Brooklyn Public Library creates
educational Post Offi ce reading list
BY ROSE ADAMS
A new reading list from the
Brooklyn Public Library aims
to educate locals about the embattled
United States Postal
Service amid efforts by the
Trump administration to sideline
the agency.
The book list, which includes
44 titles for children
and adults, gives readers a
look into the signifi cance behind
the current mail crisis,
said a library spokeswoman.
“BPL’s librarians have created
comprehensive book lists
to explain the history and importance
of the Post Offi ce,
and emphasize why funding
the service is critical,” said
Katie Groenke. “These lists
serve as a critical tool for the
community to learn about the
history of the Post Offi ce, and
hopefully spurs Brooklynites
to protect this institution.”
The Postal Service has
been thrust into the national
spotlight after postmaster general
Louis DeJoy — a recent
appointee of President Donald
Trump — implemented
several new measures in July
that cut costs and urged workers
to leave mail behind to
avoid delays.
Many Democrats viewed
the directives as efforts to undermine
the upcoming presidential
election, whose results
will rely heavily on millions of
mail-in ballots due to the coronavirus
pandemic. In an Aug.
13 interview with Fox Business
Network, Trump admitted
that the funding cuts to
USPS will prevent the Postal
Service from processing all
the ballots.
“If we don’t make a deal,
that means they don’t get the
money,” Trump said. “That
means they can’t have universal
mail-in voting; they just
can’t have it.”
In addition to funding
cuts, the Postal Service has
decommissioned hundreds
of mail sorting machines nationwide
— four of which
serve in Brooklyn. Offi cials
say the machines’ removal is
part of a long-term plan to reduce
equipment because a decline
in the use of mailed letters,
but workers charge that
fewer sorting machines will
COURIER L 22 IFE, SEPT. 4–10, 2020 M BR B G
cause delays.
To teach locals more about
the Postal Service, one librarian
at the Brooklyn Public
Library decided to compile a
reading list that highlights
the oft-overlooked agency and
its importance.
“I had been aware of what
was happening, and then
with this problem ongoing, it
seemed like an important time
to point out these books,” said
Emma Carbone, who works at
the library’s central branch
by Prospect Park.
The diverse book list —
which includes nonfi ction history
books, novels that feature
letter-writing, and picture
books about the mail — aims
to educate a wide range of
readers, Carbone said.
“I tried to cover a full
range of things so that theres
something for everyone,” she
said. “We even have a couple
of murder mysteries featuring
mail workers.”
One of Carbone’s favorite
books from the collection is
“Because Amelia Smiled,” a
picture book by David Ezra
Stein about a girl whose smile
inspires her neighbor to send
cookies to her grandson in
Mexico, spurring a domino effect
of good deeds around the
world.
The list also includes favorites
from other library
workers, who sent their book
recommendations to Carbone,
she said.
“I started the list and
then I was able to ask my colleagues
for suggestions,” she
said. “Some colleagues recommended
picture books that
I didn’t know we had in our
own collection or featured the
post offi ce.”
BY TODD MAISEL
For Li-Lac Chocolates,
a New York City chocolate
shop of 97 years, business has
been less than sweet. Revenue
is down 75 percent — an
increase, however, from its
worst month in April, when it
was down 93 percent.
But Anthony Cirone, the
owner of Li-Lac for the past
nine years, refuses to melt under
the fi nancial heat. Instead,
he’s fi nding new ways to bring
in enough cash before the busier
fall season kicks in.
Four of Li-Lac’s six stores
are currently open — one in
Sunset Park’s Industry City,
another in Grand Central Station,
and two Greenwich Village.
The stores offer a variety
of hand-crafted chocolates,
some molded into objects such
as footballs, the Empire State
Building and even a hospital
building for frontline medical
professionals who battled
COVID-19 at its height.
But business is still at a
trickle, as local traffi c is no
more than a nibble compared
to Li-Lac’s old “normal,”
Cirone said.
“Our business is dependent
on tourists and businesspeople
and none of them now exist,”
Cirone said. “We sell a lot of
gifts, and none of it is happening.
There are no dinner parties,
conferences — the things
that normally drives business.
Until we return to some sense
normalcy, it’s hard to get back
up to levels when the majority
is gone.”
In the meantime, the chocolatier
has gone into “survival
mode,” reducing his staff,
minimizing expenses, using
the internet to drive sales,
and delivering through thirdparty
apps like Doordash.
Cirone said some governmental
funds like the Payroll
Protection Program and
the Economic Injury Disaster
Loan have helped keep
them afl oat, but added that
he’s dealing with six different
landlords, some more amenable
to compromise than others.
“I’m thankful some landlords
have been really good.
Some have been tougher, some
offered abatement or reduced
rent for a period of time, some
are holding ground,” he said.
“I don’t know how that’s going
to work out. I hope to fi nd
something that works.”
While the growth in online
sales has been a bright spot,
Cirone said it’s “not enough to
offset the loss in volume from
stores” — but it does help a
bit. “We are focusing on trying
to get chocolates to those
who can’t make it to stores,”
he said.
Until things pick up around
the holidays, Cirone expects
to remain idle until the end
of August, normally a slower
time than the rest of the year.
“The fall season is big for
sales,” Cirone said, stressing
that New York City needs to
fully reopen for small businesses
like him to fully bounce
back. “We will then be heading
into holidays — and we cannot
be without customers during
Christmas or Thanksgiving.
We need New York City to be
open.”
This story is part of Schneps
Media’s “Small Business Survivors”
series, an ongoing look at
how New York City small businesses
are working to recover
from the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you’re a small business
owner surviving the pandemic,
send us your story by emailing
bpnewsroom@schnepsmedia.
com.
The mail gaze
Nearly century-old Li-Lac Chocolates
refuses to melt under pressure
BROOKLYN
Small biz survivor
The Brooklyn Public Library hopes to be a resource on the embattled
United States Post Offi ce. Photo by REUTERS/Carlos Barria
Karine Khoder of Li-Lac Chocolates shows off some of her wares.
Photo by Todd Maisel
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