To help kids prepare for summer reading, A Children's House of Books owner Pat James is having a trading day where families can trade a can of food for a book.

Finding a cool spot to get lost in a good book is one of the best ways to survive a Tucson summer.

The “bookmarm,” as she calls herself, at A Children’s House of Books wants to connect Tucson kids with great reading to help beat the heat.

“I want to foster literacy in the community,” said retired teacher Pat James, owner of the children’s used book shop at 2624 N. First Ave.

James, who opened A Children’s House of Books six months ago, has transformed the spot into a charming, colorful hideaway, with children’s art on the walls. A brightly colored paper dragon, created by students at Miles Exploratory Learning Center, hangs from the ceiling.

There is a dress-up chest, vintage toys and about 5,000 books for children up to about age 13 to choose from. Nearly all are used. Some belonged to her children, now grown.

James wants to make it easy for children to get books. Families can trade in books or pay half the list price.

She is hosting Trading Day from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 22-23. Families can trade cans of food, to be donated to the Community Food Bank, for books.

“Bring in a can of food and get a book, or bring in a book and get a can of food,” James said.

James, who retired from Tucson Unified School District in 2004, also offers teaching resources.

She wanted to spread her love of reading to kids in the neighborhood. She offers story time at 11 a.m. Wednesdays and Saturdays, along with tutoring and special events.

“It’s very important for families to have books in the house and to be reading to children,” she said.

LIBRARY SUMMER READING KICKS OFF

Kids, teens and adults can join the free summer reading club at Pima County Public Library, winning prizes and taking part in hundreds of educational activities.

“Be Creative @ Your Library” runs May 21 through July 18.

The calendar of events is available at all branch libraries.

Children can pick up a free “Be Creative @ Your Library” game board at any branch and use the game board to keep track of how many hours they read. They can also log their minutes online at library.pima.gov.

For every six hours spent reading, children earn prizes. All those who read 24 hours by July 18 will receive a certificate and a ticket for four people to the Tucson Toros baseball game at Hi Corbett Field on July 26. Six hours of extra reading will earn the child a pass to Breakers Water Park and a free paperback book.

The reading program for teens, called “Rock a Book,” is open to ages 12 to 18. They can earn coupons for local businesses and other prizes for every 10 hours spent reading. Prizes include a $10 gift certificate to Bookmans and a backstage pass to the “Rock a Book” band finale, where they can watch bands in the Main Library’s garage. Teens can register online at library.pima.gov or go to their neighborhood library for details.

Adults can list, rate and review books online, earning chances in weekly drawings for $5 Bookmans’ credit slips. Those who read 20 hours will earn a reusable book bag and a pass with discounts to Pima County attractions. Those who read 30 hours by July 18 will be entered into a drawing for a $100 credit voucher at Bookmans.

Citizen file photo by RENEE BRACAMONTE

Pat James in her store, A Children's House of Books, 2624 N. First Ave. James sells children's books - mostly used - in her 6-month-old store.

James is a retired Tucson Unified School District Teacher. Many of the used books belonged to her own children.

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IF YOU GO

What: Trading Day at A Children’s House of Books. Bring in a can of food and take home a book, or bring in books to trade

Where: 2624 N. First Ave.

When: 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 22-23

Price: free admission

Info: 822-8211

Margaret Conway, a senior at Catalina Magnet High School, is this year’s winner of the Gary P. Durrenberger Memorial Scholarship.

The four-year scholarship is worth $2,000 per year.

An honor roll recipient, Conway competed at the 2008 Arizona Interscholastic Association’s state swimming and diving championships. She has been active in basketball and water polo, and was a student athletic trainer. A National Honor Society member, Conway is also active in her church, teaching Sunday school.

The Fifth Annual Gary P. Durrenberger Memorial Golf Tournament is set for May 15 at El Conquistador Golf & Tennis Club. Proceeds benefit the scholarship fund, which was founded by Charles and Laura Durrenberger after their son died in a car accident in 2004 at age 18, two weeks after graduating from Canyon del Oro High School.

Five scholarships have been awarded.

For more information, go to www.GolfForGary.org.

As the state grapples with a budget crisis in which 4,000 public school teachers and staff members were given pink slips in Arizona, Tucson area teachers and parents gathered Sunday to take action to save those jobs.

The rally and picnic were at Cañada del Oro Riverfront Park, 551 W. Lambert Lane in Oro Valley. About 150 attended.

