We're not scared of Halloween! In fact, we've got a number of Halloween and Day of the Dead events for children, teens, and families planned for the next two weeks. You can see full details on our calendar, but here's a selection:
- Today, October 25th, at 4:00 p.m. in the Edge — Which Craft Wednesday: Halloween Pumpkins
- Sunday, October 29th, at 2:00 p.m. in the Trove — TROVE @ the Movies: "The Book of Life"
- Monday, October 30th, at 11:00 a.m. AND 1:00 p.m. in the Trove — Mother Goose Time: "Halloween Fun!"
- Tuesday, October 31st, at 4:30 p.m. in the Trove — Stories & Stuff: "Halloween Fun!"
- Wednesday, November 1st, at 7:00 p.m. in the Trove — Bilingual Family Story Time: Day of the Dead
Brian Kenney |
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Thanks for Joining Us
Nearly 200 people attended the Foundation’s annual fall gala on the evening of October 21. The highlight of the evening was hearing the author Sloane Crosley who spoke with us about growing up in White Plains. Special thanks to the local businesses and individuals who made generous in-kind donations to support the event. Revenue raised through the Gala helps fund innovative Library programs and services throughout the year.
Left: A celebration in the Hub
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Local Hero: Rosa Kittrell
 Rosa Kittrell worked hard to redefine the way we view and treat the most vulnerable members of society. Through her tireless activism, personal struggles with mental illness, and belief in the power of education, Kittrell developed a motto: “Others, Lord, others.” Like so many black women in America, Kittrell was intersectional in her activism before anyone ever heard of that term. She recognized the ways sexism, racism, class oppression, and stigmatization of mental illness operated to prevent her from obtaining help and fulfilling her dreams. Although she was not subtle about her frustration with systemic oppression and the ignorance of individuals, she spent most of her time engaged in helping others and trying to expand the boundaries of people’s compassion. She worked with a psychiatrist from Grasslands Hospital to create one of the most prominent and effective mental health reform organizations in the country during the 1940s. In 1945, Kittrell established the Carver Community center to serve young people in downtown White Plains. In 1952, she founded the Kittrell Nursery School for the children of working mothers. Its original location, at 60 West Post Road, was a storefront space. She passed away in 1967.
For the full story on Rosa Kittrell, visit the library's blog.
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This Week in White Plains
Are you looking to have a spooktacularly good time with your family this week? Then you might want to attend the Frightfully Fun Festival & Parade on Sunday, October 29. The event starts at Noon and will feature a corn maze, magic show, costume competition, and much more!
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Books Big & Beautiful
Near the Library’s Welcome Desk is a bookcase marked "Big & Beautiful." These are oversized books that we’ve purchased because they’re beautiful, present an aspect of the world in a new way, or inspire the imagination. Take a Break from the screen, relax, browse, dream…you can even borrow them if you’re strong enough to lug them home! 
Vermeer in Detail by Gary Schwartz (2017)
Savor Vermeer's 37 paintings in a way you never could in the hurried crush of a crowded museum. 120 sensuously detailed sections of his works are accompanied by commentary on the biographical, religious, and social forces shaping this artist’s work.
 Skyscrapers: A History of the World’s Most Extraordinary Buildings by Judith Dupre (2013)
Look Up! Motivated by worship, commerce, nationalist pride, technological competition, and even energy conservation, we have been impelled to build big and tall. Focusing on an originally American form, Skyscrapers covers 19th century iconic buildings from Chicago and New York all the way to Jeddah Tower in Saudi Arabia, slated to be the tallest building in the world. Each left page: the who-what-when-where facts of a particular structure. The right: an elegant, slim photo of the subject.
Kerry James Marshall: Mastry by James Kerry Marshall (2017)
Did you miss the largest museum retrospective of James Kerry Marshall at the Met Breuer earlier this year? Catch up with this handsome Rizzoli book. A master of representational and figurative painting, Marshall has been chronicling the everyday lives of African Americans for the past 35 + years. Called one of the great “history painters” of our time, his mission is to bring black bodies and stories into the museum mainstream. “I had never seen a grand epic narrative painting with black figures in it, and that’s the kind of painting that I became interested in making,” Marshall said.
 Plant: Exploring the Botanical World (2016)
Given plants’ importance in our lives as food, medicine, religious symbol, and object of beauty or scientific inquiry, to name a few roles, it’s no wonder plants have been represented worldwide—in all media—from prehistoric times to the present. Over 300 stupendous reproductions of botanical art include contributors as varied as Georgia O’Keefe, Carl Linnaeus, John James Audubon, and Ogata Korin. |
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Help for At Risk Homeowners
Through a grant from the New York State Attorney General’s Office, the City of White Plains has partnered with Westchester Residential Opportunities (WRO) to provide outreach, education and counseling services to homeowners at risk of losing their home. These are residents who may be concerned about making their next mortgage payment, are in foreclosure proceedings, or are experiencing mortgage default. The purpose of this initiative is to help people stay in their homes and eliminate the creation of zombie homes that may become potential sources of blight in the community.
WRO is a U.S. Housing and Urban Development approved Housing Counseling Agency conveniently located in the City of White Plains. WRO specializes in providing education and counseling to homeowners at risk of losing their homes. There are special programs that have been created by the New York State Attorney General’s Office to help homeowners, and WRO can help facilitate access to them for at-risk  homeowners. WRO’s counselors are highly skilled and trained to intervene in these kinds of cases.
Please contact WRO’s office at (914) 428-4507 or email them at info@wroinc.org to schedule an appointment. WRO staff will work directly with your lender to negotiate a beneficial outcome tailored to a homeowner’s unique situation. The counseling services are free and can be arranged to accommodate the homeowner’s schedule.
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Photo of the Week
We want your photos! In each issue of This Week on Martine we will feature one patron submitted photo that was taken in White Plains. To submit your photography for a chance to be featured, visit our photo submission page, upload one of your photos and fill out our form with a short description of the photo and your name.
Left: Bulldogs spotted at The Westchester Mall. Photo by Christiane Deschamps.
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