Dear Safranim, While you were able to go to the AJL convention in Brooklyn, I was spending my time getting to know Jewish librarians all over Israel. Thanks to a synagogue tour that my family and I attended for 2 weeks, I was able to meet various librarians. We then spent an extra week touring the country and met more. Our trip was spectacular, of course!
My first encounter was at a Masorti synagogue in Zefat. The owner of the building (and librarian for the small collection), was very interested in AJL, but not a member. It was good to be able to help her (although Shabbat prohibited either of us from connecting at that moment!). My next encounter was with a school librarian (AJL member) at Neve Michael near Hadera (a fabulous library even though in a too small space). We were doing a mitzvah project at this school/home for abused kids. Nurit Fridlis had a great collection! Next, I was in Yerucham at the Bamidbar project with the librarian there. Although I didn't get to spend much time with her, it was obvious that she had a great collection. We also visited the Conservative Yeshiva in Jerusalem. There I found not a library, but a collection that needed better shelves. Although the books weren't categorized, they were definitely used! Finall! y, I was touring the Israel Museum with my husband and son. There we happened upon a librarian (AJL member!) who was demonstrating a CD-ROM program that included every article in their Judaica collection. She was as thrilled to meet a "Safranit" as I was! I took her e-mail and am in the process of connecting her to HaSafran. The best encounter was the Book Fair! My brain couldn't process all of the book titles (almost exclusively in Hebrew) that were on display at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. Nor could I fathom the amount of men, women, and children who were literally packed around the booths. If you are familiar with the Museum, think of books from the cafeteria into the main entrance of the museum. (and not in straight lines, either!) I was so overwhelmed that I literally couldn't make up my mind! What a great thing! But, Rabbi Daniel Gordis (who spoke to our group) said it best by speaking about the Book Fair and how only in Israel would you have school field trips to the Book Fair (I didn't tell him that our day school does that, too! We just don't have as many books!). His point was that Israelis not only want books, they desperately need them! Just think how 56 years ago there was not even an inkling of a Hebr! ew Book Fair! It was truly inspiring. Our rabbi likes to write multiple choice quizzes for our synagogue events (Shavuot, Tu B'Shevat, etc.). One of his questions to our group (he couldn't resist) was: "Who said 'Oh, look, another Jewish library!'?" Answer: Me! So, although I didn't get to hear the great speakers, see the book publishers, or meet with friends at the convention, I did have my own Jewish library encounter. I'll be in Oakland next year (Fred knows I wouldn't miss it!). Forgive me for using HaSafran to tell you all of this, but I don't have a blog site! I just needed to share! Susan Pankowsky West End Synagogue Library Nashville, TN Susan Pankowsky <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]>[EMAIL PROTECTED] Messages and opinions expressed on Hasafran are those of the individual author and are not necessarily endorsed by the AJL =========================================================== Submissions for Ha-Safran, send to: Hasafran @ lists.acs.ohio-state.edu SUBscribing, SIGNOFF commands send to: Listproc @ lists.acs.ohio-state.edu Questions, problems, complaints, compliments;-) send to: galron.1 @ osu.edu Ha-Safran Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/hasafran%40lists.acs.ohio-state.edu/maillist.html AJL HomePage http://www.JewishLibraries.org
