Kevin Riordan: Some fancy footwork at Pitman library

Sharon Furgason first wore flip-flops as a kid in Ohio, where "all I did was go to the lake or to the library," she recalls.

Now 66 and the director of Pitman's McCowan Memorial Library, Furgason still loves beaches, books - and flip-flops.

So much so that she has put selections from her 98-pair collection of the festive seasonal footwear on exhibit at McCowan this summer.

"People get a smile out of it," Furgason beams as she unlocks a display case that holds a rainbow array of flip-flops.

Who knew there were so many hues and so many styles of this humble, rubber-soled symbol of fun 'n' sun?

"I love pink, obviously," she says, pulling two samples from the shelves.

Furgason is having a ball, and her enthusiasm is contagious.

"This one is a bit more expensive," she says, holding up a sleek little number with perky white flowers on the strap.

The most she has ever paid for a pair of flip-flops is $40. Most go for less than $20; Furgason's first pair, a solid specimen with groovy garden appliqués, cost perhaps $2 in the '60s.

The flip-flop is a modern incarnation of footwear found in ancient Egypt as well as in Asia.

Inexpensive versions of the Japanese zori (which is what we called flip-flops when I was a youngster) became popular in the United States after World War II and were ubiquitous by the 1960s.

"I was wearing them in the '50s. Fashion copied me," Furgason says, flashing a lustrous smile.

"For a while, flip-flops went out of fashion. People stopped wearing them, except for maybe in the shower. But I never stopped."

The flip-flops will be gone by the end of the month. The display case features a variety of crafts and artwork (origami, calligraphy) during the course of the year. "Exhibits are another way to touch the community and bring the community inside," Furgason says. "Our library is not just a storage place for books. It's a community center."

Although flip-flops and books might seem unrelated, the footwear's association with leisure makes the two a natural fit, library supporters say.

"The library turns into a really fun place in the summer," McCowan board president Rosalie Hamilton says. "The whole flip-flop thing just ties in with the fun atmosphere being created to draw the children in."

"I would say we've added a perfect ray of sunshine to a hot, wet summer," says Jan Conover, a Friends of the Library member.

"We've reminded everyone of wonderful days at the Jersey Shore, walking on the beaches and the boardwalk, and wearing flip-flops everywhere."

That's what Furgason does, weather and safety regulations permitting. Flip-flops are "freedom," says the mother of four and grandmother of six - including "a granddaughter who's turning into a flip-flop fanatic."

"My mother is a great enabler," says Eric Romanoski, 42, of West Deptford, the young fan's father.

Furgason says she doesn't bid on rare flip-flops on eBay or otherwise act like a bona fide collector.

"If I see a pair I like," she says, "I buy them."

Furgason also collects thimbles, sea glass, and tchotchkes related to flip-flops. Like the sign on the display case that reads:

Walk a day in my flip-flops.

Sounds like fun.

To view video of Sharon Furgason's flip-flop exhibit at the McCowan library in Pitman, go to www. inquirer.com/flipflopsEndText