Happily Ever After
Saluting Three Retiring Library Staffers
By Tara Bannon Williamson
and Becky Corning
Park Hill and Pauline Robinson Librarians
Our beloved Elonda Walker is leaving after many years of library service. Her library career started with the Queens Borough Public Library in Queens, New York. She started working at Denver Public Library in 1994 with a position in the Western History and Genealogy Department. She also worked for the Friends Foundation and in the Schlessman Family Branch before moving to the Pauline Robinson Branch in 2012.
She is loved by customers and coworkers alike, and we would like to send her off with this limerick.
There once was a library lead clerk
Who one day just tired of work!
She’s retiring soon,
And it’s making us swoon,
Because working with her was such a perk.
— Elonda, you will be greatly missed!
Becky Corning, librarian
at Pauline Robinson Branch
The Park Hill Branch Library congratulates two phenomenal humans on their retirement as well: Dawn Kirkwood and Stephanie Two Eagles.
Kirkwood has touched the lives of many throughout the City of Denver through a decade of work at the Ross-Broadway branch library, Community Technology Center, and most recently, her five blessed years at the Park Hill Branch. We are especially grateful for her community walks that brought us all together and her laughter and assistance at the Park Hill Underground Comedy Club. The circulation desk won’t be the same without her bright smile.
Stephanie Two Eagles came to us from the illustrious Colorado Film Commission, and began her library career at the Schlessman Family Branch. In 2014, we were honored when she joined the Park Hill Branch staff, the same branch that Stephanie has once brought her small child to several years before. Stephanie’s caring and dedicated work to Older Adult programming and the No Strings Attached Book Chat has made her a favorite at the branch and in the community.
September Events
Sex Series
The 7 Biggest Myths about Sex and Aging
Saturday, Sept. 12, 3:30-5 p.m.
Our society believes limiting, sometimes- destructive myths about sex and aging and, unfortunately, many seniors have internalized these myths, too. Joan Price shatters those myths and shares the most common questions that Boomers, seniors, and elders ask her. She’ll answer questions in the candid, lively manner that led FastCompany.com to dub her “the woman leading the sexual revolution for seniors.” Presented by Price, author of four books about senior sex, including the award-winning Naked at Our Age: Talking Out Loud about Senior Sex and Sex after Grief: Navigating Your Sexuality After Losing Your Beloved. Register online for the event link at denverlibrary.org/event/7-biggest-myths-about-sex-and-aging
How the Heck Do I Date at This Age?
Saturday, Sept. 19, 3:30-5 p.m.
Dating after 50, 60, 70 and beyond can feel awkward and weird. How do you meet people? Do you need to use online dating? What are the mistakes most people make with their online profile and photos? How do you avoid the pitfalls, weirdos and creeps? Whether you’re widowed, divorced, polyamorous, or a longtime single, this entertaining presentation will be illuminating and practical – plus you’ll find out how others our age meet and mate. Useful tips and plenty of laughter guaranteed. Register online for the event link at denverlibrary.org/event/how-heck-do-i-date-age
Invisible Seniors: Older-Age Sexuality as a Human Right
Saturday, Sept. 26, 3:30-5 p.m.
The older we get, the more invisible we become as sexual beings. Researchers ask us the wrong questions – or don’t ask us at all! Our doctors dismiss us. Our society defines us by our wrinkles and chronology and assumes we’ve aged out of sexual pleasure. You’ll come away understanding the problems and acquiring strategies to be part of the solution. Register online for the event link at denverlibrary.org/event/invisible-seniors-olderage-sexuality-human-right
Other Programs
Reflective Life Writing Workshop
Friday, Sept. 18, 3 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.
Denver Public Library has partnered with StoryCenter, a nonprofit that helps people find and tell stories from their lives, to create a supportive, online space where we can gather together as a community to share our personal struggles and joys and moments of resilience. StoryCenter facilitators will draw on their experience with trauma-informed methods to help participants tell and share their personal stories of life in these times. We will explore moments of daily experience that have challenged us and/or lifted our spirits. Register at storycenter.org/dpl-storytelling-webinar.
No Strings Attached Book Chat
Saturday, Sept. 19, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Read whatever you want and attend whenever you can. Share a recent read, an old favorite or anything in between. We continue to meet virtually every month. Call 720-865-0250 to find out more.
We Have Laptops!
Tuesday-Friday, noon-3 p.m.
Pauline Robinson Branch will have laptops set up outdoors for anyone to use, Tuesday through Friday, from noon to 3 p.m. Limited free printing is also available from these laptops. For more information, call the library at 720-865-0290.