The Heart of the Three Village Community
Category: News Items
Emma Clark Officially a Family Place Library
Setauket, NY – April 30, 2025 –
Emma Clark has been formally approved as part of The Family Place Libraries™ national network, which emphasizes play-based learning as an essential tool to early childhood development, particularly for those families with young children ages one to three years old.
The Children’s Department at Emma Clark began the process to become certified as a Family Place Library in late 2024, which included extended training for librarians beyond their library schooling. These workshops were taught by child development experts and Family Place Trainers and served as a good refresher regarding building pre-reading skills and helped to spark new ideas for learning through play. The training also focused on supporting parents and caregivers by connecting them with resources and professionals, as well as providing engaging programming opportunities.
“I am excited to be a part of the Family Place initiative which provides a framework for expanding my role as a librarian in connecting with young children, parents and caregivers and facilitating the support they need,” says Marcela Lenihan, one of the children’s librarians who attended the training.
Literacy begins at birth. At birth, only 25% of a newborn’s brain is developed, but by five years old, the brain is 90% wired. Young children learn about themselves and the world around them though play, and this “important work” is what prepares them for their future of intellectual development (reading, math, and science), as well as their social and emotional development.
Although Emma Clark already had many of the initiatives in place such as board and picture books, puzzles, a train table, and a coloring spot, in the past year they added more imaginative toys to the Children’s Library, such as dramatic play items (kitchen, market, dress-up clothes, etc.). Looking ahead, Brian Debus, the Head Children’s Librarian, is hoping to add more toys geared towards infants, as well as more comfortable seating for parents, grandparents, and caregivers.
“By joining this initiative, we’re investing in early learning, parent engagement, and community connection, ensuring every child and family gets the best possible start in life,” remarked Mr. Debus.
Furthermore, the children’s librarians are working to fine-tune the already well-established Parent/Toddler Workshop by including community resource professionals at the program on a regular basis. This weekly workshop for children ages 18 months – 3.5 years old and their caregivers has always focused on open play, sharing, and connections with other parents and caregivers. It will now include specialists – such as pediatric nutritionists, speech pathologists, social workers, and child development experts – so that parents and caregivers may speak one-on-one with professionals and ask questions in a comfortable, informal setting. This program not only aids in the child’s development, but it helps parents and caregivers to feel less isolated and gives them an increased sense of community belonging. The librarians also plan on offering more handouts from reputable organizations on parenting and childhood development, making the information easily accessible to patrons.
The Family Place Libraries™ model is now in over 500 libraries in 32 states serving thousands of young children and their parents/caregivers. Emma S. Clark Memorial Library is proud to officially be among this nationwide network.
The mission of Family Place Libraries™ is to increase the capacity of libraries throughout the nation to recognize and realize their full potential as community hubs for healthy child and family development, parent and community involvement and lifelong learning beginning at birth.
The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and on the web at www.emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District.
“The Heart of the Three Village Community”
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Winners of the 11th Annual Helen Stein Shack Picture Book Contest Honored
Setauket, NY – April 8, 2025 –
On Monday evening, Board members and staff of Emma Clark Library, along with the family of the late Helen Stein Shack, local elected officials, and representatives from the Three Village Central School district, honored teens at the 11th annual Helen Stein Shack Picture Book Award:
First Prize (Grades 7 – 9 category): Benny and the Lost Balloon by Yen Lo (8th grader at Murphy Junior High School)
First Prize (Grades 10 – 12 category): What’s a Friend? by Joyce Lee (10th grader at Ward Melville High School)
Second Prize (Grades 7 – 9 category): Dinky by Athie Kim (8th grader at Murphy Junior High School)
Second Prize (Grades 10 – 12 category): Kitty and Fish by Elizabeth Wright (10th grader at Ward Melville High School)
Library Director Ted Gutmann, along with the family of the late Helen Stein Shack, presented the winners’ books – bound and added to the Library’s Local Focus Collection – along with $400 checks to first prize winners Yen Lo and Joyce Lee and $100 checks for second prize winners Athie Kim and Elizabeth Wright. Mr. Gutmann remarked, “The artwork in all of them and the stories are just great.”
