It’s sure starting to feel a bit like spring, isn’t it? We just came off of a very fun event with our Adult Spelling Bee, and have a lot of great activities planned to help everyone thaw out and discover something new - no matter who you are or what you like, there’s something for you at the Library!
Our first ever Battle of the Books, drawing teams of 6th, 7th and 8th graders from both Garrett and Allegany Counties, will be held at Frostburg State University on March 25 - we’re looking forward to a great event! These kids have been studying their reading lists hard, and they’re very good books - I’ve been having to read each as well to write questions. We’ll see who comes out on top!
Work on the Friendsville Library continues, and in the meanwhile, they’ve been doing all sorts of great events there, including a quilling class and their monthly Culinary Connections Cookbook Club! The last session was on “Warming Winter Soups and Stews” to fit the weather, and included samples of delicious Chicken & Dumpling Soup, Potato Chowder, Shepherd’s Pie Soup, and Chicken Vegetable Soup, along with Corn Muffins, Pizza Crackers, and Peanut Butter Fudge - you can see why this club is so popular!
In Kitzmiller, meanwhile, as the weather warms up the Community Garden is getting cleaned up and ready for planting season. We’re looking forward to lots of great gardening events this spring and summer, and folks who want to be a part of it are encouraged to talk with Miss Diane!
Accident also has gardening on the mind as we enter Spring, with a Gardening Lab planned for May 2. Not only that, but they’re looking forward to bringing out their collection of gardening tools available for checkout. Take a look at what they have to offer if you’re planning your own plot!
Meanwhile in Grantsville, the new Puzzle Club is going strong and always looking for new jigsaw enthusiasts - plus they’ve been known to have actual competitions now and then… For those of you who would like to try Mahjongg, you can take part in games there as well, and the littles can enjoy Mini and Me movement classes the first Wednesdays of the month at 11:00!
The Main Library will be holding a fun Shakespeare reading event once again on April 18 this year - everyone picks a part and we read through the play together. This year we’ve chosen Much Ado About Nothing - and everyone who participates gets a Classics Button for that title for your trouble!
And down the road a bit we are looking forward to a great National Library Week! We’ll be having a bookmark design contest starting March 9, with the winners to be unveiled that week. On April 20, we’re having a very special talk about Edgar Allan Poe from our friends at the State Library Resource Center, who have a lot of Poe’s letters and papers to brag about. And we’ll also be holding a great show for kids at all locations that week called “Circus Science with Gregory May” - Mr. May is a former Ringling Brothers Circus performer, Baltimore City high school science teacher, and Port Discovery Children’s Museum educator, who uses amazing tricks to explore the circus world and the basic scientific principles that make it work.
And in addition, I’m going to be reaching out personally with a series of talks that help parents learn the hows and whys of reading to kids - it’s one of the most valuable and influential things you can do for them, after all, and it’s never too late to start. “Reading aloud is love,” as one author puts it - and it makes a huge difference when trying to give your kid an educational leg up and an appreciation for the world around them and the stories it contains. I’ll also be talking about how to help your kids have a healthy relationship with online media as well - a more important thing to consider than ever.
When times get tough, libraries get more important to their communities - we’re here for you and are proud to be able to make a positive difference in the lives of everyone in our communities!