Category Archives: Programs

Updates about ongoing programs.

Celebrate Halloween in the Makerspace!

With Halloween on the horizon, we’re offering a whole assortment of spooky crafts in the Makerspace! Visitors can create a stand-up paper witch, a beaded pipe cleaner pumpkin, a custom Halloween bookmark, or a paper ghost on a stick – or choose from a selection of holiday-themed coloring and activity sheets. There’s something for everyone!

Have you seen our new book displays? To reflect Library Card Sign-Up Month’s Transformers theme, we’re showing off books that prominently feature vehicles of all kinds, from submarines to spaceships – and a few about robots, as well. Stop by to learn about our many modes of transportation, read about characters on road trips and cruises, or get inside the mechanical mind of a machine!

Libraries – more than meets the eye… roll out with a library card.
September is Library Card Sign-Up Month!

Library Card Sign-Up Month is a national campaign to emphasize the importance of library cards to a child’s education and to combat illiteracy. The campaign first started in 1987 as a response to then Secretary of Education, William Bennett, who stated: “Let’s have a campaign … Every child should obtain a library card and use it.” The American Library Association (ALA) teamed up with the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) to start the campaign, and sent a telegram to Secretary Bennett saying, “We accept your challenge.”

If you don’t already have a library card, stop by and fill out an application form! You can also download one from our website to fill out in advance, then bring it in along with a current Bethany address. It’s quick and easy, and you’ll gain access to many free resources at Clark Memorial Library – as well as countless more through the LION consortium and the borrowIT CT library resource sharing program.

1000 Books Celebration
Wednesday August 14 | 10:30 AM | Ages 0-5

Come celebrate your journey to 1000 books! Take a look at our new themed book bags, collect reward stickers for each 100 books you complete – and get ready to read, read, read in the upcoming year.

Not signed up for the 1000 Books Before Kindergarten program yet? No problem, sign up and get started at the celebration!

Adventure Begins At Your Library!
Coming Up In August:

Special Events
Balloon Animal Workshop – August 10, 2–3:30 PM (sign-up required)
1000 Books Celebration – August 14, 10:30 AM–12:30 PM
Kim Ahrens Artist Reception – August 24, 1:00–3:00 PM

Ongoing Programs
Read & Bead – All Month, During Library Hours
Adult Reading Raffle – All Month, During Library Hours
Drop-In Makerspace Activities – All Month, During Library Hours
Silent Book Club – August 13, 2:00–3:30 PM
Wednesday Morning Storytimes – Wednesdays, 10:30–11:30 AM
BCS Lego Club – Wednesdays, 2:00–4:00 PM
Warm Up America Community Service Project – Thursdays, 3:00–5:00 PM
Thursday Game Nights – Thursdays, 3:30–6:30 PM

For more information, see our Calendar of Events!

Adventure Begins At Your Library!
Coming Up In July:

Special Events
Dragon Eye Adventure – July 18, 3:00–5:00 PM (sign-up required)
5th Annual Outdoor Art Exhibit – July 28, 1:00–5:00 PM

Ongoing Programs
Read & Bead – All Month, During Library Hours
Adult Reading Raffle – All Month, During Library Hours
Drop-In Makerspace Activities – All Month, During Library Hours
Tween Nutmeg Book Club – July 11, 5:45–6:30 PM
Silent Book Club – July 9, 2:00–3:30 PM
Wednesday Morning Storytimes – Wednesdays, 10:30–11:30 AM
BCS Lego Club – Wednesdays, 2:00–4:00 PM
Warm Up America Community Service Project – Thursdays, 3:00–5:00 PM
Thursday Game Nights – Thursdays, 3:30–6:30 PM

For more information, see our Calendar of Events!

This summer Clark Memorial Library will once again be partnering with the Warm Up America! Foundation to provide blankets for those in need – and community service hours for those who take part in this program!

The goal is to create 7″x9″ knit or crocheted squares that can later be joined together to make blankets of various sizes. This is a perfect way to practice your knitting and/or crochet skills, but no prior experience is needed – we will provide instructions and materials. Drop in on Thursdays between 3:00 to 5:00 PM to take part. Ages 10 and up.

Share your favorite childhood book and enter our raffle!
Add your favorite title to our butterfly display to help readers of all ages explore our collections with tried-and-true suggestions. What ‘grabbed’ you as a young reader – an animal story, a picture book, or an adventure? Which book would you recommend – or like to reread? At the end of summer we will draw names for our raffle basket of restaurant gift certificates and edible treats.

Adventure Begins At Your Library!
Coming Up In June:

Special Events
Summer Reading Kickoff – June 8, During Library Hours
What’s the Buzz: Pollinator Presentation – June 8, 2:00–2:30 PM
Karen Cebula Artist Reception – June 15, 2:00–3:30 PM
Campfire Storytime – June 20, 5:30–6:30 PM

Ongoing Programs
Read & Bead – All Month, During Library Hours
Adult Reading Raffle – All Month, During Library Hours
Drop-In Makerspace Activities – All Month, During Library Hours
Tween Nutmeg Book Club – June 13 & 27, 5:45–6:30 PM
Silent Book Club – June 11, 2:00–3:30 PM
Wednesday Morning Storytimes – Wednesdays, 10:30–11:30 AM
BCS Lego Club – Wednesdays, 2:00–4:00 PM
Warm Up America Community Service Project – Thursdays, 3:00–5:00 PM
Thursday Game Nights – Thursdays, 3:30–6:30 PM

For more information, see our Calendar of Events!

What’s the Buzz?
Saturday, June 8 | 2:00 – 3:30 PM

This summer, our Pollinator Pathway garden will be part of a research project tracking the movement of bees through pollinator gardens in the Bethany area. We are pleased to have Breahna Gillespie, Ph.D. (a research scientist from the Department of Entomology at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station) here to talk with us about her work and the research she will be conducting this summer.

Come learn about how bees are tracked as pollinators, and the work that is being done to encourage pathways throughout Connecticut. Plant some seeds and take home a pot to add a pollinator-friendly plant to your garden. All ages – all fun!