Elizabeth Castañeda, (408) 458-0662
elizabeth.castaneda@sjlibrary.org
Nancy Macías, (408) 712-2150
nancy.macias@sjlibrary.org
Thursday, February 7, 2019
Nearly 1,500 New San Jose Sharks Library Cards Are Issued in the First 72 Hours
San José Public Library and San Jose Sharks partner to introduce first-ever Sharks library card
San José, Calif., February 7, 2019 – The San José Public Library (SJPL) and the San Jose Sharks have partnered to introduce the first-ever San Jose Sharks library card. The library card was made available to the public on Monday, Feb. 4, and within the first 72-hours of its release, a total of 1,458 new cards were issued to community members. As of today, there are 533,299 SJPL members.
This limited edition card was designed to include the Sharks’ current Stealth color scheme and theme, and will be available while supplies last at all of SJPL’s 24-locations. The public is invited to pick up a FREE Sharks card by becoming a member of their San José Public Library, or replacing their current card with the new design.
To celebrate the partnership, SJPL hosted a press conference on Friday, Feb. 1 at the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Library where the new library card was unveiled. City Librarian, Jill Bourne, was joined by Mayor Sam Liccardo, President of Sharks Sports and Entertainment, John Tortora, President of the Library Foundation, Jason Papier, and over 100 community members.
“The San Jose Sharks are thrilled to partner with the San José Public Library on the Stealth Sharks library card,” said Sharks President John Tortora. “It’s our hope that all Sharks fans – young and old – will take advantage of the opportunity to show that they are a proud member of Sharks Territory and to share the gift of reading with their family members and friends.”
In addition to the new Sharks library card, SJPL will give fans an opportunity to win autographed hockey pucks donated by the Sharks, and a variety of events will be presented by the Sharks at several branch libraries, starting this summer.
Partnering with organizations such as the San Jose Sharks allows the San José Public Library to further boost awareness, connect and engage with community members to ensure library programs, services and resources are being accessed by people of all ages and backgrounds.
“These past few years, library staff has been working rigorously to implement a number of significant changes to our services, from expanding hours to introducing fine forgiveness programs, and most recently, eliminating fines on all youth materials,” says City Librarian, Jill Bourne. She adds, “One of our goals this year is to increase the number of library cardholders in our city, with the hope of one day having every resident become an active user of their library.”
For more information and to become a member of the San José Public Library, visit: sjpl.org/sjsharks
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