Sunday’s rally also kicked off another pro-public education program, the Join Hands for Public Education, a statewide campaign sponsored by parent-citizen groups throughout Arizona, said Carolyn Badger, 66, a retired middle school teacher from California, who is a founding member of Concerned Arizona Residents for Education, CARE.

CARE sponsored Sunday’s rally.

The Tucson Join Hands kickoff was one of at least two in Arizona. Another was in Phoenix.

Some 600 Tucson Unified School District teachers and staff members were given pink slips earlier this month. TUSD is the second largest school district in the state.

As part of the rally, children and adults traced their hand on colored paper and wrote a pro-public education messages to Gov. Jan Brewer.

“The purpose of the rally,” Badger said, “is to show that we value public education and that we value it so much we want to protect it from budget cuts.

“We want to send a message to the governor and the Legislature that we support public education,” she said.

Badger said millions of dollars in state tax credits are granted to Arizonans annually, including corporate tax credits for donations to private schools, and those credits should be suspended and the money saved should be passed on to public schools.

“The governor and the Legislature should do everything they can to make sure Arizona gets all the federal stimulus money that has been assigned to Arizona,” Badger said.

Lisa Best, 40, who came to the rally with her husband and two small children, said, “We are very concerned about the turn in education.”

Ten-year-old Griffin Ogg, a fourth-grader at Donaldson Elementary School, said, “To me the things they should spend money on are environment, education and health.

Cuts in education funding in the Tucson area are “going to make it harder to meet the needs of the students,” said Jennifer Jones, 36, an instructional support leader in Amphitheater Public Schools.

Young people can make an extraordinary impact at home, in their schools and in the community.

You can recognize a young person for acts of kindness and good work during Tucson Youth Week.

Ages 11-22 can be recognized for anything from baby-sitting siblings to helping a classmate with homework to volunteerism or activism.

Parents can recognize their children, and youths can submit the names of friends or themselves.

All youths will be acknowledged, and there is no limit to the number of names a person can submit. Last year, 3,200 youths were honored.

They will be recognized April 25 at Himmel Park, 1000 N. Tucson Blvd.

To recognize a youth, go online to tucsonyouthweek.eventinterface.com. For information, call 624-7225 Ext. 203.

Bruce Bayly lies on a bed of 400 nails at a past Physics Phun Night

There are three words Tony Pitucco doesn’t want to hear when he’s lying on a bed of 400 nails: Do it again.

“Kids always shout ‘Do it again!’ but you really don’t want to do that one again,” said Pitucco, laughing. “You only want to lay on nails once a year.”

Pitucco is the man behind Pima Community College’s annual Physics Phun Night, which is in its 13th year of showing that science is fun.

The show will begin at 6 p.m. Friday at PCC’s West Campus, 2202 W. Anklam Road, in the Center For the Arts Proscenium Theatre.

The Pima show is an offshoot of a similar family-friendly physics function offered by the University of Arizona each fall.

“The things we do are rather remarkable because they are outside of common sense,” said Pitucco, chair of the physics department at PCC’s West Campus. “We have a bunch of standby experiments with liquid nitrogen, lasers, aerodynamics and the kids really get into it.”

About three years ago, Pitucco and Bruce Bayly, a UA mathematics professor and Pitucco’s partner in physics crime, decided to put the experiments into skits. The skits feature Pitucco, Bayly and a Raytheon engineer who was once Pitucco’s student at Pima.

“There’s an evil scientist, of course, and a good scientist and this year it will be pirates that are going from one island to another trying to solve the mystery,” Pitucco said. “We’re extremely bad actors, but we have no embarrassment and no shame at all.”

This year’s show – titled “The Pirates of PCC” – will also have extra experiments and demonstrations in the campus’ parking lot, courtesy of the Physics Factory Bus.

“Some of the experiments we can’t do in the auditorium because of fire and things,” Pitucco said.

The purpose of the annual event is to engage students in science and to explain that while science can be hard, it’s also really fun, said Pitucco.

“We want kids to see scientists having fun,” he said. “And it works because after the show you can’t stop them from storming the stage with questions. You can keep them there until almost midnight.”

People attending Friday’s Physics Phun Night will have the opportunity to ride a hovercraft, see liquid nitrogen freeze flowers or tennis balls and, of course, see the bed of 400 nails.

Pitucco said he and Bayly take turns lying on the bed, which demonstrates how pressure is distributed across an area. Another bed of nails is placed on the person’s chest. A brick is placed on the top bed and a Pima student is asked to break the brick with a mallet.

