Library staff on mission in Cambodia

Susan Taylor (l) and Lyda Thanh (r).

By Carla M. ColladoStaff Writer

Two Mark Twain Library staff members left for Cambodia yesterday (Wednesday), not for a vacation, but rather to buy Khmer books and materials for their library, as well as the rest of Long Beach’s public libraries.
The newly renovated Mark Twain Library — which opened in August 2007 — already has one of the largest Cambodian collections in the state. However, the library has been unable to purchase new books and materials for the past five years, as local and regional vendors’ supplies have depleted.
Susan Taylor and Lyda Thanh will visit the two Cambodian cities of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap until Jan. 15 to refresh the library’s collection. Taylor, who is the branch librarian at Mark Twain, will be in charge of selecting new materials for the children’s, teen and adult collections. Taylor said the Cambodian materials at Mark Twain always have been heavily used.
“We need more books!” Taylor said in a release. “We don’t want to lose any of our patrons because they have read everything in the collection and there is nothing new to entice them back to the library.”
Thanh is a homework helper at Mark Twain’s family learning center, and is also a Cambodian who speaks, reads and writes Khmer. She will facilitate purchasing decisions and cataloging of the new materials during the trip.
“My father was a scholar, teacher and monk in Cambodia and taught me the value of language, learning and history,” Thanh said in a release. “I see the need of the students to have materials available in their families’ first language — these materials build bonds between children and parents, preserve cultural heritage and knowledge, and support English language acquisition.”
The Helen Fuller Cultural Carrousel, the Friends of the Long Beach Public Library, the Long Beach Public Library Foundation, the city of Long Beach and the local Cambodian community are all helping make the trip possible.
The Helen Fuller Cultural Carrousel will pay for Taylor’s and Thanh’s travel, lodging and miscellaneous expenses. The city of Long Beach will provide money to purchase the new Khmer materials (as part of the library’s general operating budget). The LBPLF will pay for Thanh’s homework helper position.
The Friends of the Long Beach Public Library and members of the local Cambodian community will help offset some of the travel costs and provide other in-kind support.