Press Release

Aguilar Branch Librarian and Staff Honored with the Maher Stern Award for Outstanding Service to East Harlem Neighborhood

March 19, 1998, New York City -- The fifth annual Maher Stern Award for Service Excellence was presented today to The New York Public Library's Aguilar Branch Librarian Christiana Pinto and her staff, who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to their East Harlem neighborhood. The award ceremony took place at the Aguilar Branch Library, 174 East 110th Street. In attendance were Dr. Paul LeClerc, Library President; Allison Stern, founder of the award; Sandra Rose, Library Trustee and "Adopter" of the Aguilar Branch; library staff; and children from the Dream Yard Drama Project, who gave a poetry reading and a dramatic presentation to celebrate the occasion.

Allison Maher Stern, who with her husband Leonard Stern endowed the award for a ten year period, presented the $1,000 prize to Mrs. Pinto. The award, which is used to further enhance the Branch's service, honors a librarian for excellence in community service and staff team work. All branch librarians and unit supervisors at the Library are eligible.

"Mrs. Pinto deserves this distinguished recognition for all the wonderful things she has done for her branch and its neighborhood," Dr. LeClerc said. "Her skills and dedication as a librarian and community leader have been instrumental in organizing such vital programs as the East 110th Street Anti-Drug Coalition and family literacy initiatives, in supporting the new English Language Learning Lab, and in creating innovative activities for children which reflect the needs of the community."

Upon presenting the award, Mrs. Stern remarked, "Branch libraries can and do work small miracles in the City's neighborhoods. It is rewarding to be able to honor Mrs. Pinto and her staff, who have worked very hard to make the Aguilar Branch so responsive to the community it serves. We are thrilled to award her this gift."

Christiana Pinto and her staff work daily in a part of Manhattan that sees little of the rejuvenation experienced in other parts of the city. Despite this, the Aguilar staff has worked to better their ethnically and racially diverse community in a number of ways. They cooperated with local residents, merchants, schools, agencies, and the police to form the East 110th Street Anti-Drug Coalition, which from its inception met at the library to fight drugs and crime on East 110th Street. They have also worked closely with the local Community Boards and agencies to better assess the needs of the community and to find ways to meet these needs. For example, they assisted the Union Settlement in the development of its family literacy program and supported local efforts to create a flower and vegetable garden on East 110th Street.

The children and teenagers in the community have also benefited greatly from the Aguilar staff's dedication. Mrs. Pinto has a strong commitment to innovative programming, which is especially important in a neighborhood where few other after-school activities are available for young people.

During the recent renovation of the Aguilar Branch, the staff worked in cramped temporary quarters while maintaining full library service for all ages. In addition, they took advantage of the opportunity to reach out to community residents new to the experience of having a library in their midst. Since the reopening of the renovated branch, the staff has helped to support the new English Language Learning Lab, which was made possible with a gift from Banco Santander. The Aguilar staff covers lab hours when necessary so that no appointments are missed or cancelled. As use of the facility has increased, they have welcomed patrons not only from their own community, but also from the city at large.

A native of Buenos Aires, Christiana Pinto moved to the United States in 1963. She first joined The New York Public Library in 1967 as a library trainee. She received her Masters of Library Science degree from C.W. Post. Over the years she has worked in just about every branch in Manhattan and several in the Bronx. Mrs. Pinto has been at the Aguilar Branch Library for the past 15 years.

The New York Public Library operates 85 branches and four research centers in the Bronx, Manhattan, and Staten Island. The Library's web site is http://www.nypl.org.

pro: jb: 3-19-98

thoerenz: pro: 3-20-98