This week, Williams County Public Library with locations in Bryan, Edgerton, Edon, Pioneer, Stryker, and West Unity joins libraries in schools, campuses and communities nationwide in celebrating National Library Week, a time to highlight the value of libraries, librarians and library workers. “Communities Matter @ your library” is this year’s theme for National Library Week, April 14 through April 20, 2013.
Libraries today are more than repositories for books and other resources. Often the heart of their communities, campuses, or schools; libraries are deeply committed to the places where their patrons live, work, and study. Libraries are trusted places where everyone in the community can gather to reconnect and reengage with each other to enrich and shape the community and address local issues.
Librarians work with elected officials, small business owners, students, and the public at large to discover what their communities needs are and meet them. Whether through offering e-books and technology classes, materials for English-language learners, programs for job seekers, or those to support early literacy, librarians listen to the community they serve, and they respond.
WCPL serves Williams County by providing books, magazines, newspapers, movies, music, audio books, and digital books for all ages. WCPL also provides many services to the public including free computer and internet access, homebound services, and many special programs, among other things. “Service to the community has always been the focus of the library,” said Jeff Yahraus, Library Director. “While this aspect has never changed, libraries have grown and evolved in how they provide for the needs of every member of their community.”
To celebrate National Library Week, all locations of WCPL will have an amnesty period from April 15 to April 30 when fines will be forgiven on overdue books. There will also be some freebies given away at all locations.
The Main Library in Bryan is celebrating National Library Week by holding two drawings, one for adults and one for children. The adult drawing will be for a book bag full of books on vegetable gardening, herbs, canning and preserving, and cooking. The children’s drawing will be for a book bag full of children’s books.
The Children’s Department in Bryan will also have “Libraries” as their theme for story hours that week. A calendar with the story hour schedule can be picked up at the library. “Monday Madness” for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders will be held from 6:30 to 7:30 pm on Monday. Pre-registration is required for that story hour. Tuesday morning at 11:00 am, “Bear Tales,” a story time for children ages 2 to 3 ½, will be held. On Tuesday from 6:30 to 7:00 pm, “Bear Kids” story time will be held for children ages 2 to 5. “Baby Caterpillars” a story time for babies from newborn to 24 months of age will be held on Wednesday at 10:15 am. Also on Wednesday, “Let’s Move!” held at 11:00 is an entertaining program for preschoolers that includes fun activities while moving to music.
Edgerton Library will continue their regular story hours during National Library Week. This will include “Clifford’s Cubs” on Mondays from 6:00 to 6:45 pm which is a story time for children ages 3 to kindergarten. The kids will enjoy stories, games, crafts & snacks. “Arthur’s Pups” is a reading club for children in grades 1 and 2 which will be held on Tuesday from 3:15 to 4:15 pm. “Kids from the Black Lagoon” is a reading club for children in grades 3 and 4 and will be held on Thursday from 3:15 to 4:15 pm. Children in both of these reading clubs will enjoy stories, games, crafts, and snacks.
Edon Library will have a guessing jar for National Library Week along with their regular story hour schedule. “Read Alongs,” a reading club for children in grades 1 and 2, will be held on Tuesday from 3:30 to 4:15 pm. On Wednesday at 11:30 am will be a story time for newborns to children in kindergarten. Also on Wednesday, “Talk Abouts,” a Reading Club for kids in grades 3 and 4 will be held at 3:30 pm.
Pioneer Library will be showing an after school movie titled Tom and Jerry: Robin Hood and his Merry Mouse on Monday, April 15 at 3:00 pm. This movie is 58 minutes long and is not rated. On Thursday, April 18 from 11:00 to 11:30 am, the children in the Eaglets story time will have a program called “Make-a-book.” Friday Gaming will be held at Pioneer Library on April 19 from 3:00 to 5:00 pm. Videogames and board games will be available for grades kindergarten through 12. Snacks will also be provided. Drawings for both adults and children will also be held at the Pioneer Branch Library.
Stryker Library will celebrate National Library Week with giveaways and guessing jars. They will also have their usually scheduled story times throughout the week: Panther Kidz on Tuesday, April 16, from 3:15 to 4:00 pm; Read to Me on Wednesday, April 17, from 3:15 to 4:00 pm; and Panther Paws on Thursday, April 18, from 11:00 to 11:30 am.
West Unity Library will celebrate National Library Week with a new trivia contest each day. Guessing jars will be available for the kids, and adults can enter to win a book bag full of books and goodies. Children who read to a Tail Waggin’ Tutor will have their name entered into a drawing for a free book. There will also be treasure boxes of prizes for both adults and children.
First sponsored in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association (ALA) and by libraries across the country each April.
For more information, visit Williams County Public Library in Bryan at 107 E. High Street, call 419-636-6734, or see the library’s web site at www.mywcpl.org.
