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December 11, 2003
Street Talk by Shari Kaplan
With the closure of the Almaden Valley branch library
on Dec. 14, please share some thoughts about what you use the library
for, what you like or what you'll miss. (Asked at the Almaden Library)
(The Almaden Valley branch library is closing Dec. 14; it will
be rebuilt as a larger complex (along with the Almaden Community
Center) by 2006. In the meantime, the new Vineland branch library
on Blossom Hill Road will be available in early 2004, with many
of Almaden's materials lining its shelves.)
“I come here to check out Chinese storybooks for my kids,
and also videotapes. I also check out various books for myself.
They have as much as I can read! My kids go to the San Jose Chinese
School here in Almaden Valley, and I'm the principal, so we are
in town here every Saturday. We don't have a lot of Chinese materials
at the Monterey libraries.”
Hway-Jen Chen, 43
Monterey
San Jose Chinese School principal
“I wish it wasn't closing, because I like to go around on
my bike, and the other libraries are too far. I remember one time
I came here and found five or six new books I hadn't read, so I
grabbed them all and checked them out. This library is usually a
good place for research, too. I also like that we can check out
videos for seven days. It's like going to Blockbuster, but it's
free!”
Megan Stiller, 14
Almaden Valley
High school student
“In 1976 or 1977 they had a community room here where I took
a writing class taught by Erna Holyer. She's been a teacher with
the [Santa Clara County] Metropolitan Education District since the
‘70s. The class was how to write for fun and profit. I enjoyed
it a lot—I definitely got the full value from it! The new
Vineland library is actually closer to my home, so I like that.”
Rosemarie Niles, 73
Cambrian
Freelance writer
“I like borrowing the Indian movies. You have to wait a long
time for Indian movies in video stores, but here you can get them
right away. Also, when my computer was down, I'd come here to check
my e-mail. I know my 4-year-old son will be missing the children's
videos. They also have a really good kid's story time here; my wife
was impressed with how the story time was conducted.”
Soumen Ghosh, 46
Almaden Valley
Vice president of engineering, software company
“I like the library because when I can't find my favorite
book at my school library, I can find it here. My favorite books
are fantasy, and they have a lot. I also check out biographies for
school reports. Sometimes I check out books on tape; we're going
to stock up on tapes before we go to Canada on a car trip. I also
remember coming here for the summer reading programs.”
Valerie Koo, 10
Almaden Valley
Elementary school student
“I come here mainly to get books and videos. I like to rent
travel videos; sometimes there's good foreign ones too. I also like
history, especially historical books on World War II and on old
railroads. I'm interested in woodcarving and I get a lot of books
on that subject, too. I don't read much fiction, though. When this
library closes, I think I'll go to the Santa Teresa branch over
by Kaiser Hospital.”
Erik Sorensen, 75
Almaden Valley
Retired electro-mechanic
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