Happy Independence Day!

Sharing Our Success!
We’re pleased to share two of Queens Library’s
recent award-winning successes with you!
Queens Library, along with our
partners at the Brooklyn Public Library
and the New York Public Library,
received a second place LibraryAware
Community Award in recognition
for our role in implementing IDNYC,
New York City’s new municipal
identification card. Working with
the Mayor’s Office for Immigrant
Affairs, Queens Library acted as a
main location where undocumented
immigrants, teens, and other New
Yorkers could easily register for this
new widely accepted alternative
identification card. As of January
2016, more than 250,000 people have
enrolled in IDNYC by visiting New York
City’s three public library systems.
We’re also proud to announce our
two grand prize winners in the NYC
Neighborhood Library Awards, the
Arverne and Glen Oaks community
libraries, and our outstanding finalist,
Far Rockaway!
The NYC Neighborhood Library Awards
recognize and reward public libraries
for being the unsung heroes of New
York—places where all are welcome,
the programs and resources are free,
and communities are supported and
enriched every day.
Thanks to the nominations and
stories shared by people in their
neighborhoods, Arverne and Glen Oaks
each received a grand prize of $20,000,
and Far Rockaway received a finalist
award of $10,000!
Here are some examples of the stories
community members shared about
these wonderful libraries:
•
John, a neighborhood resident,
husband, and parent, said that
“Arverne Library goes out of their way
to make us feel comfortable, and the
kids love going there after school. It
means a lot to us that we can send
our kids somewhere we feel they are
safe and the staff knows them. We are
disabled, so it means a lot to us. It is
like an extended family.”
•
An immigrant and neighborhood
resident stated that “Queens Library
at Glen Oaks gave me my first taste of
books. I moved to this country when
I was nine, and I learned English by
checking out book after book from this
library. I have been going to this library
for nearly two decades and the staff
members and the services have been
impeccable.”
•
Betty, a neighborhood resident, said
that after Hurricane Sandy, the Far
Rockaway library “became a beam of
light for the public. We held meetings
there, we looked for jobs there, we
consoled each other there, we used the
internet and so many more things that
others took for granted.”
Thank you again to our customers for
making these honors possible! ■
6 QUEENS LIBRARY MAGAZINE