[Summit] Miriam Hospital patients' library

[David Kolsky]

Hi, 

I just got out yesterday afternoon from four-and-a-half days at the Miriam Hospital (thus giving your long-suffering in-boxes a temporary respite).

¶ While this is especially directed at volunteers for Miriam and for the Rochambeau Library (or both), it's also addressed to anyone else in the area, which could be as big as the East Side if not bigger.

What serves currently as the patients' library is a small metal cart with three bookshelves on either side, but only about one and a half of those six shelves has any books or magazines at all.

The selection is pretty thin: a few classics like Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White and King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard, but also rather limited tomes such as a history of the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century to 1808, or of American involvement in the Middle East from 1967 to 1976.

This seemed ironic since it's only a few weeks since the Friends of Rochambeau were holding a $5/bag general book sale, with whatever's left over going to charity, schools and non-profits.

So a very modest donation to the Friends at the Fall Book Sale in October could greatly enliven the choices for in-patients—not all of whom have nearby family—stuck in bed all day and slowly going mad from boredom.

¶ I live on Federal Hill, nowhere near either Miriam or Rochambeau, so I can't undertake to organize anything myself. But perhaps someone who does live or work nearby could. 

And if the Friends, for some reason, can't take your donations of surplus, duplicate or extra books, maybe the Miriam could be a worthy alternate destination.

Have a good week,

Dave