By Khalida Sarwari
History, film screenings, author appearances and even opera are part of the summer program at the Campbell Library. And the best part? The events won’t cost you a penny.
For history buffs, there are a number of events to indulge your interest. If you’re familiar with Major League Baseball stars Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui, you might be intrigued by a film that explores how interned Japanese-American families turned to baseball as a means of coping with their challenging circumstances during World War II.
The Japanese American Museum’s Joseph Yasutake, who was incarcerated beginning at the age of 9 at the Puyallup Assembly Center, Minidoka Relocation Center and Crystal City Internment Camp, will address the World War II camp experience, postwar resettlement in the Midwest and the relevance of the Japanese American experience to democracy today when he speaks on June 25.
If you’ve read Farewell to Manzanar and want to discuss your thoughts on the book with others, or even if you haven’t and wonder if it’s worthy of adding to your summer reading list, check out a June 26 event as the Campbell Library hosts a discussion of Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston’s memoir about the Japanese American internment experience as seen through the eyes of a young girl.
The library will host a panel of local historical fiction authors on July 16 for a discussion of their works. The authors confirmed to attend are C.W. Gortner, Vanitha Sankaran, Gillian Bagwell and Ann Parker.
Genealogy is another theme at the library this summer. Three events in August will teach patrons to do genealogical research.
Find out how you can use National Archives resources for your genealogical research on Aug. 20 with Rose Mary Kennedy, from the National Archives in Colma. Kennedy will discuss how to access the newly available 1940s census data, the two most popular immigration ports in San Francisco and New York, and where to go for naturalization records.
For those interested in learning about online genealogical resources that are available to patrons at the Campbell Library, electronic resources librarian Lora Cokolat will discuss Ancestry.com, Heritage Quest and other resources on Aug. 22.
Later in August, Aimee Leverette of ProQuest will demonstrate Ancestry.com‘s features, which include birth, death, marriage and land title records, and help patrons learn how to research their family tree.
The library will also offer a mixed bag of events to appeal to just about every member of the community. Nature lovers can drop by on June 20 to learn from arborist and author Barrie Coate of the California Native Plant Society how to incorporate local native trees into the garden.
Astronomy enthusiasts might want to check out award-winning astrophysicist and national lecturer Kevin Manning’s presentation on July 18. Manning, a former consultant with NASA, is known to transport people of all ages into a fascinating world beyond their own, using hands-on activities, assorted visuals and a powerful telescope.
If opera is your thing but you don’t have the big bucks to afford the experience, the library is where you’ll want to be on July 24. That evening, Opera San José will present a free performance featuring highlights from the company’s upcoming season, including Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers, Strauss’ Die Fledermaus, Verdi’s Il Trovatore and Puccini’s Suor Angelica and Gianni Schicchi.
All special events are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m.
Library to offer it all: From opera and authors to history and films