Suffolk County Legislator Steven Englebright, Brookhaven Town Supervisor Dan Panico, and a staff member from Assemblywoman Rebecca Kassay’s office were in attendance, and they presented certificates to the winners. The winners also received certificates from New York State Senator Anthony Palumbo and Brookhaven Town Councilman Jonathan Kornreich.
The award is named in honor of Helen Stein Shack, whose family approached the Library with the idea of establishing an endowment as a tribute to their mother, a teacher and lover of libraries, especially Emma Clark Library. Their gift covers the cost of the awards and passes along Ms. Shack’s joy of reading and lifelong learning to future generations. Ed Taylor, Ms. Stein Shack’s son, told the guests that when he reflected on the contest, he thought of what he called the 3 C’s:
The first being creativity, of course. If you go look at the books, the first thing that strikes you is the artistic talent of these kids…they’re also very creative at storytelling. It’s not easy to invent your own story and even more difficult to invent a story and tell it in language of kids that are 10 to 12 years younger than you are…The second “C” is courage. Even though you have all that talent, it’s still not easy to put your stuff out there and have it judged by others…I didn’t have a third “C” so I thought and I thought, and then it hit me – cash!
Mr. Taylor’s gesture to the large checks beside him, which were given out to the winners later in the ceremony, received a chuckle from the audience.
Three Village Central School District Board President Susan Megroz Rosenzweig proudly addressed the winners, “You came up with a wonderful story, you created beautiful art, and then you gave us the gift of joyful reading.”
Library Board President David Douglas, Treasurer Suzanne Shane, Secretary Angeline Yeo-Judex, and Trustee Linda Josephs were there to congratulate the winners. In addition to Susan Megroz Rosenzweig, Superintendent Kevin Scanlon, Assistant Superintendent Brian Biscari, Ward Melville High School Principal John Holownia, Murphy Junior High School Principal Michael Jantzen, Ward Melville High School English Department Chairperson Joanna Cadolino, and Murphy English Teachers Tina Costanza and Deidre Murphy were all in attendance.
Guests enjoyed sweets by The Bite Size Bake Shop, a local Three Village-owned business that has been donating desserts to the ceremony since the contest began.
When Supervisor Dan Panico spoke, he emphasized the importance of libraries and reading and commented, “To think that these books may be read by children themselves or perhaps by parents to their children and may end up being the books that children who go into adolescence and adulthood will remember, to me is something that is remarkable.”
The Helen Stein Shack Book Contest calls for teens in grades 7 through 12 who live in the Three Village Central School District to create a children’s picture book. Each entry could be the work of a single author/illustrator or a collaborative effort between an author and an illustrator. The contest was divided into two grade categories, grades 7 through 9 and grades 10 through 12, with one First Prize Winner and one Second Prize Winner selected from each group.
To sum up the value of libraries and seeing our extraordinary youth through this annual contest, Legislator Steve Englebright stated, “You gave us a chance to preview the future.”
The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and on the web at www.emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District.
“The Heart of the Three Village Community”
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Winners Announced for the Annual Helen Stein Shack Picture Book Contest
Setauket, NY – March 6, 2025 –
Emma Clark Library has announced the winners for the 11th annual Helen Stein Shack Picture Book Contest:
First Prize (Grades 7 – 9 category): Benny and the Lost Balloon by Yen Lo (8th grader at Murphy Junior High School)
First Prize (Grades 10 – 12 category): What’s a Friend? by Joyce Lee (10th grader at Ward Melville High School)
Second Prize (Grades 7 – 9 category): Dinky by Athie Kim (8th grader at Murphy Junior High School)
Second Prize (Grades 10 – 12 category): Kitty and Fish by Elizabeth Wright (10th grader at Ward Melville High School)
Each of the winning entries has their own unique artwork and storylines geared towards young children. Benny and the Lost Balloon by Yen Lo includes sweet illustrations with expressive facial features to tell this story. When Benny loses his favorite toy, he realizes that friendship and connection with others is more important – and more fun – than material objects. In What’s a Friend? by Joyce Lee, a kitten is trying to figure out what a friend truly is and realizes that they do know in the end! The questions are emphasized with charming illustrations. With colorful, bold cartoons and simple but effective text for a child, Dinky by Athie Kim allows the young reader to follow Dinky the Duck through her day. Kitty and Fish by Elizabeth Wright uses whimsical drawings with a lot of motion to tell the story of a new friendship between a cat and fish, the fun they have together, and how they resolve a problem involving ice cream!
