family Tree

Thursday, February 18, 2010
10 a.m.

Ever wondered where you got your stubborn streak, or whether that old family story about being descended from royalty is really true? Charlotte Bocage of the Southern California Genealogical Society (SCGS) will help us get started in genealogy. She will share resources that are available both online and through the SCGC, and provide a simple visual plan of attack to find your roots and organize your genealogical information. All that’s required is your curiosity.

Charlotte Bocage has over forty years of genealogy experience. She is a full-time genealogist, lecturer, author and Louisiana specialist. She serves on the Board of Directors, as a volunteer librarian, and also as Education Chair for the Southern California Genealogical Society which has been serving the community since 1964. Located in Burbank, the society maintains an extensive genealogy library for the public, and also provides help with research on-line.

Adult Connections is a new program being offered at the Crowell Public Library on the third Thursday of the month. Enjoy coffee, donuts and a new topic of interest to an adult audience each month. Upcoming “explorations” may include gardening, digital cameras, de-cluttering, or any other topic of general interest.

Introduction to Social Networking for Adults

Thursday, February 11th 7:00 p.m. Flummoxed by Facebook? Taunted by Tweets? Or is MySpace just in outer space for you? Learn the advantages, disadvantages, ins and outs of Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter during an informal and entertaining evening at the library. This introduction is for people who have heard about social networks and are wondering if they should join the crowd. It will also be helpful for parents who might have no interest in joining a network, but are wondering what their children are doing. Attendees will also have the option to sign up for a follow-up workshop, “Fun with Facebook,” where attendees will have the opportunity to create their own Facebook account. Starting with the basics, Introduction to Social Networking for Adults will cover what it is and how it is used, why people use social networks and its more popular applications including job hunting, dating, communicating with family, organizing school reunions, game playing and simply keeping in touch with friends. The importance of privacy and the basics of protecting the information you post online will also be discussed. Light refreshments will be served. Join us for an informative and fun hour of online adventure! # # # 1890 Huntington Drive, San Marino, CA 91108-2595 ● Phone: (626) 300-0777 Book the beautiful Barth Community Room for your next workshop or corporate event! For more information, visit our website www.CrowellPublicLibrary.org - “Meeting Room Information.”

TAMING THE PAPER JUNGLE with Pamela Mims

Friday, February 5th
12:00 noon

Are the papers on your desk turning into a jungle of confusion? Are you looking for a way to quickly access the information that you need? Would you appreciate learning easy ways to tame that paper jungle and simplify your life? If you answered "Yes!" to any of these questions, then Professional Organizer, PAMELA MIMS of Mims Consulting, could be the tiger in your tank! She can lead you to fast and simple solutions that can turn teetering piles of printed chaos into neat files of information. Learn simple methods of finding, sorting, filing and storing your paperwork and be on your way to organizational heaven.

Pamela Mims is a Business Systems Developer and Consultant, specializing in organizing professional offices. What sets her apart is her 25 years of legal secretarial experience where she created tailored and customized systems for businesses and law firms. She has conducted organizing workshops for regional Chambers of Commerce and bar associations, and has been profiled in the Los Angeles Times, Pasadena Star News, Pasadena Weekly and has appeared on KTLA’s “Making It.” Pamela was the 2005 recipient of the “Most Inspirational” Women in Business Award.

Don’t be overwhelmed when tax time rolls around. Turn those piles into accessible files now.

One Book, One City: T. Jefferson Parker’s Iron River

Crowell Public Library Announces
ONE BOOK, ONE CITY featuring
T. Jefferson Parker’s
IRON RIVER

Muffy Hunt, Chair of the Friends of the Crowell Public Library, announced today the community’s ONE BOOK, ONE CITY selection for 2010: T. Jefferson Parker’s latest novel, Iron River. Ms. Hunt was joined in the Barth Community Room by an enthusiastic Mayor Eugene Sun who addressed the crowd, Councilman Dennis Kneier and Police Chief John Schaefer who will also participate in One Book, One City events. Councilman Kneier will lead a book discussion and Chief Schaefer will talk about how the book relates to the community of San Marino. ONE BOOK, ONE CITY programming not only promotes literacy, but a strong sense of community and civic pride.

Fast-paced and wholly original, Iron River simultaneously spotlights Parker’s talents as a vivid story teller and brilliant crime writer, and the complex and dangerous gun trafficking industry, a crucial issue of our day. Several copies of the book are available at Crowell Library and patrons are urged to check them out soon in preparation for the One Book, One City events which will also include a mystery tour of Los Angeles and culminate with an in-library appearance by author T. Jefferson Parker Sunday, April 18th at 2:00 p.m. at the Library.

Anti-Valentine’s Day Party!

Crowell Public Library Invites Teens to our
Anti-Valentine’s Day Party!
Barth Community Room
February 12 at 3:30 pm

Middle School and High School students (grades 7-12) from the San Gabriel Valley region are invited to the Crowell Public Library’s first-ever Anti- Valentine’s Day Party on Friday, February 12th.

An Anti-Valentine’s Day party is a perfect venue for teens to creatively thumb their noses at commercial excess—there will be several activities, including making hilarious anti-valentines and writing break-up story mad-libs. They’ll have a blast poking fun at romance novel covers—we will provide color copies for teens to add illustrations and colorful comments. We will enjoy broken-heart cookies, chocolates and other sweets—after all, treats are the only redeeming feature of Valentine’s Day!

Teens don’t need to be single to join this party—they are encouraged to bring friends, including significant others, and enjoy mocking commercial stereotypes of romance. This program is sponsored by the Friends of the Crowell Public Library.

Brain Aerobics Returns!

with Francine Katz Mondays, 12:30-2:30 p.m. or Tuesday mornings, 9:30-11:30 Starting January 11th

Challenge your memory, improve language skills, and ease the burden of hearing loss by learning to lip read. In these fun and stimulating classes, enhance your verbal skills by analyzing how language looks and sounds. Instructor Francine Katz challenges the class to memorize sentences, play word games and focus on lip-reading skills. She has taught this class at various locations for over 45 years and students rave how their mental agility has improved after participating. Boosting our brain power can only help us age with grace!

Francine Katz, MA, SLP, CCC, is a graduate of Northwestern University and a licensed speech-language pathologist and lip reading specialist. Mrs. Katz was with Pasadena City College for over twelve years. She was “Teacher of the Year” at PCC in 2005. She was also listed in “Who’s Who in America,” Western Section.

Get your brain in shape with a free weekly two-hour workout in the Barth Community Room at Crowell Library in a relaxed atmosphere with rewarding results. No obligation visits are welcome.