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SRP's best is yet to come! |
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It's hard to believe that there's only a week and a half left of this year's Summer Reading Program.
 But while we may be short on time, we're jam-packed with activities for all ages throughout the remainder of the program! Highlights for the coming days include Tuesday's Starlab and the Aug. 1 finale extravaganza with Arm-of-the-Sea Theater!
Starlab's portable planetarium gives audiences what may be their best glimpse of the wonders the night sky offers (sans light pollution and other impediments to the amateur astronomer). Tuesday's shows will be offered at 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. for all ages.
 SRP's swan song will feature Arm-of-the-Sea Theater's performance of a brand new puppet-music-picture show in seven acts at 6 p.m. Aug. 1. The show, called the Rejuvenary River Circus, will feature hand-printed collage patterns that open to reveal story worlds within story worlds as their tale winds in circles between a mountain stream and the deep blue sea, a school of fish and a forest of trees, a crow in a falling-down town and a girl waking up to her new Self. Nimble puppeteers powered by original live music will travel with the audience on this magical journey. An Ice Cream Social will follow the performance on the library lawn.
The finale's rain date will be Aug. 2.
There are still tons of other programs scheduled between now and the finale, including a Superhero PJ Party, crafts galore, outdoor fun, and Story Times for every age (see below for our full schedule).
Call the library at 895-3707 for more information.
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Book signings among adult programs  Popular authors Lynn Austin and Jennifer Probst will be making appearances at the library during the final weeks of the Summer Reading Program.
Lynn Austin will discuss and sign copies of her book, Wonderland Creek, at 7 p.m. Monday. Jennifer Probst will be at the library 7 p.m. the following Monday (July 30) to talk about and sign copies of her bestseller, The Marriage Bargain. Other upcoming adult programming includes a Card-Making Class at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday and the Knit/Crochet Club, which meets each Thursday at 6:30 p.m. For more information, call the library at 895-3707. |
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Coming up at the Wallkill Public Library This week you'll find a list of upcoming programs and events through the Aug. 1 finale. Our newsletter will not be sent out next week, but will resume Aug. 3.
Today: The Chess Club meets at 3:30 p.m. Games on the Lawn is cancelled today due to the weather.
Monday: The Art Club will be making Papier Mache Puppets at 11  a.m. Pottery with Anne for ages 4-7 will take place at noon. Cub Scouts can come in at 2:30 p.m. to earn their Reading Badges. Writer Lynn Austin will be at the library at 7 p.m. for a book signing. Tuesday: Lego Building is at 10:30 a.m. Pottery with Anne for ages 8 and up will be at noon. Starlab will take place at 3 p.m. and again at 4 p.m. There will be a Superhero Pajama Party at 7 p.m.
Wednesday: A Drop-In Craft will be offered from 2:30-3:30 p.m. Henna Tattooing for ages 7 and up will take place at 4 p.m.The Cartoon and Drawing Class meets at 6 p.m. A Card-Making Workshop for Adults will take place at 6:30 p.m.
Thursday: Jewelry Making will be offered at 3:30 p.m. Crocheting for Kids will take place at 6:30 p.m. The Knit and Crochet Club also meets at 6:30 p.m.
Friday: Part 2 of Papier Mache Puppets takes place at 11 a.m. Make and Take Masterpiece meets at noon. The Chess Club meets at 3:30 p.m. Wiffle Ball will be the day's Game on the Lawn at 4:15 p.m.
 Monday (July 30): Make a Jewelry Frame at 11 a.m. during Art Club. Part 2 of Pottery with Anne for ages 4-7 meets at noon. Cub Scouts come in at 2:30 p.m. Local author Jennifer Probst will be at the library at 7 p.m. for a book signing.  Tuesday (July 31): Lego Building is at 10:30 a.m. Part 2 of Pottery with Anne for ages 8 and up meets at noon. The Magic Tree House Book Club meets at 4 p.m. to discuss Summer of the Sea Serpent. Book Talk, for ages 9-12, meets at 6:30 p.m. to discuss Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time. Wednesday (Aug. 1): The Summer Reading Program finale takes place at 6 p.m.with Arm-of-the-Sea Theater's production of The Rejuvenary River Circus. An Ice Cream Social follows. Rain date will be Aug. 2.
Story Times: Mommy and Me meets Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Toddler Story Time meets Wednesday at 10:30 a.m. and Thursday at 11:30 a.m. Book Buddies meets Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. Getting Ready for Kindergarten meets Thursday at 12:30 p.m.
Book Clubs: Goosebumps Book Club meets from 3-3:30 p.m. Thursday. Grades 2-6 Book Club meets from 2-2:30 p.m. Thursday. The Magic Tree House Book Club meets at 4 p.m. July 24. |
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Race for library trustee officially on  An Open House was held this past Monday for those interested in running for one of the available trustee seats on the Wallkill Public Library Board.
