Recap of Recaps: October 3–9

Submitted by Sarah Brubaker

Check out these highlights from some of the unique offerings that patrons enjoyed systemwide between October 3–9. 

Understanding America: Electoral College at Sharon Forks Library

“Before the program began, I had one patron comment to me, ‘I've been so excited for today! I know nothing about the electoral college!’ Most of the attendees were regulars, but I did see a few new fresh faces today, including some of the professor's current students. There were lots of questions on whether the U.S. should keep or change the EC. Dr. Gershtenson went through the pros and cons of the EC. During the discussion period, a few regulars brought up information learned from previous sessions in the series to bring up points and questions.” -hosted by Jessica Dillard

Making Health Your Hobby at Cumming Library

“Cathy Ross gave a fascinating presentation today all about how to make health your hobby. It can be tough to treat your body right in today's world, but it's really important you are your own advocate. We had a very engaged group. One gentleman had recently had a stent placed in one of his heart vessels. They asked a lot of great questions, and everyone was very encouraging of each other.” -hosted by Brianna Schantz

Adult Special Needs Storytime at Hampton Park Library

“Today we read How to Catch A Witch and I Love Magic. Several in the group stated they planned to dress up for Halloween; we have a police officer, Fred Flintstone, and a banana dressing up in a few weeks! Our craft was mason jars with glowing fall leaves. We used glossy Mod Podge and small tissue paper leaves to decorate the outside of our jars. We tied raffia ribbon around the top lip of the jar for additional decoration. Everyone seemed to really enjoy their finished product! Due to some very generous glopping of Mod Podge on several jars, we also took hair dryers at the end and helped speed up the drying time..” -hosted by Jennifer Forbes

Paws on the Weekend at Cumming Library

“Today at Paws we were joined by canine listeners Oliver and Daisy, and a few very excited readers. There were a couple groups of siblings who were very good at taking turns reading. There was also one little boy who was thrilled to see dogs. He took turns reading to each dog and whenever there was an open space, he would circle back to see the dogs. When he finished reading, he asked if I could get the dogs back next week. Overall, it was a very fun morning.” -hosted by Signe Madson

Primrose East Outreach Visit with Cumming Library

“One of the most enjoyable responsibilities of my being a Youth Specialist has always been my outreach visits to local preschools. Today, I visited Primrose Preschool East, and the delight began as soon as I entered the classroom to little voices saying, ‘Hi, what's your name?’ ‘Welcome back!’ ‘I'm having a Matchbox birthday party!’ Two small classes gathered together on the rug to listen to stories and learn the signs to ‘Hello, Friends.’ I read Roll, Roll Little Pea and made it interactive by pulling the kids into making a circling motion with their arms and chanting the refrain. They particularly enjoyed the squeaky squirrel voice in Leaf Thief and helped me blow like the wind that steals the leaves from the trees. They raptly listened to If I Was a Horse and Take Your Pets To School Day, then we discussed what it would be like if all of their pets actually did come to school with them. We got up to dance to We Are Monsters and shook to ‘The Milkshake Song.’ The children were good listeners and asked thoughtful questions. I look forward to my next visit! It was lovely to see how much the children anticipated each story and asked for another book.” -hosted by Holly Raus

Bookmobile Visit to Halcyon

“This week I was fortunate enough to accompany Christine to Halcyon for the final Kids Club morning of 2024. About sixty visitors gathered around for fall stories, songs, activities, and, of course, the beloved puppet show! We even had some visitors from the Tampa area who were waiting to leave town until the hurricane passed who said their toddler really enjoyed it. Afterwards, we visited some of the kids with the puppets, and one young lady took the bear's costume off and dressed up our sheep with it. We were able to let a few families know about which story times would be most like the one we offered so that they could enjoy them on a regular basis. Beautiful weather was just the icing on the cake.” -contributed by Joanie Goforth

Good books and good weather? Sign me up!