NARA Virtual Genealogy Fair

The National Archives has great information about records available for Genealogical Research. For the next three days they are hosting a Virtual Genealogy Fair on You Tube. Just go to You Tube and search Virtual Genealogy Fair. They are finishing up the Intro to Genealogy now. Next up is Preserving Your Personal Records at 11:00. The sessions will be available for viewing on You Tube after the fair is over.

Saturday Book Discussion Group

We had a nice discussion about the book "The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars" this morning touching on such topics as the flavor of chocolate, advertising, corporate secrecy, company towns, food sanitation and management styles. Next month's book is "The Light Between Oceans" by M.L. Stedman. We will meet on November 29th at 11 am. Anyone interested is welcome to attend.

Value of Library Services

How much does your library save you? Try the Library Value Calculator at http://www.ilovelibraries.org/getinformed/getinvolved/calculator to see how much the services would cost if you were paying for them.

Our Children, Our Future Candidate Forum

If you didn't make it to the candidate forum Thursday evening, you missed a really interesting evening. Candidates for the Senate seat from District 1 and the House seats from District 1 and 2 were invited to share their feelings on issues affecting WV children. Those attending included State Senator Fitzsimmons, District 2 Delegate Diserio, District 3 Delegate Ferns who is now a candidate for WV State Senate, Ryan Weld who is a candidate for the WV House of Representatives District 2, and Mark Zatezalo also a candidate for the WV House of Representatives District 1. Due to another commitment, Pat McGeehan, candidate for the WV House of Representatives District 1 sent a representative to read his comments. Each candidate was allowed to respond to several questions prepared by the Our Children, Our Future coalition.

We also heard from Aerica West, VISTA volunteer serving at the Weirton Christian Center about the trythiswv.com website to promote a healthier WV and the community garden project that was started this summer.

The audience was given time to discuss 20 policy issues affecting children in our state. Those attending will be give a chance to help select those issues that they feel should be a priority for Our Children, Our Future to work on this year. The issues considered included:

• Reducing Unfair Barriers to Employment of People with Criminal Records
• Buy American
• Domestic Violence Unemployment Compensation
• Earned Sick Days
• Erin’s Law: Curbing Child Sexual Abuse
• Foster Kid’s Bill of Rights
• Family Support Programs: Protect and Provide their Secure Funding Stream
• In-Home Family Education
• Juvenile Justice Reform
• Medicaid Mental Health Therapy
• Ramp It Up: A Healthy Foods Initiative
• Removing Barriers to Better Health for WV Families
• STOP Meth Labs
• Substance Abuse Funding
• Supporting West Virginia Farmer’s Market Growth
• Tobacco Tax
• Voluntary Employee Retirement Accounts
• Worker-Owned Cooperatives
• Workforce Development
• Workplace Bullying

We would like to thank everyone who attended this event, particularly the candidates for taking time out of their busy schedules. Hearing each candidate's response to these questions gave a clearer perspective of their viewpoints and some insight into who they are as people and candidates.

Library Levy

The Hancock County Library levy will be on the ballot in November. The wording says it is to "authorize additional levies" The legalities require that it be worded this way, but this levy will maintain the level of the funding the libraries in Hancock County have been receiving for the last few years. There is no change. The levy must pass with 60% of the vote for the Hancock County Libraries to continue to receive funding from the county. Every vote counts. Any money libraries receive from the state is dependent on local funding. Libraries that have a decrease in local funding may also have state funding cut. Today is the last day to register to vote!

Our Children, Our Future

The Our Children, Our Future Fall Candidate Forum will be held this Thursday at the library beginning at 5:30. This forum is one of several taking place across the state, as part of the Our Children, Our Future Campaign and is co-sponsored by the Brooke Hancock Family Resource Network, WVU Extension Services, Weirton Library, and the Healthy Kids and Families Coalition. These forums bring together community members, advocates, agency officials, and families to learn about the policy issues that the Campaign will focus on in the 2015 legislative session. We would like to encourage everyone to attend. The following candidates have made a commitment to attend: Fitzsimmons, Ferns, Disero, Weld, McGeehan, and Zatezalo. Snacks and activities for children will be provided.

November Polling places for Brooke and Hancock Counties

If you have not registered to vote, you only have one week left to register for the November election.

From last Thursday's Bluegrass Performance. Players are from left: Bob Swartzmiller, Darrell Henline, Pat Lynskey, and Beth Cook

National Archives Virtual Genealogy Fair

On October 28, 29, and 30, the National Archives is having a Virtual Genealogy Fair. Over the course of the three day event, they will broadcast 17 workshops live over YouTube. Anyone interested may view the event from their home computer at no cost. The library wants to make this event accessible to everyone, so we will open our lower level computer lab and display the event on the large screen in that room.  The following is a schedule of workshop topics and their times: