AUTHOR DONATES NEW BOOK to the WEST END LIBRARY FRIENDS

Posted on January 21, 2012 by WELF

    As busy as David Pietrusza is these days on the lecture and television talk show circuits, the noted author and historian nonetheless found time last week to donate a copy of his latest book, 1948, to the West End Library Friends—who in turn donated it to the West End branch.
    “It certainly was generous of him and the timing couldn’t be better,” said John Gizzi, the Chair of the Friends’ Outreach Committee:  noting that the presidential election year has begun and Pietruszas’s 1948 is the story of the election that year won by Harry Truman in a never-expected upset.
    Known as an historian and chronicler of presidential elections, Pietrusza has already written two books, 1920 and 1960, about the elections of those years and their impact on American history.  Both books sold well and have been widely reviewed, and the author is a much-sought-after subject for interviews on modern U.S. political history.  Recently, Pietrusza has been interviewed by Swedish Television on 9/11 and by the French publication LeFigaro on the New Hampshire presidential primary.
   In a sense, Pietrusza is a friend of the West End Library himself.  When he learned from an area resident that the West End Library’s only copy of 1920 was found missing two years ago, the New York-based author promptly sent a fresh one.

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TESTIMONY on the RE-DEVELOPMENT of the WEST END LIBRARY PROPERTY

Posted on January 15, 2012 by WELF

The testimony that follows the second paragraph was presented by Susan B. Haight on behalf of the Executive Committee of the West End Library Friends before the DC Zoning Commission.  Susan’s statement joined similar statements in support of the proposed EastBanc project by representatives of the Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2A, the Foggy Bottom Association, the West End Citizens Association and the West End Friends, among others.

Full information about the hearing before the Zoning Commission can be found on the ZC website at http://dcoz.dc.gov/services/zoning/commish.shtm.  On the ZC home page simply click the “Zoning Case Search” tab in the upper right-hand section of the screen; then type in “11-12” in the “Search Term” box and click “GO”; and then click “View Details” for Case Number 11-12 in the search results.

December 19, 2011 continued on January 5, 2012
Testimony of Susan B. Haight on Zoning Commission Case No. 11-12
EastBanc PUD in Square 37, District of Columbia

Good Evening Commissioners:

My name is Susan B. Haight and I live at 1111 23rd St., NW.  I am President of the West End Library Friends (WELF), and I am testifying on behalf of the Executive Committee of WELF which is in strong support of EastBanc’s Square 37 PUD (Zoning Case No. 11-12).

WELF is a non-profit organization, incorporated in 1990 under IRS Code Section 501(c) (3), to support the West End Library Branch, its various activities and programs.  It is registered with DC’s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs.  In 2011 our group had approximately 80 dues paying members almost all of whom live in the West End/Foggy Bottom neighborhood.

From 1990 to date WELF has been the only Friends’ group supporting the West End Library Branch.  I have been a member of WELF since 2005 and President since 2007.

In September, 2007, WELF established a Stakeholders Committee, made up of business and residential representatives of the West End, Foggy Bottom, and Dupont Circle neighborhoods.  The purpose of this Committee was to establish a set of principles to guide the quality, sustainability, integration, and functionality of a new or renovated West End Library Branch.  This group conducted a collaborative process that included a survey and a public meeting to gather input from local residents and other interested parties.  Our WELF Committee took into consideration the District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL) building program for branch libraries; the educational, enrichment, and service needs of the neighborhoods; the best use of resources and meeting rooms; and the need to maintain an efficient physical plant and optimum location.

The WELF Stakeholders Committee forwarded its final report on July 18, 2008, to the DCPL Board of Trustees and Chief Librarian, as well as to the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development, the DC Office of Planning, and the DC Council.  This report included comprehensive recommendations for an ideal branch library that contained recommendations for the footprint, the physical plant and its maintenance, and the exterior design of a new West End Library.

WELF realizes that some users of the West End Library may have a different point of view than ours, but we have been involved in this re-development process for many years.  Based on this extensive experience, we believe the EastBanc proposal provides the best opportunity for a new, revitalized library in West End.  We believe EastBanc has met the prescriptions and recommendation of the report of the WELF Stakeholders Committee.  As such, allow me to again say that we, the Executive Committee of WELF, strongly support EastBanc’s Square 37 PUD (Zoning Case No. 11-12).  Thank you for allowing me to present this statement.

Susan B. Haight

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2011 Trachtenberg Forum Biggest Ever

Posted on December 17, 2011 by WELF

     More than eighty students from a dozen high schools in Washington, DC, jammed the community meeting room at the West End Public Library on November 14th for the information forum on the Trachtenberg Scholarship program. This latest forum was “by far the biggest yet” in comparison to sessions that have been held since 2004–according to Susan Haight, president of the West End Library Friends, the current sponsor of these information sessions.
     For more than an hour, high school students and many parents asked questions of past Trachtenberg scholars, who have gone on to college, and of admissions officials from George Washington University, which offers the scholarship. The lively question-and-answer session covered topics ranging from what students wanted to be doing in ten years from now, to clubs and other campus activity available at GWU.
     Students in the DC Public Schools as well as in Charter Schools are eligible for Trachtenberg Scholarships, which are full scholarships. Candidates are nominated by their guidance counselors based on various pertinent factors which include leadership abilities and community service.
     As the turnout for the event at the West End Library clearly demonstrated, the Trachtenberg Scholarship program is going strong–as is the information forum that supports it. As Ms. Haight noted with some pride, “This forum has become a signature event for the West End Library Friends and one of the many community building programs that the Friends enthusiastically sponsor throughout the year.”

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