“If there was just one nail, it would be bad, but with a lot, it isn’t painless, but it is distributed,” Pitucco said. “Still, you don’t want to do it more than once a year.”

Some of Tucson’s best fiction writers are winners in the Pima County Public Library’s Young Writers Competition.

The library received 568 entries.

Winners in Pre-K- grade 2:

• Tiffani Akers, “Family Fun”

• Paris Garcia, “The Boy Who Loved Math”

• Dylan Herrera, “The Magic Mask and Gloves”

• Alexis Ramer, “Little Witch’s Adventures”

• Margaret Gaetana Wright, “The Mysterious Mermaid”

Winners in grades 3-5:

• Amber Buster, “All About My Life”

• Raquel Escobar, “Noblequest”

• Daniel Espeleta, “Fly Away”

• Connie Guan, “The Howling Winds”

• Kolbe Riney, “Jharda”

Winners in grades 6-8:

• Adrianna Berring, “Mirage”

• Jessica Chamberlain, “The Life of Stephan McCall”

• Kaitlyn Gonzalez, “Escape”

• Amelia Marsh, “Spirit Fingers”

• Eli Veilleux, “The Day the Muffin Verse Stood Still”

Winners in the grades 9-12:

• Aria Bronte, untitled

• Meghan Kenworthy, “The Grulla Paint”

• Tatum Rochin, “Six String Beast”

• Antonia Ruiz, “But At Least I Can Blame My Parents”

• Jason Stone, “A Different Way to Win”

Cesar Chavez

This week’s ninth annual Cesar Chavez Week in Tucson will cover the city in activities honoring the late human rights leader.

It culminates in a march Saturday beginning at 9 a.m. at Pueblo Magnet High School, 3500 S. 12th Ave.

The march continues to Rudy Garcia Park, at the southeast corner of East Irvington Road and South Sixth Avenue, where at noon there will be music, food and a speech by Chavez’s brother, Richard Chavez.

But before that, community leaders will visit local schools as part of a youth conference Tuesday through Friday aimed at educating student about the life, history and philosophy of Cesar Chavez.

“Students will be exposed to a message of nonviolence, self-determination and social activism,” according to a news release from Aggie Romero from the Arizona Cesar Chavez Holiday Coalition.

On Thursday, Richard Chavez will speak at 6 p.m. at the Pima Community College Desert Vista Campus, 5901 S. Calle Santa Cruz.

On the same day and time, Elizabeth “Betita” Martínez, a Chicana feminist and longtime community organizer, activist, author and educator, will speak at the PCC Downtown Campus, 1255 N. Stone Ave.

On Friday, there will be a tribute to Consuelo Aguilar, a 26-year-old community activist who worked in the Raza studies department of the Tucson Unified School District. She died Feb. 17 of cancer. That event, at The Screening Room, 127 E. Congress St., begins at 7 p.m. and includes a film, dance and live performances.

The annual reception for Chavez, who was born March 31, 1927, will be at 10 p.m. at Raices Taller 222 Art Gallery & Workshop, 218 E. Sixth St.

From Tuesday to Friday, community leaders will visit area schools.

For more information, call Romero at 282-0256.

Levi Wolf became a “political wonk” at age 8 or 9, when he saw Bill O’Reilly on television for the first time.

“I didn’t necessarily agree with everything he said . . . but I was completely captivated,” said Wolf, now a 17-year-old senior at University High School.

Wolf’s passion for politics has resulted in a week-long, all-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C., starting Saturday. Wolf was selected to represent Arizona at the 47th annual United States Senate Youth Program, and is one of 104 student delegates from around the country who will attend Washington Week.

“I’m really interested in seeing the way government works,” said the native Tucsonan, who is the son of Frank and Debora Wolf.

“I watch it all the time on C-SPAN, and I’m interested in meeting the people that make it work.”

Yvonne Tindell of Gilbert is the other Arizona student selected to attend. The two were selected by Tom Horne, superintendent of public instruction, from hundreds of Arizona applicants.

All student delegates will also receive $5,000 scholarships. Wolf hopes to pursue a law degree at George Washington University.

At UHS, he serves as senior representative to the student council. He is president of Model U.N. and was elected by his school’s team as “Best Overall Delegate.”

Trained in classical piano, he is in a band called The Kingsfoil.

The Senate Youth Program was created in 1962, sponsored by the Senate and funded by The Hearst Foundations. Teens selected rank academically in the top 1 percent of students in their states.

