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This week at the Library, you can join us at:

Library OnDemand – Available anytime you like.

Your doorway into live and archived programs. Arts & Culture, Career & Finance, Community Matters, Writers and more!

Personal Branding and Networking – Tuesday, July 19, 11 a.m. – noon

How do you present yourself? Join an ICG Professional Certified Coach as she talks about personal development, networking strategies, and ways to best highlight the qualities that make you an excellent employee and coworker.

Behavioral Interviewing  – Tuesday, July 19, 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.

Are you prepared to highlight your best qualities when answering questions about how you've handled situations in the past? Every interview includes at least a few behavioral interview questions – in this virtual workshop you will find out which are the most common and get tips on how to answer them.

Goal Setting and Time Management  – Wednesday, July 20, 10 – noon

This workshop will give you the skills and knowledge to identify how you currently use your time, identity your personal time management strengths and weaknesses, learn the dimensions of self-management of time and identify new habits you can implement to improve your personal time management.

Maintain Your Ride – Thursday, July 21, noon – 1:30 p.m.

Get your hands dirty and learn to keep your bike in tip-top shape with this free class from Johnson County Library and BikeWalkKC. Live and in-person at the bicycle fix-it stand in front of Central Resource Library, our instructors will teach you how to keep your bike in good working order with a few basic tools and some practical know-how. You will learn how to clean and lubricate your chain, fix a flat, adjust shifting and braking, and other basic bike maintenance skills. We’ll also show you how to use the Library’s bicycle fix-it stand. This is a hands-on class!

Music in the Movies Performance Workshop with Kansas City Civic Orchestra – Friday, July 22, 7 – 8 p.m.

Join us for this all ages performance workshop at Electric Park, featuring Jennifer Mitchell, Violinist for the KC Civic Orchestra. Tonight, we will listen and talk about music in movies! Come ready to smile, sing and groove to the sounds from some of your favorite films. A screening of the movie Free Willy will follow.

Movie in the Park: Free Willy – Friday, July 22, 8 – 10 p.m.

Grab a blanket, pack a picnic, and cool down with us at Electric Park for this 1990s classic. The Kansas City Civic Orchestra will kick-off at 7 pm prior to the showing which will start at dusk.

And much more happening this week »

John Siceloff joined Johnson County Library in March, in a new position created for a vital purpose.

His job is to help the Library system guard against hackers, malware attacks and other cybersecurity threats that are becoming more prevalent every day. He’s part of a larger team protecting data and beefing up cybersecurity in the parks department, law enforcement agencies, the courts and other Johnson County departments.

“The idea was to create a bigger cybersecurity footprint for the County as a whole,” Siceloff said. “The threat landscape continues to get worse and worse.”

He is dedicated to preventing and detecting unwanted intrusions and, if necessary, remediation and recovery. That means protecting confidentiality and integrity while maintaining availability of Library data for employees and patrons.

“Let the people safely access the information they need and keep the bad guys away,” he explained.

Siceloff brings a wealth of information technology experience to the job. Most recently, he had been working as a Johnson County government network supervisor for more than a year when he saw the Library posting.

“I thought that the job and the cultural environment of the Library looked fascinating,” he said. “It was an opportunity for me to get into the security field more deeply. In all of my other previous roles I dealt with IT security but it was not my primary focus.”

Plus, Siceloff has always loved Libraries. “My family goes to the Library all the time. I’m an avid reader and I’m a big believer in the Library mission.”

Siceloff’s career path includes other fascinating jobs in far-flung places. He grew up near Wichita, graduated from KU and did GIS work in Florida. Then he took a break from computers for a few years to run a scuba diving shop, providing master scuba diving training in Panama City Beach, Florida. He met people from all over the globe and shared with them the wonders of the underwater world.

He and his wife and growing family then traded the Gulf Coast for the wilds of Alaska, where he worked on the 911 system in Soldotna. Later, he worked at the University of Wyoming, first helping to modernize the technology for massive athletic facility upgrades, then becoming a system administrator for the whole university.

Wanting a more urban environment for their three children, Siceloff and his wife relocated to Johnson County, where they live in Lenexa. His oldest daughter recently got her pharmacy tech license and works in the area.

His son will be a junior at Shawnee Mission Northwest and is active in cross country, track and choir, including recently singing with a school choral group at Carnegie Hall. 

Siceloff’s youngest daughter will be a freshman at Shawnee Mission Northwest and is a competitive figure skater.

“They’ve actually loved the move,” Siceloff said of his family, noting that they are taking full advantage of the area’s cultural, sports and educational opportunities. They are also big Library users and frequent the Central branch, which is close to their home.

So far, Siceloff is thriving in his new job.

“In my opinion it’s going outstanding so far,” he said. “I think the biggest reason is the attitude of the staff and the management.” He said the Library’s top administrators are big believers in what he does and the importance of the work. “That makes my job very easy.”

It’s another grand Throwback Thursday where we encourage you to time travel through Johnson County's history. JoCoHistory is a collaborative presentation of the history from the Johnson County Museum, Johnson County Library and many JoCoHistory partners. Explore historical photographs and documents about the people, places and organizations of Johnson County, Kansas, from the 19th century to the present.

Collection spotlight: Lenexa Historical Society

About this collection: This collection is comprised of over 3,500 images relating to the history, development and people of Lenexa, Kansas. Particular strengths include area construction projects, photos of the Legler Barn Museum, the Lenexa Centennial celebration of 1969 and early landowners. The photographs were collected and maintained by the Lenexa Historical Society, who are headquartered at the Legler Barn Museum in Sar Ko Par Park.

