Board members needed  
Dear Friends:

We have found ourselves losing several board trustees for a number of mostly personal and transitional reasons. We need to fill seven of our 11 trustee positions in the September 30 election. Time is of the essence. Please consider joining us.

We are looking for optimistic, forward-thinking people who love and use the library and understand the impact we have upon the community in terms of leadership, innovation, education, and adding to the quality of life in our hamlet.

We need people who live in the Wallkill Central School District; can make the board of trustee meetings on the first Monday evening of each month from 7-9 p.m.; and serve on one additional committee (i.e. finance, personnel, building & grounds, by-laws or community outreach) that will also meet at a mutually agreed upon day each month.

There are so many incredible things we are accomplishing here in the hamlet since we have raised the bar on the kind of programming, collections, and services we offer you. We have hired a top-notch staff to focus on customer service and excellence. Yet we are not without our problems.

We have been challenged with space restrictions and need to address these issues in the very near future. We want to develop strategies to approach the issues we face regarding technology and the evolving role of libraries in the digital age; our ability and opportunity to support and build on educational collaborations with the schools; and options for diversifying funding.

We need volunteers to run for the board of trustees who have finance, construction, human resource, planning, education, or fundraising expertise. These are elected positions that vary from two- to five-year terms. 

If you would like to consider serving on our board, please contact me as soon as possible. I can answer any of your questions. But please don't consider running if you can't commit the time needed. I appreciate your consideration. You may reach me by email at [email protected]. Thank you.

 

Mary Lou Carolan

Director, Wallkill Public Library
845-895-3707 or [email protected]

 

 

Thank you, young readers 
The community room filled up fast yesterday for the SRP finale, Bubble Trouble, featuring Jeff Boyer (below).
Thanks to our SRP participants (all 292 of them!), this season's Summer Reading Program was among the  most successful yet!
In addition to taking part in the many events and activities offered during these past six weeks, registrants have done an impressive job reading - a total of 3,198 books were read during the program! For a list of this year's Top Readers, click here.
The library was a busy place overall during this SRP. There were 3,275 users in July alone!
A special thanks goes out to the library's awesome teen volunteers, whose work with the Science Camp and other endeavors added a lot of fun to the summer mix!
Our appreciation also goes out to the following for their help and contributions:
  • The Friends of the Wallkill Public Library
  • The Shawangunk Woman's Club
  • Federal Library Services Technology Act Funds
  • New York State Library's Family Literacy Library Services grant program
  • The Boy Scouts
  • Cub Scouts Troop 72
  • Wallkill Public Library Quilters' Circle
  • The Teen Library Club
  • Cheri O'Hare
  • Patricia Turner

And thanks most of all to all those who showed up for the programs (and those who drove them!) - you made the season another great success! 

Coming up at the Wallkill Public Library
Tuesday: Textile Tuesday-goers get to enjoy a brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bring a craft and a plate and nosh as you create!
Wednesday: Music Under the Stars will feature SUNY Ulster's Community Band and Jazz Ensemble in a 6:45 p.m. performance on the library lawn (or Popp's Pavilion, if it rains).
Thursday: Teen Zombie Day will feature scary movies, water gun fights, scavenger hunts, and more grisly fun. The Knit and Crochet Club will meet at 6:30 p.m. Music in the Park will take place at Garrison Park (Popp's Pavilion in case of rain), where The Mustangs 65 will perform at 7 p.m.
Story Timers get special treat with play
Ana Wakeman takes a bow at the end of Wednesday's Act It Out performance.
Summer children's assistant Ana Wakeman's Act It Out Workshops wrapped up weeks of hard work with a performance Wednesday during Story Time.
All ages packed the community room to watch The Country Turkey, an original play by Ana's brother, Lee Wakeman. Directed by Ana, the show featured a cast of 14 (including Ana herself!) whose performances made for a crowd-pleasing Story Time substitute.
Thanks to Elizabeth Bongiovanni, the show's head set and costume designer, and to everyone who helped put the production together!
Concerts to light up area with live music
Paul Mader, Lisa Tarantino, and Mary Lou Carolan show off the outdoor movie screen funded by VOW's Outside the Box grant.
 Next week's Music Under the Stars, featuring SUNY Ulster's Community Band and Jazz Ensemble, is just the first of four upcoming musical events offered by the library and the Vision of Wallkill!
Victor Izzo Jr. and Chris Earley will be leading Wednesday's 6:45 p.m. performance, where selections of jazz greats, Broadway shows, and march favorites will be played.
Thursday, The Mustangs 65 will perform at Garrison Park at 7 p.m.
Both shows will go on rain or shine (at Popp's Pavilion in case of showers).
Other upcoming performances include Irish singer and songwriter Kevin Cronin and the band duo Me and My Ex.
All performances are presented by the Wallkill Public Library and the Vision of Wallkill in conjunction with the Town of Shawangunk, and will be sponsored by Wallkill Valley Federal Savings and Loan.
Keep a lookout for outdoor movies, coming soon - made possible by the Outside the Box grant the Vision of Wallkill (with the library serving as lead agency) won back in May.
Help make the  most of your community by enjoying being a member of it! Attend some of these free events with your family and friends and give your nights out a new twist.
Parents, beware of zombie invasion!
This coming Thursday might be a more frightening day (than usual) to visit the library.
That's because it will be Teen Zombie Day, when droves of the living dead are due to watch scary movies, have water gun fights, and hold scavenger hunts (you know, like zombies do).
Because the teens will be decked out in their favorite zombie attire, parents should proceed with caution if their little ones have big imaginations - this occasion won't be for the faint of heart.
 Not that we would ever discourage anyone from stopping by - but if your child's squeamish, you might want to come prepared to cover his/her eyes at some point during your visit.
And that goes for our Knit and Crochet Club, too - though the zombies may be gone by 6:30 p.m., so you should be able to craft in peace.
Medication disposal to be made safer
A new medical collection box will soon be installed at the Ulster County Sheriff Substation in the hamlet of Wallkill, according to Ulster County Executive Mike Hein.
The box, like the one recently unveiled at the Ulster County Law Enforcement Center in Kingston, allows for the safe disposal of dated or unused prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines, ensuring the safety of children and teens as well as the local water supply.
According to a 2013 report by the clean water advocate group Riverkeeper, discarded medications, including antibiotics, pose an emerging threat to drinking water.
By the beginning of the school year, 19 medication collection boxes are set to be available throughout the county, including at 13 different community police departments, five sheriff substations, and the SUNY Ulster campus.
 
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