Contest winners will be celebrated at a private awards ceremony on Monday, April 7, 2025, at 7:00 p.m. Each First Prize award recipient will receive a $400 scholarship, and each Second Prize award recipient will receive a $100 scholarship. The newly bound books – made into hardcover by the Library – will have the honor of being added to the Library’s Local Focus Collection, and winners will also receive copies of their books to cherish in their own home libraries. Desserts will be served at the reception, generously donated by The Bite Size Bake Shop. Past ceremonies have had Library Board members, teachers and top school district administrators from Three Village, as well as elected officials from New York State, Suffolk County, and the Town of Brookhaven, all in attendance to honor the winners.
The Helen Stein Shack Book Contest called for teens in grades 7 through 12 who live in the Three Village Central School District to create a children’s picture book. Each entry could be the work of a single author/illustrator or a collaborative effort of an author and an illustrator. The contest was divided into two grade categories, grades 7 through 9 and grades 10 through 12, with one First Prize Winner and one Second Prize Winner selected from each group.
This award is given in memory of Helen Stein Shack by her family. As a teacher, Mrs. Shack was committed to the education of children, and she especially loved literature written for them. She was a frequent visitor to Emma Clark Library where, even in retirement, she kept current with the latest children’s books. The Library is grateful to the children of the late Mrs. Shack who have established a substantial endowment with the Library to cover the cost of the prizes.
The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and online at www.emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District. “The Heart of the Three Village Community”
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Recycle and Help the Library Earn a Free Bench
Setauket, NY – March 4, 2025 –
Emma Clark Library is participating in the NexTrex® Community Recycling Challenge, in collaboration with Suffolk Library System. Library visitors are encouraged to deposit their plastic film (e.g. plastic bags, bread bags, bubble wrap, cereal bags, etc.) in the bin located in the Library’s vestibule.
If the community collects & recycles 1,000+ pounds in a year, Emma Clark Library will receive a free bench made from these materials. The Library started this challenge on March 1, 2025. All plastic must be clean, dry, and free of food residue. For more information on what is accepted, please visit emmaclark.org/nextrexchallenge.
The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and on the web at www.emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District. “The Heart of the Three Village Community”
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10 Years of the Kids Bookmark Contest at Emma Clark Library
Setauket, NY – February 7, 2025 –
Emma Clark Library’s annual Kids Bookmark Contest has reached a big milestone – elementary-aged children living in the Three Village Central School District have been designing original bookmarks for library patrons for ten years of this beloved contest.
The community enthusiasm for this contest has been amazing with over 500 entries in the past decade. Winners receive a trophy and the incredible honor of having their bookmarks professionally printed and available for the community throughout the year. This year, in celebration of the tenth anniversary of the contest, there will be an additional special prize.
To pick up an Official Entry Form and Bookmark Template, kids may stop by the Children’s Reference Desk or download the form at emmaclark.org/bookmarkcontest. There is a limit of 1 entry per child. The entry deadline is March 31, 2025. Winners will be chosen in three categories (K – 2, 3rd & 4th, and 5th & 6th grades) and announced on May 1, 2025. All contestants’ entries will be displayed in the Children’s Department for visitors to view during the month of May.
Last year’s winners were Kelly Y. (Minnesauke Elementary) in the grades K – 2 category; Catherine Y. (Minnesauke Elementary) in the grades 3 & 4 category; and Mason O. (Mount Elementary) in the grades 5 & 6 category.
If you have any questions about the Kids Bookmark Contest, please email marcela@emmaclark.org or call 631.941.4080 ext. 123.
Please note: With all Emma Clark Library contests, Emma Clark employees, trustees, and members of their household are not eligible to enter.
The Emma S. Clark Memorial Library, located at 120 Main Street in Setauket and on the web at www.emmaclark.org, provides public library service to all residents of the Three Village Central School District.
“The Heart of the Three Village Community”
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The Heart of the Three Village Community
