Library: Donate Backpacks, Director Gives Birth

Do you remember your school backpack? Well, if you are like me, we didn’t carry backpacks, but lugged our books around in our arms.

Luckily, someone thought to carry school stuff all together in a cool bag like hikers do, and school backpacks are now vital to having a good school experience. Unfortunately, not everyone will get a new backpack this year — so the Dunedin Patch has decided to collect them for to hand out and we at the Youth Services Department are here ready to accept them!

Please bring a new backpack or any new school supply and drop it off at the Youth Desk at the Library. Make someone’s school year special this year. I have even heard the commercials for backpack sales on the radio and TV — buy one to donate! If you are buying folders or pencils, pick up a few extra packs for someone else — it will make you feel great!

We have a new citizen in Dunedin and a new Library patron! Our Library Director Phyllis Gorshe and her husband Nick and their son, Isaac, welcomed baby Iliana last week.  We are so excited at the Library — especially the Youth Services — because we love the little ones! We are also thankful that everyone is doing so wonderfully.  You can post a congratulatory comment on this blog if you want — you know Phyllis is going to read it!

We are gearing up for our Summer Reader Willy Wonka Chocolate Party coming in the next few weeks! Our top 20 summer readers will be getting a candy bar with a golden ticket to the event. Invitation only! We have planned plenty of awesome activities and plenty of delicious treats to show how much we value reading during the summer. I saw that the top reader read over 8,000 minutes this summer. That is some dedication! 

Our summer reading club kids would read and keep logs of what they read and turn in their logs each week. Ms. Katherine has kept track of all of their logs. She will contact their Principals after school starts to inform them how many of their school kids read this summer. From this list of 300+ kids, Ms. Katherine has chosen the top 20 to receive golden tickets.  It will be so much fun!

Back to School Craft day is Saturday, Aug. 18 from 1 to 4:30 p.m. here in the Youth Services Department. Stop in to make a great necklace or decorate a pencil box to take back to school on Aug. 20.  

Don’t forget to donate school supplies and backpacks.  Just think what it would have meant to you when you were young!  We’ll collect them through Sept. 1, 2012!

Take a few minutes out of your week to enjoy reading a good book — it will calm your hectic summer or fill up your lazy days!

Olivia Wilson

Head of Youth Services

Dunedin Public Library