If you weren't able to attend but are interested in running or finding out more about what the position entails, don't hesitate to call the library at 895-3707. Candidates must get a petition signed by 50 Town of Shawangunk residents who live within the Wallkill School District in order to run. The petitions are due Sept. 12. The election will take place from noon to 8 p.m. September 25. Good luck to all! |
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Take a sneak peek at our new magazine  ADDitude magazine will soon be the latest addition to the library's periodical collection. The publication is geared specifically toward those living with attention deficit disorder.
Though the magazine itself won't arrive at the library for a few weeks, you can get subscriber-only access to ADDitude's digital archives, including the current issue, here. You can also visit additudemag.com to read topical blogs, download free ADHD printables, and sign up for free e-newletters. |
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Oprah's Wild about Strayed memoir  Wild, by Cheryl Strayed
An Oprah's Book Club 2.0 selection, Wild is the true story of an 1,100-mile solo hike that broke down a young woman reeling from catastrophe - and built her back up again.
At 22, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother's death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life: to hike the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State - and to do it alone. She had no experience as a long-distance hiker, and the trail was little more than "an idea, vague and outlandish and full of promise." But it was a promise of piecing back together a life that had come undone.
Strayed faces down rattlesnakes and black bears, intense heat and record snowfalls, and both the beauty and loneliness of the trail. Told with great suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, Wild vividly captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her. |
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Like math? Hate math? Coolmath's for you  Sick of flashcards? Want to make sure your little mathematicians stay on top of their game for the fall?
Coolmath.com is an interactive site that helps students sharpen basic math skills as well as explore new concepts. They can also warm up to the subject by playing math-related games. Whether your child is a math wiz or intimidated by the subject, Coolmath.com can be of help. The site also offers spelling and geography games. |
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Look familiar? Try your luck and guess!  Welcome to week four of Lou's Clues!
Here's how to play: Identify the local businesses where these two photos were taken. Email the full name of the businesses to lpalmer@rcls.org. If your entry is correct, you'll earn a ticket (one per  correct answer) toward cool prizes like movie passes, dinner certificates, iTunes cards, and more! Players must have a library card to be eligible. The contest is open to all ages. Good luck! |
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The bright side of our weekly apocalypse  Wednesday seems to be the day: the day the fire alarm goes off, the day an outlet starts sparking,the day a water pipe bursts, flooding the children's room....we have been waiting for the plague of locusts but I'm sure they will catch us off guard and come on a Thursday. What we seem to be experiencing are the effects of an aging (77-year-old) building that is getting the kind of usage it was never designed to receive. What to do? We have struggled as a library board and staff over this issue for many years - can the community support a new or renovated library? Do people see the value of what we do? Are their lives impacted by the library? What would this community be like if we had a space capable of accommodating all of the programming, services and collections we dream of offering?
In his book, The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference, Malcolm Gladwell defines a tipping point as "the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point." I believe this is where we are in the 112-year history of our library. We are experiencing the greatest involvement ever in our summer reading program with over 315 registered participants. We are offering programs like Lego Camp that no other library in the RCLS system was willing to take on - and it was a resounding success. We have completely full programming in classes from art to reading clubs, cooking classes, chess and crochet. Yet, in the middle of programming, a building issue comes up and the building must be evacuated or classes cancelled due to water damage. These kinds of stresses take their toll on staff and on our budget.
This past Wednesday, when no alarms went off or plumbing erupted into a geyser, we were beginning to settle in to an unexpected comfort when a variety of, how shall I put this, "bodily function" issues occurred that we had to deal with both up and down stairs. (You could almost hear the "other shoe" dropping in the hallway.) We have learned to take these unpleasantries in stride as just down days in a very public, overused space. It was soon afterward, however, that an unexpected glimmer of extreme light occurred, making the negative stuff fade quickly away.
Two newly graduated Valley Central High School students teach our Wednesday afternoon Cartooning and Drawing classes. After cleaning up the library messes, I ventured over to the class to check things out, wishing I had videotaped the scene I came upon. Twelve kids from four different towns sat huddled together, papers in front of them, colored pencils within reach, watching as their instructors methodically went through the steps to creating an anime face. The silence in the room was as remarkable as the kids' concentration. The most incredible thing to note: not one cell phone or electronic device was capturing the kids' attention, except for the moments when their teacher would switch on his laptop to show the kids animated characters in action, and then quickly switch it off once they had captured the concept. They were engaged, listening, learning, and creating. It was the essence of what we strive to create and offer to the children of this community, and beyond. It was a golden moment.
It also took place in the Town Hall community room. Not the library.
When our programs have to be held around town due to inadequate or inaccessible space, it diffuses the impact and connection to the library. We want to change that. We want to offer you more. We just can't do that in the space we currently occupy. So I ask you to please consider the question I posed earlier: What would this community be like if we had a space capable of accommodating all of the programming, services and collections we dream of offering? If you want to dream, or just ponder, that question with us, please email me: mlcarolan@rcls.org. We will be meeting this fall to discuss the future of the library and I want your ideas to be heard. Thank you!
Mary Lou Carolan
Director |
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