While in Washington, delegates will attend meetings and briefings with Senate leadership, the president, a Supreme Court justice, leaders of Cabinet agencies and top members of the national media.

“I’m really excited to see how government works together,” Wolf said.

Board of Regents may suspend scholarships

About 50 Sabino High School juniors spent Tuesday morning taking the AIMS test with one goal in mind: Getting a tuition waiver to one of the state’s three public universities.

They may be out of luck if the Arizona Board of Regents decides to suspend the program, initiated in 2006, that grants students who excel on the AIMS test scholarships covering university tuition.

Arizona State University, University of Arizona and Northern Arizona University are mandated by the regents to offer the scholarships, but no state funding is provided for them.

To receive the scholarship, students must “exceed” standards on the three Arizona’s Instrument to Measure Standards sections, have a 3.5 grade point average or be in the top 5 percent of their class, and receive only As and Bs in the 16 core classes required for university admission.

ASU President Michael Crow has formally petitioned the regents to suspend the program, and documents from a Feb. 19 regents’ meeting show that NAU and UA also believe suspension might be necessary in light of severe state budget cuts.

“It’s no secret these scholarships have cost the universities a lot of money,” said John Nametz, UA director of financial aid.

It’s also no secret they help motivate students.

“Normally just the top 2 percent of the school qualifies for a scholarship from the universities,” said Jill Ronsman, a Sabino counselor. “When you have kids getting a 4.18 GPA, then 2 percent is down to maybe a 3.9. The AIMS scholarship takes (it) down to a 3.5, which opens the doors to many more students.”

Nearly 5,800 university freshmen through juniors are receiving AIMS scholarships. According to figures from regent staff, the AIMS scholarship cost the universities a total of $16.5 million in the 2007-08 academic year. This academic year, the cost is $25.6 million. Assuming a similar increase next year, the cost would rise to at least $34 million.

When the universities have taken nearly $200 million in state budget cuts this year and are facing equal or greater cuts next year, $34 million could help keep professors in classrooms and lights on in the buildings.

But suspending the AIMS scholarship may reduce the number of students able to learn from those professors.

“If they are really going to suspend the program, I’m sure there will be a lot of parents upset about it because students are counting on it,” said Jason LeValley, a counselor at Tucson High Magnet School.

N.J. Utter, a counselor at Desert View High School in Sunnyside Unified School District, said she thinks suspending the AIMS scholarship would not negatively affect her students.

“Only 14 percent of our kids go on to a four-year college and they are our top kids, so they had already received scholarships of equal or greater amount to the AIMS,” Utter said.

Each university only allows students to accept one merit scholarship offered, so they cannot “stack” the AIMS on top of another offer, Nametz said.

Regents President Fred Boice said he’s received “multiple” e-mails from parents concerned that the program will be suspended.

“Quite honestly, I don’t know what we’re going to do. I don’t believe a sophomore in high school has been specifically promised an AIMS scholarship, but the senior in high school who has been notified? I think we have to honor that commitment and someone in college on that scholarship … we can’t withdraw it,” he said. “There’s a lot of shuffling going on about what we can do and they will all be reviewed by the board before the universities can do anything.”

Young Tucson math whizzes are headed to state competition after placing in this year’s MATHCOUNTS contest.

About 130 students participated in the Southern Arizona Chapter of the competition, held Feb. 14 at Cienega High School.

The program promotes math achievement and hosts competitions similar to sports events. Students train individually and in teams and can compete in local, state and national competitions.

The top four students in Arizona will receive a free trip to Orlando, Fla., for national competition in May. National winners receive college scholarships, and the champion wins a trip to U.S. Space Camp.

The top ranking Tucson teams, consisting of the top 40 percent of all teams, were:

1. Sonoran Science Academy

2. Desert Sky Middle School

3. Alice Vail Middle School

4. Emily Gray Junior High School

5. R. B. Wilson K-8 School

6. Amphitheater Middle School

7. Coronado K-8 School

8. Corona Foothills Middle School

The top ranking students, consisting of the top 25 percent of all participating students, were:

