4 posts tagged “olympia timberland library”

I know I haven't posted in forever, but I'll get to all of that stuff later.  For now, here's a video of a great event that happened recently in my town.  On March 29th, over 800 local volunteers planted 1,007 trees in one day across Olympia.  The planting event concluded with a big party at my library.  If you watch the whole thing, you'll see my boss Cheryl speaking towards the end.  I will admit that I get bored with the occasional sleepiness of life in Olympia, but events like the 1000 Trees in One Day project serve to remind me of how lucky I am to be a part of this community.  Enjoy...

One of my library's most valued movers and shakers died last week.  She was notorious for her tireless library advocacy, and I am of the opinion that our library would not be the success it is today without her hand in it.  She was ill for a long time, so it was time to go, but she will be missed.  All of my seasoned coworkers who have been with the library for eons consistently spoke of her in hushed, respectful tones.  I never had the opportunity to meet her, and now I never will.  Farewell, Peggy.  You done good in this life.

Elegant lady touted virtues of libraries

Breanne Coats
The Olympian
Margaret “Peggy” Coppinger, 87, of Lacey, a long-time local librarian, died Wednesday.

“You could never say anything bad about her,” Coppinger’s daughter, Holly Hill, 50, of Lacey said.
While raising three adopted daughters, including Hill, Coppinger earned a University of Washington master’s degree in library science and was director at the Olympia Timberland Regional Library for 15 years.

A former co-worker, Coke Funkhouser, 71, of Olympia said Coppinger worked hard to get the bond that moved the library from a Carnegie building at Seventh Avenue and Franklin Street to its current location on Eighth Avenue and Franklin in 1978.

Funkhouser said Coppinger made a difference.
“She just made you glad to be a woman,” Funkhouser said. “She was an elegant lady.”
During World War II, Coppinger became a Navy WAVE and met her husband, Tom, while she was doing intelligence work in Washington, D.C., Tom Coppinger was in the Royal Canadian Artillery and fought during D-Day. He died in 1981.

Hill said Coppinger is survived by her daughters, seven grandchildren and numerous great-grandchildren. She spent the last 10 years as a resident at Panorama retirement community in Lacey.

Hill said her mother set a good example for people to use their community services, such as the library.
“She was a book lover,” Hill said. “She worked with them and enjoyed them.”
Hill said her mother requested to not have a funeral, but a celebration will be Sept. 9 from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Olympia library.

My pictures came out kind of crappy because either my camera sucks or the library is a photography black hole zone or I am a terrible photographer (most likely this option), but here are a few of them.  I have lots of pictures of Cleo's friends that I'm afraid to post lest their parents object.  The rest of the stuff can be found here.

Well, Harry and the Potters played at our library last night, and pretty much rocked the house.  Here is a little snippet of video towards the end of the show...

Cleo was very adorably fangirl and got a few pictures of her and her friends with the Potters.  At least 200 people showed up, with ages ranging from 2 to 70.  One of my friends said "I'll never think about the library in the same way!"  It was quite an event.  Accordingly, this morning, I'm very tired.