Throughout February and March 2010, the New Jersey State Library, the New Jersey Library Association and libraries throughout New Jersey plan to again honor the legacy of Abraham Lincoln, as part of the national Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commemoration, by collecting pennies.

Lincoln firmly believed in education, equality, opportunity and peace. To help continue his legacy, the State Library and NJLA are encouraging New Jersey libraries to participate in the Lincoln Pennies for Peace Campaign. All funds collected will be donated to Pennies for Peace which collects funds for the Central Asia Institute co-founded by Greg Mortenson, the subject of the bestselling biography, \x93Three Cups of Tea: One Man\x92s Mission to Promote Peace\x85 One School At A Time.\x94 The money will be used to build school libraries in Pakistan and Afghanistan.

\x93Last year, school and public libraries from all over New Jersey raised over $13,400 in pennies. The campaign really caught on with young people and children, because they all could be part of the fundraiser just by putting in a few pennies. We found the \x91children helping other children\x92 aspect resonated with them,\x94 said Norma Blake, NJ State Librarian. So far, almost 90 public and school libraries have joined the 2010 campaign.

The original Pennies for Peace was conceived by students in a Wisconsin elementary school in 1996. Since then, over 16 million pennies have been raised by over 700 schools in all 50 states, including over 10 million pennies in the past year. The program is designed to educate children about the world beyond their experience and show them that they can make a positive impact on a global scale, one penny at a time.

The New Jersey State Library encourages New Jersey school and public libraries to join this campaign: \x95 Register at the Pennies for Peace website http://www.penniesforpeace.org/ You can receive free postcards and stickers and other materials. \x95 Let us know too. To receive a free poster for your library and to have your library included in statewide media releases please register with the NJ State Library here. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=eNim7dgj4eZm9UfhG51lvg_3d_3d \x95 Design a creative donation container and send in pictures for posting on the State Library Website. Either post the photos to your Flickr account and send Gary Cooper the link or send us the digital photos and he\x92ll post them for you. (gcoo...@njstatelib.org) \x95 Get children and the community involved in contributing pennies. Pennies for Peace has lots of suggestions to get you started. \x95 The libraries collecting the most pennies for New Jersey libraries will receive recognition during National Library Week in April 2010.

To be eligible for this contest, libraries should collect the pennies, make a check made out to \x93New Jersey State Library\x94 and send the check to the State Library by April 1, 2010. We\x92ll send all the checks to Pennies for Peace.

Send your check to: Sheri Shafer, Chief Financial Officer NJ State Library PO Box 520 Trenton, NJ 08625-0520 Checks must be received at the State Library by April 1, 2010.

The following libraries/library systems are participating: Ridge High School Basking Ridge Belvidere High School Library Bloomfield Public Library Bloomfield High School Bloomingdale Public Library Brick Branch of the Ocean County Library West Avenue School Bridgeton Bridgewater Library Pemberton Branch of BCLS Browns Mills Sandshore School Library Budd Lake Old Turnpike School Califon Cape May County Cape May Court House Carteret Public Library Cedar Grove Public Library Richard Stockton Elementary Cherry Hill Clifton Public Library Clinton Twp. Middle School Henry Inman Branch Library Colonia Cranbury Public Library Cranford Public Library Orange Avenue School Cranford Demarest Public Library North Dover Elementary Dover Twin Rivers Library East Windsor Robert Morris School 18 Elizabeth McCloud Elementary School Englewood Dismus Middle School Englewood Fords Branch Library - Woodbridge Public Franklin Lakes Public Library Freehold Public Library Academy of Our Lady Glen Rock Morgan Early Elementary School Act Club Hamilton Sunnymead School Library Hillsborough Pascack Valley High School Hillsdale Miller Branch Library Jersey City Kearny Public Library South Hunterdon Regional High School Library Lambertville Leonia Public Library Chapel Hill Academy Lincoln Park Passaic Valley High School Little Falls Little Ferry Free Public Library Livingston Public Library Mahwah High School Taylor Mills School Media Center Manalapan Manasquan Public Library Cranberry Pines Elementary School Medford Campbell Elementary School Library Metuchen Metuchen High School Middletown Township Public Library Milford Public Library Woodland Elementary School Monroe Township Monroe Township High School Pascack Hills High School Montvale Lazar Middle School Montville Mount Laurel Library Gloucester County Library System Mullica Hill Neptune Public Library New Providence School District Libraries West Essex Middle School Library North Caldwell West Essex High School North Caldwell Otto Bruyins Library Northfield North Plainfield High School & Middle School Nutley Public Library Ocean City High School Park Ridge Public Library Parsippany-Troy Hills Library System Peapack Gladstone Branch Somerset County Piscataway Public Library Leeds Ave School Pleasantville Ringwood Public Library Woodside School Library River Vale Robbinsville High School Rockaway Township Library Rutherford Public Library Somerville Public Library Oak Knoll Lower School Summit Tinton Falls Public Library New Jersey State Library Trenton Talking Book & Braille Center Trenton E.T. Hamilton School Library Voorhees Wanaque Elementary School Library Valley View School Library Watchung Watchung Public Library BCIT Westampton West Long Branch Schools Westfield Library Camden County Library System Westmont Academy of Allied Health/Biomedical Sciences Woodbridge

Media Inquiries: Gary Cooper email: gcoo...@njstatelib.org Contact for Libraries: Sharon Rawlins email: sraw...@njstatelib.org

The following information is a reminder of your current mailing list subscription:

You are subscribed to [list_name] using exam...@example.com.

You may automatically unsubscribe from this list at any time by visiting the following URL:

http://lists.njstatelib.org/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi/u/[list]/

If the above URL is inoperable, make sure that you have copied the entire address. Some mail readers will wrap a long URL and thus break this automatic unsubscribe mechanism.

You may also change your subscription by visiting this list's main screen:

http://lists.njstatelib.org/cgi-bin/dada/mail.cgi/list/[list]

If you're still having trouble, please contact the list owner at:

<mailto:sraw...@njstatelib.org>