Library News

In June 2011, the University Librarian commissioned a review of the William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections.  The review was triggered by the retirement of the Division’s Director, Dr. Carl Spadoni, after many years of distinguished service.

Reviewers Dr. Ken Cruikshank (Department of History) and Vivian Lewis (Associate University Librarian, Organizational Development), interviewed faculty, senior university administrators, library staff and external experts.  The final report calls upon the Division to build on strengths.  The reviewers propose thirty five recommendations for change covering collections, University Archive, services, staff and space.   For more details, please see the executive summary of the report.
 

The annual McMaster Toy and Food Drive, hosted by the Libraries, has long been a tradition, dating back over 30 years. The drop boxes for donations have become a familiar sight over the years, at first in the Libraries and now at many other McMaster locations both on-campus and off-campus. In addition, many departments start up a drive in their own areas, which contributes greatly. A big thank you is due to everyone in the McMaster community for helping make the Drive very successful again this year.

All donations go directly to the Christmas Bureau of the local Salvation Army, and is greatly appreciated by the families we are able to assist at this time of year. The downtown Hamilton Salvation Army and their clients are very grateful for the help.

A few years ago, the Toy Drive expanded to include non-perishable food items and pet items, and both have proven to be very popular. Denise Johnson, a volunteer on the Toy Drive Committee, states "We thought that an obvious choice for donations would be non-perishable food items, and we're very pleased with the donations that are received, it's really a help to the families in need, especially at this time of year!" Sylvia Dion, another volunteer, says "The pet items have been very popular--children love to give their pets a new item or food for Christmas. We've received great feedback from the clients regarding the pet donations."

Once again, a sincere thank you to everyone for their thoughtful donations, and here's hoping for another successful Drive next year!

The Toy Drive Committee

The University Library is pleased to announce that a new biography of John Connell (John Henry Robertson) has been published.

Penned by noted U.K. author Robin Bryer, the book, Jack: A Literary Biography of John Connell (John Henry Robertson 1909-1965), tells the story of Connell's travels through British politics and society, detailing his diverse career as an author, journalist, and broadcaster, and the figures of politics and government that he encountered on the journey.

This new study of Connell's life is based on research using the personal archive of John Connell held by the Library's William Ready Division of Archives and Research Collections. The archive consists of more than eight meters of records created by Connell over the course of his career, including more than 14,000 pieces of correspondence from all corners of the British Empire. Fully open to researchers, the John Connell fonds is described in detail on the Library's website and will be of interest to both literary scholars and researchers of the Depression, World War II, and post-war periods of British history.

Jack: A Literary Biography is available in the Library's collection at Mills or for purchase at AuthorHouse and Amazon.

McMaster's Libraries are pleased to once again host this year's Annual Toy and Food drive, in support of the Hamilton chapter of the Salvation Army's Christmas Bureau. The bureau collects and distributes new toys, non-perishable food items as well as goods for family pets, for their clients in need of assistance in our community. The generous donations from McMaster students, staff and faculty are of great assistance to those less fortunate, particularly at this time of year.

According to Major Bill King of the Salvation Army, there are over 2,200 families in need of assistance at his one branch alone this year. Lisa Burrows, the co-ordinator for the Community and Family Services of the Christmas Bureau, informs us that this is a substantial increase over previous years. Kerry Jay, a Toy Drive volunteer from Mills Library, says: "It seems that the numbers of needy families have increased quite a bit each year over the past five years, but we've always done very well with donations during the drive. The generosity of the campus community is greatly appreciated by the people who really need the assistance."

The annual Toy and Food Drive began at Mills Library in the 1970's, and has expanded over the years to include several other on-campus and off-campus locations. Throughout the decades, the event has relied on volunteers from many areas of the University to co-ordinate the organization of the Drive. It has become a long-standing tradition at McMaster that demonstrates the compassion and generosity of the university community.

This years' event includes donations of new toys or gift cards for children up to the age of 16, non-perishable food items, and items for the family pet. All donated goods go directly to the families and their pets.

The collection bins can be found at the following locations:

• all campus libraries
• the Downtown Centre
• the service kiosks at the Mary Keyes and Commons buildings, and
• the MSU office in the Student Centre

Donations will be accepted until Sunday, December 18. Thank you to the staff in the drop-off areas for their assistance in coordinating this year's event, and thank you to the McMaster community for continued support of this worthy cause.

For further information, please contact Sylvia Dion, Kerry Jay or Denise Johnson at 905-525-9140 ext. 22077, Debbie Trebych at ext. 24053, or Muriel McKay at ext. 26970.