1. Joshua Sloan, Sonoran Science Academy

2. Peter Bian, Sonoran Science Academy

3. Courtney Spalt, Emily Gray

4. Nicholas McFarlin, Sonoran Science Academy

5. Kirk Hendricks, BASIS Tucson

6. Stephanie Mendivil, Desert Sky

7. Stan Palasek, Sonoran Science Academy

8. Nam Ngo, Desert Sky

9. Ostin Zarse, Sonoran Science Academy

10. Dulce Ochoa, Alice Vail

11. Sophie Clark, Alice Vail

12. Michah Scholes, Emily Gray

13. Nathan Toombs, Corona

14. Paul Wrona, R. B. Wilson K-8 School

15. Aimee Askira, BASIS

16. Alex Frank, Desert Sky

17. Sam Wilson, Alice Vail

18. Ty Schneider, Sonoran Science Academy

19. Maren Bailey, Alice Vail

20. Harrison Hanzlick, Alice Vail

21. Jeremy Lenington, Emily Gray

22. Rachel Foss, Emily Gray

23. Andrew Wien, Coronado

24. Allie Hilkemeyer, Desert Sky

25. Lucian Draper, Amphitheater Middle School

26. Michael Wang, BASIS

27. Katy Muhlrad, Sonoran Science Academy

28. Michael Kronenfeld, Wilson

29. James Parisi, Sonoran Science Academy

30. Lisandro Jimenez, Billy Lane Lauffer Middle School

31. Marisa Halfman, Emily Gray

32. Ashlee Riehl, Desert Sky

Sonoran Science Academy will advance to state competition on March 14. The top two students not on the top team will also advance: Courtney Spalt of Emily Gray and Kirk Hendricks of BASIS.

The AARP Foundation is seeking entries for its third annual women’s scholarship program.

The scholarships are for women 40 and older seeking training, education and new job skills.

For information on how to apply and to get an application online, go to www.aarpfoundationwlc.org.

Applications must be received by March 31.

Up to 100 scholarships in amounts ranging from $100 to $5,000 will be awarded.

Call 602-262-5165 for more details.

Cozy and safe, with the scent of pancakes on the griddle.

That’s what home means to Noah Deitch, a seventh-grader at St. Gregory College Preparatory School.

For Sahuarita High School junior Kristen Martin, home means rising above the violence and fear of the past into a promising future.

Noah, 12, and Kristen, 17, are the Tucson winners of Arizona Theatre Company’s AMERICA PLAYS! essay contest, held in conjunction with the production of “A Raisin in the Sun.”

The play, which tells the story of the multigenerational Younger family living on Chicago’s South Side in the 1950s, runs through Saturday.

To reflect the themes of the play, students were asked to write an essay that answers, “What do home and family mean to me?”

Noah won in the middle school level.

“We watch baseball, and then jumping up and down like six monkeys with five bananas, we root for our team,” he wrote. “Our house shakes as if in an earthquake; we hug each other and cheer when our team wins. Home is getting to my nice cozy bed: the memories of the past day keep coming in my head, and I fall asleep soundly. I wake up and hear the crispy pancakes in the frying pan.”

ATC associate artistic director Samantha K. Wyer said, “Noah’s description of his family life makes you feel like you are right there with his family.”

Kristen is the winner in the high school category. She wrote about being the child of divorce, and of suffering abuse until recently, when a stepfather joined the family.

“My stepdad has cleansed the wounds of our past and in turn gave us a family that is loving, and with this family I have now a home,” she wrote.

Said Wyer, “Kristen’s evocative writing style illuminated her family’s struggle to come to terms with the past and move forward together toward a bright future.”

They received tickets for their families to see “A Raisin in the Sun” and a chance to meet the actors along with other prizes from 92.9 The Mountain.

———

THE WINNING ESSAYS

Here are the essays written by the Tucson winners of the Arizona Theatre Company’s AMERICA PLAYS! essay contest, held with the production of “A Raisin in the Sun”:

“Home and Family”

by Noah Deitch, 12

St. Gregory College Preparatory School, seventh grade

What is great about my family? It is all the home-style meals, going to the movies, family vacations, playing various sports, just staying in the pleasure of my home, playing a board game, or throwing a football around. We watch baseball, and then jumping up and down like six monkeys with five bananas, we root for our team! Our house shakes as if in an earthquake; we hug each other and cheer when our team wins.

Home is getting to my nice cozy bed: the memories of the past day keep coming in my head, and I fall asleep soundly. I wake up and hear the crispy pancakes in the frying pan. My head snaps up like a mousetrap that caught a mouse. I sprint to the kitchen and see my family eating pancakes with maple syrup. We go around asking how everybody slept.

When breakfast is over, my siblings and I pack up and get ready for school. My dad takes me every morning and drops us off at our destinations. Right before I take off running to play with my friends, my dad always says “Treat everybody with respect.” Saying this to me helps me socially. My family and home are the greatest, and I am very thankful that I am lucky enough to have them.

