The Shelton Timberland Library will host a new series of programs, "Talk Time/Charlas," from 6 to 8 p.m. every other Wednesday from March 31 through June 9, offering English and Spanish speaking adults and their families a special opportunity to practice and improve their English and Spanish conversation skills in a relaxed atmosphere. The library offers this series of six programs in partnership with Mason County Literacy. The programs are free of charge. For more information or directions, people can call (360) 426-1362.

Shelton Timberland Library (William G. Reed Public Library) presenta Talk Time/Charlas de 6-8 p.m., 31 marzo, 14 abril, 28 abril, 12 mayo, 26 mayo y 9 junio para adultos que hablan inglés o español. Practique y mejore sus habilidades de conversación en inglés o español en una atmósfera relajada. Este programa es presentado en sociedad con Mason County Literacy.

"This is not a class. Level of skill is not important. There are no tests or evaluations. This is an opportunity to practice conversation skills in English or Spanish among new friends," said Selina Gomez-Beloz, the Timberland Regional Library (TRL) Diversity Librarian. A trained Talk Time volunteer and a library staff person will offer various situations/topics, such as food, going to a restaurant, movies, culture, etc. as conversation starters that participants can talk about as they like.

Children of all ages are welcome to join their parents and either converse or spend some time doing a children's activity. Each session is two hours long and a coin toss will determine whether Spanish or English is the first language used that evening. Depending on the success of the program and the needs of the community, the format or time may be changed slightly in the future.

"The library wants to reach the Latino community to demonstrate that the library can be used as a place to improve one's life skills and be a place where the whole family can learn new things and enjoy themselves," said Gomez-Beloz.

Talk Time is part of TRL’s Bibliotecas Para Todos (Libraries for Everyone) project, supervised by TRL Reference and Adult Services Coordinator, Liz Stroup. TRL received a one-year grant of $50,000 from the Washington State Library in October 2003 to reach out to, and find ways to better serve, our growing Latino population. Four of the system’s larger libraries—the Shelton, Olympia, Aberdeen and Centralia Timberland libraries—have seen the most dramatic increases in the number of Spanish-speaking people in their communities. TRL hired Gomez-Beloz, a bi-lingual outreach librarian, to help Timberland conduct a needs assessment in each of these four communities, to help staff develop culturally appropriate programs and services, to select new Spanish language popular materials and to conduct training sessions for up to 100 TRL staff in library-focused Spanish.

In the 2000 census, 4.8% of persons in Mason County (2361 individuals) listed themselves as Hispanic or Latino. After visiting various organizations throughout the county, Gomez-Beloz believes that many who listed themselves as being of "two or more races" or "other race not listed" are Spanish speakers.

Talk Time is a program developed by Tacoma Community House, which has provided the training for the volunteers who will be facilitating the gatherings.

Timberland Regional Library serves Grays Harbor, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, and Thurston counties at 27 community libraries and 6 school-based cooperative library centers. For information on any subject, the public can telephone Timberland’s Central Reference Service librarians at 704-INFO (704-4636) from Thurston County, Shelton and Oakville or 1-800-562-6022, toll-free, from all other areas in the district. Or they can "Ask a Librarian" online at www.trlib.org. Anyone needing special accommodations to participate in a library’s program may contact the library 4 days in advance.

Media Contact: Leanne Ingle, Communications Specialist, 360-704-4508, or outside Thurston County calling area: (877) 284-6237, ext. 2508; e-mail: lingle@trlib.org.