Calling All Animal Lovers!

The student group Leash on Life is once again accepting donations of pet items for three area animal shelters: Wicomico County Humane Society, Good Shepherd Cat Sanctuary, and Somerset County Animal Control. A list of suggestions for donations is available by the donation boxes in Blackwell Library. Items will be collected through December 18th.

Leash on Life is a group who volunteers at the Wicomico County Human Society walking and playing with the dogs and cats. Add to the great work done by these generous volunteers by donating items for homeless pets!

Food for Fines!

Need to pay library fines? Want to help feed the hungry? We have an opportunity for you to do both in one fell swoop!

From November 9-15, Blackwell Library will waive $2 of your library fines for every food item donated, up to $10. We'd especially like to collect traditional Thanksgiving foods, but we'll take anything non-perishable.

So come on over to Blackwell with your food items anytime between the 9th and 15th. Pay your fines and help a family feast! What could be better?!

Allegheny Ensemble Concert to Benefit Library

The Allegheny Ensemble—cellist Jeffrey Schoyen, violinist Sachiho Murasugi and pianist Ernest Barretta—returns to Salisbury University, performing with guest singer John Wesley Wright, 7:30 p.m. Monday, November 2, in the Great Hall of Holloway Hall to support the SU Department of Music’s collections in Blackwell Library.

Selections include Brahms’ “Piano Trio” in C major and Bach’s “Unaccompanied Cello Suite No. 1.” Also on the program is "La Muerte del Angel" by Argentinian composer Astor Piazzolla, known for his compositions that combine elements of jazz and tango with classical music. Wright joins the trio for a set of folk songs from the British Isles transcribed by Beethoven.

Tickets for this incredible concert are only $15, and advance tickets are available in person at the Blackwell Library Circulation Desk or via mail. Checks made payable to the SU Foundation, Inc. may be sent to Karen Wilson, Blackwell Library, Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Ave., Salisbury, MD 21801. More information on the performance, including information on the members of the Allegheny Ensemble and John Wesley Wright, can be found here.

Library Book Sale!

As you can see from recent Buzz posts, we are celebrating a lot of really cool things here in Blackwell during the month of October. Let's add another thing to celebrate this month: reading! Of course, we celebrate reading every month but it's not every month that we offer awesome books for dirt cheap in our library book sale!

Plan to stop by Blackwell sometime between October 21st and 25th for absolutely amazing deals on fantastic fiction and non-fiction. You don't want to miss it!

Disability Awareness Month

October also commemorates Disability Awareness Month. The display in Blackwell Library is designed to recognize social and cultural contributions made by people with disabilities. In addition, we highlight some of our software packages designed to aid in research for people with various disabilities.

Kurzweil 3000^TM is the comprehensive reading, writing and learning software solution for any struggling reader, including individuals with learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, attention deficit disorder or those who are English Language Learners. http://www.kurzweiledu.com

JAWS for Windows® Screen Reading Software

ZoomText Magnifier enlarges and enhances everything on your computer screen, making all of your applications easy to see and use.

World Vegetarian Day

On October 1st marks the first day of Vegetarian Awareness Month. A healthy vegetarian diet is a significant preventative measure against heart disease, cancer, and other major diseases; can help solve world hunger; conserves precious resources such as topsoil, water, energy, and irreplaceable rain forests; and saves animals. Consider trying a meatless meal or going vegetarian for the day, month, or longer.

Libraries & First Amendment Exhibit

Blackwell Library hosts "Libraries and the First Amendment," a new exhibit provided by the Chicago-based McCormick Freedom Museum, that explores the library’s role in enabling and protecting First Amendment freedoms. Libraries provide access to information about countless subjects to widely diverse audiences, making occasional controversy almost inevitable. They can be the setting for raucous controversy, especially relating to freedom of speech and the First Amendment. This exhibit, which runs through October, gets to the bottom of these issues by examining timeless and relevant topics that speak to all Americans. In addition to the main exhibit, which is composed of a display board of how the world would look if individuals lost their First Amendment rights, quotations from important leaders of our time on the importance of the First Amendment hanging throughout the building, and thought-provoking tabletop stands, a companion Web exhibit www.FreedomInLibraries.org invites online viewers to explore specific controversies, vote on key issues and add their voice to a larger, national discussion.