FEBRUARY2024 Newsletter
Jarrell Community Library and Resource Center
A Message from the Library Director by Susan Gregurek
Jarrell Community Library and Resource Center has had an exciting month of February! We started the month with a Round Table conversation with 30 entities from United Way Central Texas visiting the library to visit with Mayor Sherek, J.I.S.D. Superintendent, Dr. Toni Hicks, and myself. We hope this meeting will bring in many of the services and programs needed in our community. Our month continued with Library Board President, Janet Hage, E.D.C. Director, Traci Anderson, and I meeting with CARTS (Capital Area Rural Transportation System) to discuss transportation to Georgetown from our community. The director of CARTS will be sending us schedules, brochures, and details on March 1st. You may find the information on the website at https://www.ridecarts.com/service/country-bus/.
We would like to remind you, if you need any type of help with navigating health services, Edith Margarlia from Foundations Community nonprofit is in our library on the first and third Thursday of each month. Foundations Community organizations can also help navigate housing, education, health, and financial needs in the community. Their website is https://foundcom.org/.
We would like to thank Brian Davis and Mark Ketterling of Rbank for a great informational session on the latest banking scams. The session was well attended and offered very good information to the community on keeping your accounts safe from bank theft and fraud.
On February 13th, we partnered with Love At First Bite for a fun evening celebrating "Galentine's Day!" We would like to thank Denay Hill and her staff for the wonderful food and drinks, the businesses who donated items for the gift giveaways, and all of the ladies who joined us for the evening. The library truly appreciates the donation to the library!
Many exciting things are going on in the library in the coming months! We will have Parenting Sessions in March, April and May thanks to Georgetown Project. We have ESTEAM Labs joining us for our 4th Legos Maker Event on March 13th. Please see the attachment to register. Registration is limited to 30 participants. We will be hosting STEMForged Summer Video Game Development Camp June 4-7 (sign up coming soon.) We are also pleased to announce Dr. Toni Hicks has approved the use of a large space for our Summer Reading Program this summer! We will be able to expand our Summer Reading Program for our community.
We hope you have a great week and end to February.
New Library Director Appointment Hours
March 5th Election Day for Primaries!
To find your ballot for voting go to: https://apps.wilco.org/elections/default.aspx
Voters Guide: https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/15/texas-voting-primary-2024/
Mental Health and Wellness "Our Healthy Heart"
Healthy Hearts
Heart disease is a silent creeper. A person who seems perfectly healthy one day, might suddenly be diagnosed with cardiac problems the next.
That is why the American Heart Association has made February, American Heart Month, to help spread awareness about cardiac health. All through this month, there are awareness campaigns all over the country to make people more conscious about heart health.
Most aren’t aware that cardiac problems are the leading cause of death in the US. The heart never stops beating, and that makes it the hardest working organ in the body. It pumps nearly 9,500 liters of blood every day, and like every other muscle, the heart also needs exercise and maintenance. That makes a proper diet and a healthy lifestyle, essential elements for a healthy heart.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that heart attacks are the most common disease in the country. One American suffers from a heart attack every 25 seconds, and one dies from an attack every minute. Surprisingly, women account for more than half the deaths from heart disease. Cardiac disease is the third leading cause of death among women ages 25 to 44, the second leading cause of death for ages 45 to 64, 65 and for women over 65 it is the leading cause of death.
You are at a risk of heart disease if you have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, obesity or diabetes, or have a family history of cardiac disease. Smokers and drinkers are also in a high risk category. A high-stress lifestyle, coupled with alcoholic drinks and caffeine, increases the risk of cardiac problems.
Various types of heart disease include;
Coronary artery disease: Although one of the most common heart problems, coronary artery disease often goes undiagnosed because it doesn’t always have symptoms. Some of the common signs include shortness of breath, missed heart beats, dizziness, and chest pain.
Cardiac arrest: Also known as a heart attack, cardiac arrest is marked by chest pain, loss of consciousness, and unresponsiveness. Fatigue, dizziness, blackouts, shortness of breath, palpitations, and vomiting are some of the symptoms preceding a cardiac arrest.
Congestive heart failure: Shortness of breath, fatigue, dizziness, chest pain, dry mouth, rapid heartbeat, and swollen legs are the most common symptoms.
Arrhythmia: A fluttering heart is the most common symptom, and therefor often times goes undiagnosed.
Spreading awareness is important in order to make people more conscious about cardiac health. There are several important things you can do to spread the word this month to celebrate American Heart Month. Wearing red is an easy way to show solidarity with the cause, generating financial support for combating cardiac disease and stroke, and sharing on social media with the tag #WearRedandGive are some of the ways American Heart Association suggests people spread the word.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, eating foods low in cholesterol, going for regular medical checkups, and getting exercise are the ways to fight heart disease. If you have a family history of heart disease, make sure to speak to your doctor to find ways to keep yourself healthy and your heart too! If you or someone you love is experiencing any of the above risk factors, please make an appointment with your cardiologist to rule out heart disease.
For more information: https://www.desertwestsurgery.com/
Homeschool Meetup
February's Homeschool Meetup groups celebrated and learned more about Black History Month. For the younger members they learned about Alma Thomas and her art style. The older members researched different influencial figures and presented what they learned to their group. The goal of the homeschool group is to expand home learning, as well as, working on socializing and teamwork.
Due to scheduling conflict we will not be meeting for March. The next homeschool meetup will be April 10th from 3-4pm at the Library and April 29th from 4-5pm at the Sonterra Park.
