Madrona Library Reopens May 10

From the April 2008 Madrona News

The newly renovated Madrona-Sally Goldmark Branch of The Seattle Public Library will reopen to the public with a festive community celebration beginning at noon May 10. The dedication ceremony will include appearances of City Librarian Deborah L. Jacobs, Mayor Greg Nickels, Library Board Vice President Michael Parham, City Councilman Nick Licata and the Library book fairy â??Lulu.â?? There will be entertainment and Starbucks Coffee Company will provide free coffee and snacks. The branch will remain open until 6 p.m.

The library, which has been closed since last fall, is housed in a converted firehouse and is heavily used by residents and schoolchildren. The $893,213 renovation project included new seating, upgraded technology services and equipment, better electrical, communication and computer connections, more efficient circulation desk and work areas, improved ventilation, a modern mechanical system, and an updated book collection. Seattle artists Mary Iverson and Monad Elohim designed artwork for the building. Iverson created an oil painting and Madronaâ??s Monad made a ceramic sculpture.

The main entry was moved north toward Union Street to improve visibility, and the renovated branch will emphasize materials for children, popular fiction, DVDs, and space for holds pick-up. Heliotrope Architects designed the reconfiguration of the interior so patrons and staff could more efficiently use the branch, separating activities such as busy childrenâ??s story times from the holds pickup area.

For more information about the building program or branch opening, visit the Madrona-Sally Goldmark Branch home page at www.spl.org or contact Andra Addison, SPL Communications Director, at 386-4103.

St Clouds Cafe Opens at Northwest African American Museum

From the April 2008 Madrona News

John Platt and Paul Butler of Madrona’s St. Clouds Restaurant and Catering are thrilled and honored to announce the opening of their new cafe at the Northwest African American Museum. The museum, located at 2300 S. Massachusetts (23rd and Massachusetts) in the old Colman Elementary School, opened last month. St. Clouds Cafe is located on the first floor.

The Museum is fantastic but you don’t have to have paid admission to the museum to get to the St. Clouds Cafe. Come by for an afternoon snack and enjoy local microroaster Fonte coffee/espresso drinks and Cass’s fresh baked pastries. They also serve lunch, with a menu featuring Southern and African-American influenced fare, as well as the inventive bright fare you’ve come to expect from St. Clouds and chef Michael King. Lunch menu items include Memphis Style Slow Roasted Ribs with collard greens and corn bread, baked macaroni and cheese with green salad or slaw, and a Virginia country ham sandwich with peach chutney, cream cheese mayo and mustard greens. And don’t forget to leave room for dessert–New Orleans bread pudding with bourbon sauce. The St. Cloud Cafe also has beer and wine, and our usual warm, friendly Madrona-style service.

St. Cloud Cafe hours are the same as the museum–Wednesday through Sunday from 11:00am to 7:30pm. The schedule is slightly modified on Thursdays, when the cafe closes at 7:00pm and Sundays, when it opens at noon.

The food is mighty fine, the people extraordinary, and the site a glory. John and Paul are thrilled to have the chance to help foster community in this new Urban League Village project.

Madrona Mom Publishes Baseball Book for Women

From the April 2008 Madrona News

In April 2003, Jackie Koney was about to board a flight out of SeaTac airport when her cell phone rang. Reluctantly, she took the call.

“I was just handing over my boarding pass when the phone rang,” Jackie said about that fateful phone call from her friend, Madrona’s Deidre Silva. “When I answered, she blurted out ‘We should write a baseball book together!’ I knew she was on to something and that we were the right people to do it.”

The two had been thinking of working on a book together but it was DeidreÃ??Ã?¢??s call that helped them hone in on a topic that they both were passionate about. Calling themselves the Savvy Girls of Summer, Deidre and Jackie worked for the next few years to bring female baseball enthusiasts together for fun and fandom. Along the way they also found time to write “It Takes More Than Balls: The Savvy Girl’s Guide to Understanding and Enjoying Baseball.” Released in March, the book is now featured on the shelves of bookstores nationwide and the two authors couldn’t be prouder.

“We have read dozens of baseball books and so few of them really embraced the entertainment and fun that we think is an important part of being a baseball fan,” Deidre said. “We wanted to write the baseball book that we wanted to read.”

During the time they spent researching the book Deidre and Jackie talked to thousands of women baseball fans. This led to them partnering with major league baseball teams–first the Mariners and then others–to help the teams tailor events and promotions geared to women. The authors were honored guests at several “Ladies Nights” promotions, and pre-game wine-and-cheese parties with presentations from female sports industry team executives or journalists. These events at several major leave baseball teams are the backbone of this summerÃ??Ã?¢??s nation-wide book tour. The authors will return to Seattle in August and host a pre-game event with the Mariners and Safeco Insurance on August 26.

Savvier than ever, through their research Deidre and Jackie have found many differences between how most men and women regard baseball. Because most women never had the opportunity or inclination to play baseball in their youth, female fans tend to “discover” baseball later in life than do men. Some women become enthralled sitting in the stands as Little League moms, while others catch the bug from–or to impress–a new date or an old husband.
“Women often bring a different perspective to the game,” Jackie said. “And these women are a sophisticated group and they don’t need a ‘Baseball for Dummies.’ Rather, these smart women want a smart book–and we think our new book is just the ticket!”