“What Home and Family Mean to Me”

by Kristen Martin, 17

Sahuarita High School, 11th grade

It is not what my family is to me now that makes my present life so special, it is the way my family used to be that makes my family all the more meaningful to me today.

For a deeper understanding, one must look into my past. As a young victim of divorce, my family was abruptly torn apart barely a year after I was born. I had never known a full family setting. It was always survive the school week with my mother and two siblings, then be dragged into the visitation rights every other weekend with my father.

My meaning of family was always simple: survive. Survive through the week, block out the weekend. Families are supposed to be welcoming and loving, but not mine. We fought constantly with each other; I was always in a battle physically and mentally throughout my childhood. Then when I thought it would all become better, visitation rights crept up, and I was subjected to an abusive father.

I couldn’t complain though; I thought that was how families were supposed to be. And our so called “home,” the building with my mother, or the numerous hotel rooms our father lived out of, was just another place to survive. My “family” was further callused when my father went to jail. As harsh as it may seem to say, that was actually a true blessing to my troubled life. For now we were free to form a new life.

We all became changed, most importantly my mother. My family, and the meaning of it abruptly changed again about a year ago, when I obtained a stepfather.

Now the blessing of my new family of today can be seen. I feel the word “complete” gracefully loom over me at all times and encase me in a loving shawl of tranquility. My stepdad is the new adhesive that holds us all together now. He has made my once malleable depressed mother into a strong, happy woman, and in turn, made my life complete. I now feel accepted in my family, a trait that was unknown in my past. I can fully appreciate the blessing of my family now because of the harsh past I had before.

Now, in my new family, I no longer have to survive: I live. I no longer fear the weekends: I look forward to them. I no longer am abused: I am cherished.

My stepdad has cleansed the wounds of our past and in turn gave us a family that is loving, and with this family I have now a home. It is easy to see that my reformed family, and my home along with it, means more to me than the world.

Job hunting could get easier for those who brush up on their skills at a free seminar next week.

The Pantano Jobs Seminar, at the Pantano Christian Church’s east Tucson campus, 10355 E. 29th St., will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 7, according to the church’s Web site.

The seminar is ideal for those who want to update their résumés, reinvent themselves or just glean some practical job seeking skills.

For more details and to register visit www.pccwired.org/jobs.

Public services affected by the Thanksgiving holiday Thursday:

Garbage pickup

• There will be no city trash and recycling collection Thursday. Thursday customers will have their trash and recyclables collected Friday. Friday customers will have theirs collected Saturday.

The city’s Los Reales Landfill will be closed Thursday.

For more information, call city Environmental Services at 791-3171.

Private hauler Waste Management will shift its Thursday service to Friday and Friday service to Saturday.

For more information, call Waste Management at 800-796-9696.

Bus schedule

Sun Tran buses will run on a Sunday schedule on Thanksgiving.

The information booth at the Ronstadt Transit Center will be open 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Thursday. The booths at Laos and Tohono Tadai transit centers will be closed. All three will return to regular hours Friday.

Sun Tran’s customer service center at 4220 S. Park Ave. will be open from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. Thursday and will return to regular weekday hours on Friday.

Sun Tran’s administrative offices and lost and found will be closed Thursday.

Schools

• K-12 public schools are closed Thursday and Friday.

• No classes will be held Thursday or Friday at the University of Arizona or at Pima Community College.

Others

• City, county, state and federal offices will be closed on Thursday.

• All Pima County Public Library branches will be closed Thursday and the Oro Valley Public Library will be closed Thursday and Friday.

• All U.S. Postal Service facilities will be closed and no deliveries made on Thanksgiving.

• All state Motor Vehicle Division offices and emissions testing stations will be closed Thursday.

• All banks will be closed Thursday.

So you’ve racked up a few library fines.

Kids and teens who have overdue charges can pay down the fines by reading, according to the Pima County Public Library. Through Dec. 31, children can earn Book Bucks by reading at home or in the library. Book Bucks can be used to pay down as much as $30 in fines.

One Book Buck is earned for each 30 minutes of reading or listening to books. Visit your nearest library branch to verify the number of minutes you have read or listened to a book to get Book Bucks.

Book Bucks will only be accepted for current overdue charges. Charges for lost or damaged items or collection agency fees cannot be paid for with Book Bucks. Fore more information, call 594-5600.