FORT MYERS,
Fla., (October 26, 2004) A Cape Coral man will be a VIP guest at tonight's
world series game after winning a nation-wide library contest.
James Dinkins, age 58, of Cape Coral was the grand prize winner in the
American Library Association's (ALA) Join the Major Leagues @ your library
trivia contest. He will be attending tonight's World Series game in St. Louis
between the Cardinals and the Boston Red Sox.
Dinkins picked
up a copy of the program playbook from the Cape Coral - Lee County Public
Library and completed a series of baseball-related questions designed to test
players' information literacy skills.
Sharon Robinson,
daughter of baseball legend Jackie Robinson, drew Dinkins' name from more than
1,500 library patrons nation-wide who completed playbooks. Dinkins received
two tickets to tonight's game.
A pre-game
announcement will be made tonight at the stadium.
Media can contact Mr. Dinkins at (239) 209-0239 or call ALA's Megan
Humphrey at 312-280-4020 for more information.
Runners up in the
four age categories for the contest will receive a Join the Major Leagues
t-shirt, a copy of Sharon Robinson's book "Promises to Keep" and a Jackie
Robinson "History Lives" poster. The drawings were held at Major League
Baseball offices in New York City.
The "Join the Major Leagues @ your library" program is designed to test
players' information literacy skills by challenging them to answer questions
like "What player holds the big league record with 4,256 hits?" or "The
designated hitter made its first appearance in the major leagues in what
year?"
This new program
is designed to help children and adults build their 21st century information
literacy skills and better understand how libraries and librarians can help
them. The program ran June 1st through September 10, 2004 at all Lee County
Library System locations.
More information on the program is available at
www.ala.org/@yourlibrary/jointhemajorleagues.
Other events were also held throughout the summer to support Join the Major
Leagues @ your library. Children age 12 and under received free tickets to
Fort Myers Miracle "Books and Bats" games by completing a Miracle "Books and
Bats" reading log and redeeming it at a participating Pizza Hut.
The Lee County
Library System attended these "Books and Bats" games at the Lee County Sports
Complex and visitors to the LCLS table could show their library cards to
receive a special prize.
Fort Myers Miracle Baseball Team mascot and Miracle players also participated
at special programs at Lee County Library System locations.