From quilts to performances to a scholarly presentation to baseball
 
(Long Island, N.Y.) The Elmont Memorial Library, located at 700 Hempstead Turnpike in Elmont, is pleased to announce a host of events in commemoration of Black History Month during February.  As always, there is no charge to attend.
 
According to Maggie Gough, Library Director, “Each year, the Library plans meaningful and unusual events in February to celebrate Black History Month. I am reminded of a quote attributed to Booker T. Washington: ‘Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.’ Our plans for Black History month this year include events and programs as diverse as the African Diaspora and represent the tenets reflected in Washington’s quotation.”
 
Viewing available the entire month of February, during Library hours
Ebony Quilters will display their magnificent works at the Library. Founded in 1993, the group started with only ten members.  Now fifty-five members strong, this African American quilting guild fosters and teaches the tradition of quilting as well as other related crafts and art forms.  With members ranging in age from teens to women in their 90s, Ebony Quilters live by the motto “Each One, Teach One.” On Sunday, February 20th from 2:00 – 4:00 PM, a reception will be held in honor of Ebony Quilters.
 
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 13 @ 2:00 PM IN THE THEATRE AT THE ELMONT MEMORIAL LIBRARY: “THE PEOPLE OF CLARENDON COUNTY” – A Play by Ossie Davis & the Answer to Racism!
An educational performance event for all ages based on the book edited by journalist and Aesthetic Realism Associate Alice Bernstein, this remarkable production depicts Black parents in South Carolina who risked death to fight for “equal” education, leading to the historic Supreme Court ruling, Brown v. Board of Education.
 
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 27 @ 2:00 PM:  THE ROLE OF BLACK SEAMEN IN THE TRADITIONAL 19th CENTURY WHALING INDUSTRY
The Library presents a slide-illustrated lecture, “The Role of Black Seamen in the Traditional 19th Century Whaling Industry.” The program, presented by award-winning educator and naturalist Mickey Maxwell Cohen, includes his own exciting projection slides and extraordinary black and white photographs taken by Robert Cushman Murphy, noted Long Island naturalist, along with an exhibit of whale items, tools and more. 
 
In addition, the last few days of Pride & Passion: The African-American Baseball Experience coincide with the beginning of Black History Month.
 
VISIT THE PRIDE & PASSION EXHIBIT – OPEN DURING ALL LIBRARY HOURS IN THE GALLERY
This 1,000 sq. ft. national traveling exhibition chronicles the remarkable history of baseball’s Negro leagues and the challenges and successes of African-American baseball players. Bring your camera!
 
FREE LIVE Theatre Performance of “Jackie Robinson: My Story” starring Stephen Hill – Saturday, February 5 @ 2:00 PM IN THE THEATRE
“Jackie Robinson: My Story,” winner of the Best Picture Award at the 2010 Long Island International Film Expo, has been adapted for the stage in conjunction with “Pride and Passion: The African-American Baseball Experience.”
 
“BOTTOM OF THE NINTH”: PRIDE AND PASSION CLOSING RECEPTION – Saturday, February 5 @ 3:30 PM
Closing ceremony and activities as the Library bids farewell to this outstanding exhibition as it moves to other libraries across the country.