PRESS RELEASE

Linda Wilson
Public Relations
Birmingham Public Library
(205) 226-3746
lwilson@bham.lib.al.us

Birmingham Public Library Storytellers to Weave Stories for Children’s Hospital Patients

August 16, 2007, Birmingham—Children’s Hospital and the Birmingham Public Library have partnered to provide Children’s patients with an enchanting story time. Beginning August 27, one of the library’s storytellers will visit the hospital monthly to entertain patients through this time-honored oral tradition. Using voice and motion, the storytellers will engage the patients by weaving music and art into their stories.

“We are very excited about this new partnership with the Birmingham Public Library. The storytellers will entertain and engage our patients by making literature come to life,” said community outreach coordinator Laura Caudell. “We look forward to working with the Library to ensure our patients understand and appreciate the importance of reading and literature.”

“The Birmingham Public Library is pleased to partner with Children's Hospital and Bright House Networks to provide story time for patients and their families,” said Janine Langston, Literacy and Outreach Coordinator for the library. “Library storytellers will present fun and engaging story times where children's storybooks will be brought to life.”

The storytellers will visit the hospital the fourth Monday of every month. On alternate Mondays, Bright House Networks has provided the hospital with DVDs of taped story times to be shown in patient rooms.

The Children's Hospital of Alabama is the only hospital in the state dedicated solely to the care and treatment of children and one of the 10 busiest pediatric medical centers in the U.S. One of only about 45 freestanding acute care hospitals of its kind in the nation, Children’s Hospital is home to Alabama’s only Level I pediatric trauma center. Children’s campus includes the largest pediatric burn center in the Southeast, one of the largest pediatric outpatient centers in the country and a leading pediatric hematology/oncology center and bone marrow transplant program. Although Children’s is the primary site for all pediatric educational programs and patient care activities within the UAB Medical Center, Children’s Hospital is a private, not-for-profit hospital governed by a volunteer board of trustees. Children’s will celebrate its centennial anniversary in 2011.