After two years of celebrating virtually, Senia and Will Shields invite you to a party at the newly renovated Central Resource Library for 2022's Library Lets Loose, on Saturday, Sept. 17!   

The event is Johnson County Library Foundation’s signature fundraiser, and the Shieldses are this year’s honorary hosts. Guests will enjoy music, dancing, food and libations, all benefiting the lifelong learning programs the Library offers throughout Johnson County.   

“Once you become a lover of reading and a lover of books you understand the important role libraries play in our lives. Our libraries are constantly creating new opportunities for patrons,” Will said.   

Will Shields played 14 years for the Kansas City Chiefs and received numerous awards, including NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year, and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015. The Shieldses have made many contributions throughout the Kansas City community for more than 25 years, including the formation of the Will to Succeed Foundation in 1993. Senia says, “Literacy has been an important part of our work and we love the library resources. They open up new opportunities and are paramount for operating successfully in our world.”  

The Shieldses are excited to invite the community back for this special event! Early Bird tickets and more information about the event are available at LibraryLetsLoose.org.

This week at the Library, you can join us at:

Library OnDemand – Available anytime you like.

Your doorway into live and archived programs. Arts & Culture, Career & Finance, Community Matters, Writers and more!

Resume Tips to Get You Noticed – Monday, July 11, 10 – 11 a.m.

If you are struggling with creating a resume for your first job, re-entering the workplace, or making a career change this session is for you!

Silencing Your Inner Critic – Tuesday, July 12, 11 a.m. – noon

This workshop focuses on using positive self-talk and affirmations to help create a positive self-image. We also dig into how self-care is not selfish.

Friends of the Library Donation Drop-off – Saturday, July 16, 9 – 11 a.m.

Do you have gently used books to donate to the Friends? We hold Drive-up Donation Events every Saturday (except during inclement weather). Volunteers will be available to accept your donations on Saturdays from 9:00 am to 11:00 am at Friends Headquarters - 8279 Melrose Dr., Lenexa, KS 66214.

Young Adult Literary Council – Sunday, July 17, 2 – 3 p.m.

Teens are invited to join the Young Adult Literary Council to share favorite books, pick up advanced reader copies of teen books to read and review, and participate in other fun activities such as author visits, game days, event planning and more. You can meet new people and receive volunteer credit hours for your time with us. This program will be hosted in-person in Blue Valley's large meeting room.

And much more happening this week »

Teens are invited to join the Young Adult Literary Council to share favorite books, pick up advanced reader copies of teen books to read and review, and participate in other fun activities such as author visits, game days, event planning and more. You can meet new people and receive volunteer credit hours for your time with us.

Join the Young Adult Literary Council at Blue Valley Library »

Johnson County Library is using the new Juneteenth holiday to provide patrons with a vital history lesson.

The Library was pleased to collaborate with other community partners to raise awareness and enhance residents’ understanding of the holiday that marks the end of slavery in the United States.

“Understanding this holiday is important to our patrons, and we are doing what we can to create access to topics and materials around Juneteenth,” said Megan Mascorro-Jackson, Assistant Branch Manager at Lenexa City Center, who worked on the Library’s Juneteenth team.

The official county holiday was Monday June 20. It was preceded by Book Club discussions, Storytimes, Walk & Reads, lectures and other family-friendly events. 

Mascorro-Jackson said Library staffers are eager to highlight these important historical events for the community, with a rich collection of educational resources.

“It’s very important to a lot of people,” she said. “Boosting its signal has been super rewarding. The history is fascinating.”

Juneteenth, also known as “Emancipation Day,” or “Day of Freedom,” became an official national holiday in 2021. In October 2021, the Johnson County Board of Commissioners unanimously approved making it an observed county holiday, held for the first time on June 20, since June 19 fell on a Sunday.

Juneteenth (combining “June” and “nineteenth”) refers to the date when Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas in 1865. President Abraham Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, freeing the slaves of the Confederate states. But it took two more years for the Civil War to end and for Black people in Texas to learn the news. The first “Jubilee Day” was organized in Texas on June 19, 1866, launching the Juneteenth celebration tradition.

In Johnson County, a key commemoration event was June 11, when the Library teamed up with the Johnson County Arts & Heritage Center for a festival with art, music, food, storytelling and personal histories. The Library presented a special Walk & Read at the center, featuring the books Opal Lee and What It Means to Be Free, by Alice Faye Duncan, and Change Sings by poet Amanda Gorman.

Johnson County Museum also had free admission to its compelling exhibit, “REDLINED: Cities, Suburbs and Segregation,” which runs through Jan. 7, 2023.

Museum Director Mary McMurray said the June 11 event was a great opportunity to honor African American history in Johnson County and learn from it.

“I truly believe that when we study our past, we can learn so much to pave the way to a better future,” she said.

Jessica McCallop-McClellan, a June 11 guest speaker, said Juneteenth celebrates the freed slaves’ resilience and African American culture. Her great grandfather, Robert L. McCallop, started a bus company in Shawnee to take Black children to Wyandotte County because they were excluded from Johnson County schools. McCallop-McClellan urged her audience to teach children these stories of African American struggle and progress, and to support Black-owned businesses.   

The Library also held a special Juneteenth Storytime June 15, sharing stories and poems on African American heritage with acclaimed author Carole Boston Weatherford and her son, poet and illustrator Jeffery Boston Weatherford.

On June 19, the county held a day-long celebration on Johnson County Square. The Library’s Walk & Read was installed and remained in place until June 30.  The Library has also created booklists for patrons wanting to delve deeper into the topic. Much more information is available at jocogov.org/Juneteenth.