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Wrapping Up Summer Reading and Our Next Chapters: Summer recap/Looking ahead

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Things have been busy at the Gay-Kimball Library! From diving into summer reading challenges to finding ways to beat the heat, we’ve had a blast with our community through various events.

Thanks to our CLiF grant, we were able to purchase two book wagons and head out to the Historical Society’s Community Fair in July. There, we offered the town a glimpse of library history through storyboards. It was exciting to talk with patrons about how the town’s library first began in the late 1800s as a room in our town hall. Our original circulation was just under 1,000 titles, and we started with one part-time librarian. It wasn’t until 1945 that the library moved out of the town hall into the brick portion of our building today. To learn more about our history, take a walk near the purple picnic table on the side of the library and read all about the generous legacy of both the Gay and Kimball families!

In July, we also held an obstacle course event in conjunction with the rec department’s Community Day. Kids leveled up their agility by balancing balls, hoops, and noodles while following directions. We also created a new graphic novel section in our children’s room, leveled up our Lego building skills, hosted camp visits, and saw a record number of children come out for Storytime, as many as 22 kids and 9 adults.

 In August, we brought back our popular Stuffie Sleepover, held a pop-up paint party, rounded out our Summer Reading Program with an indoor pool party and ice cream social, and brought a 3D printer to life!

We also welcomed Rylan Christen to our volunteer team. He’s been a great asset in helping us with a variety of tasks, including setting up our shark scavenger hunt, collecting rocks for Storytime kids, helping patrons with computers, and troubleshooting building maintenance concerns. If you see Rylan around, please thank him for his service to the town.

We improved library safety this summer by installing security cameras both in and out of the building. In addition to the town cameras for YouTube streaming of government meetings in our conference room, we are now able to ensure patron safety in all areas of the library and are thankful to all who helped make this happen!

Our CLiF grant covered tile replacement for our event space! This came just in time for our author signing events and makes for a brighter space for all! Speaking of grants, we also learned that we received a Flight Path grant that will bring programming and resources on birds and their migration patterns to the library!

It’s hard to believe how quickly summer went by. As we enter a new season, we’re looking forward to events that will round out our year. So far, we’ve scheduled the following:

TRUNK OR TREAT TRICK OR TREAT: October 31 at GKL! We will host our third Trunk or Treat this year at GKL! With Halloween falling on a Friday, this year’s festivities are sure to be even more fun than in year’s past! You can sign up to host a trunk at any time! Spaces are limited and we have had a lot of interest in participating, so please be sure to sign up early. On that end, we are now accepting donations of candy from anyone who would like to support the popular event. Please drop your candy off during open library hours! In our first year, the event was so popular that we ran out of candy in the first hour. You can help prevent that from happening by donating candy anytime between now and Halloween!

TIME CAPSULE: In the spirit of embracing our history, we are working on a time capsule which will be buried at the library for future generations to find! If you would like to add something to the capsule, stop by the library or drop it in the book drop with a note.

CHESS CLUB FOR TWEENS/TEENS: Beginning in November, we will introduce a chess program for anyone interested in learning the game or improving their skills.

AUTHOR VISIT: Join us at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Dec 6, for a reading, signing, and presentation by author Michael J Caduto. Caduto, author of Enchanted Night Before Christmas, hails from Vermont and will give a talk on a sweet holiday story he wrote about a family who understands the true meaning behind the holidays. This event is free and open to the public and will help put you in the mood for the holidays!

TRACKING PRESENTATION: Save the date for a presentation by Dan Bisaccio, a retired science professor, on the topic of wildlife tracking. Dan will teach us how to identify animals by their tracks and/or scat. You’ll be able to tell the difference between a deer and a rabbit visitor to your yard. He’ll also go over how to make plaster casts of tracks you discover in snow or on raw ground. You’ll even learn a neat law enforcement trick on how police capture tracks in the snow.Save the date – Wednesday, Dec. 10 – to check out a mountain lion track cast and more! We will also hand out tracking materials from NH Fish and Game for those interested in tracking at home. This presentation is free of charge and open to anyone ages 13 and up. It will begin at 5:30 in the Ripley Room at Gay Kimball Library. You don’t need to register to attend and this event is open to the public, regardless of residency status.

We are currently working on scheduling more events, including teddy bear teas, author signings through CLiF with the elementary school, bad art, and senior bingo nights! Follow our Facebook page to learn more and stay up to date with GKL activities and programming. Thank you to everyone who has been so patient with us during these busy times. Our goal is to continue to do what we can to make the library a welcoming, helpful place in town as we continue to grow!

Stuffie Sleepover at GKL

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The Sleepover at the Gay-Kimball Library

One warm evening, a curious bunch of stuffed animals tiptoed into the Gay-Kimball Library. There was Simba the lion, Dada the dino, Honey the bear, Flower the flower, Rosie the elf, Mr. Buns the rabbit, Gabriella and Sarah the dolls, and many more. They had been invited for a very special event—a sleepover among the bookshelves. They were excited to read books together under the fairy tree and share their favorite interests – eating leaves, cuddling, flying, playing with their best friends, learning about dinosaurs, and having fun.

As soon as the librarians gently closed the door behind them, the adventure began.

First, they waddled, hopped, and shuffled straight to the children’s room using a slide from last week’s indoor pool party. Mr. Buns bounced onto the colorful rug and shouted, “Story corner is ours tonight!” Simba clomped around, pulling puzzles off the shelf, while Sarah made a mountain of blocks. Dada, the most serious of the bunch, sniffed out the picture books and stacked them into a tall, wobbly tower.

By lunchtime, their tummies rumbled. Out from a big box came—pizza! The stuffed animals gathered around, each pretending to take a slice. Sunny, a goose, dipped his beak as if it were the cheesiest, gooiest bite he’d ever had. “Best pizza ever!” he squeaked.

Then came mischief. They tried on dress-up hats and capes from the play corner. They raced down the rows of books like it was a track. Rosie even attempted to push Honey around in the toy stroller, though Honey was far too big and tipped out with a soft whump! The giggles echoed through the library walls.

As the evening grew quiet, they curled up on beanbags and read stories aloud to one another. Max, an elephant, read about brave explorers, Sarah chose fairy tales, and Owl loved the books about trains. Sunny, being the youngest, just wanted to hear them all.

When the lights dimmed, the library seemed to glow with the warmth of their happiness. They snuggled together, surrounded by shelves of stories, their bellies full of pizza, and their hearts full of joy. And as they drifted off to sleep, Gabriella whispered, “I’m so glad we came to the Gay-Kimball Library.” The librarians were too.

Spit, spat, spout – this tale’s told out!!!