Friends' Update - October '24 (Extra!)
Bluey Breakfast Blows Up, Major Garden Updates, Fundraising News & More
Dear Friends,
There’s a lot going on at New Castle Public Library, and with the Friends as well. Please enjoy this special update on a few time-sensitive member matters.
One theme emerges, as you will notice: we need volunteers! Please consider, while reading about our various endeavors and the library’s upcoming activities, whether and where you might be able to help out. There are niches for folks of every skill and interest set!
If something below interests you, please contact the listed organizer… If *multiple* things interest you, feel free to email the Friends Board. We’re happy to answer questions or to save you the trouble of sending multiple emails, and will pass along your interest to the right organizer(s).
It takes a dedicated community to maintain a strong, vibrant institution like New Castle Public Library. Thank you for being part of that community.
Crisp Autumn regards,
Matt Alexander, President
Huge Response to Bluey Event Oct. 19… and Library Staff need our help!
On the morning of Satuday, October 19, hundreds of families will descend upon the Children’s Area at New Castle Public Library for a delicious event featuring one of their favorite kids’ characters: Breakfast with Bluey!
The Friends are proudly sponsoring the breakfast portion of the event. There will also be crafts, stories and other activities, for which additional help is really needed to get everything ready and keep everything organized.
From Library Director Julie Kirk:
Greetings Friends!
This event exploded with registrations when it posted on Facebook. Within hours we had over 100 registrations... So, we are expecting upwards of possibly 200-300 for this. There is excitement in the community and beyond about it…
[We need] help with prepping the food for Breakfast with Bluey. We need to cut bagels in half (150-200 bagels), cut bananas in half, peel and package mandarin oranges for serving (oranges can be done the day before).
We have lots of plans for activities that will need adult supervision. If any Friends members are willing to come in to help that morning, we would be eternally grateful. Help for the day of Bluey (9-2), can be in shifts of 2-3 hours. Some needs:
overseeing the breakfast area, being sure food is handled properly and replenished as needed
helping with the craft project
greeter at the door to hand out “agenda” of activities
… Staff are super excited about this, planning and prepping [and could also use help with that the day before].
… [There is] no limit on the number of people who want to help. We will find work for everyone.
If you are able to help out, please reach out to Children’s Librarian Ewa by email.
Results: Late Summer/Fall Fundraisers
Several fundraisers over the last couple months have helped to secure our ability to support programs like Breakfast with Bluey and to keep saving for our goals in the library’s back garden (see below for more on that).
At the New Castle Saturday Markets, Friends have mostly just been representing the library and working to recruit members, but have also raised - at 3 outings - three hundred dollars.
On August 28, our Give%20 at Iron Hill dinner surpassed our expectations. According to Iron Hill, we registered 46 guest checks, whose food bill totals contributed of $473 back to the Friends - huge thanks to all who took part! (Hope your meal was delicious!)
At our Art on the Green Book Sale & Raffle on September 28, despite less-than-ideal weather and the limited selection that caused us to take, members raised over $1400! The majority of that (over $850) came from ticket sales for the seven amazing raffle prizes we had on offer.
Lastly, just yesterday, Friends joined in the Town-wide Sidewalk Sale with an all-novels Fiction/Mystery Book Sale. Thanks to great street traffic all day, with all books marked down to $1, we raised an additional $600+.
That’s over $2700 raised this season toward our mission. Thank you so much to everyone who volunteered, donated raffle items, and helped spread the word about these events!
More Fall Programs and Opportunities for Friends to Lend a Hand
Our library is involved in the community in several innovative and exciting ways… and can do even more with our support. Please read on to learn about some of these great programs and the ways in which Friends can help out!
Prime Time Family Reading (Family Literacy Program at Library)
- Wednesdays, Oct. 16-Nov. 20, 5-8 pm.
This great, six-week program to strengthen literacy and the love of reading among local lower-income families needs 2-3 people to help with serving food or keeping an eye on younger siblings to allow parents to fully participate. If interested, please email Ewa.
DIY Citrus Garland (Teen/Adult Craft Program at Library)
- Wednesday, Nov. 20, 6:30pm.
Staff need help drying fruit from now until Nov. 20. Volunteers can do so in their own home, at their leisure. Teen Librarian Nicole Worth will provide the fruit but staff are open to donations as well. Lemons, limes, oranges, even grapefruit are welcome. To get involved, please email Nicole.
Little Laundromat Libraries (Ongoing Literacy Outreach Program, off-site)
This great new venture has been a quick hit, with children’s books flying off the shelves at two local laundromats where Nicole has placed books. She is looking for someone (or someones, who could each take a location) to help out by checking in once a week on the laundromats where books have been placed in order to replenish materials and report on any damages. Donations of children’s books are also welcome for this program. To get involved, please email Nicole.
Winter Festival & Market (The Big One, coinciding with HNC Spirit of Christmas)
- Saturday, December 14, 10am-4pm
The WFM has, in just a few years, become the biggest event on the library’s calendar by far. With 20+ vendors and thousands of people coming through, it takes a lot of work to get things set up and then keep them running smoothly so that everyone can have a great time (including us!). It is an opportunity for our wonderful library to really shine brightly in the community.
To that end, there are a number of volunteer needs for this event:
We’ll be having a Friends’ Wrapping Party on a Date TBD in late November or early December. We’ll put on a holiday flick or playlist and enjoy some nosh and ‘nog while pre-wrapping books to be given away at the Festival. Please email us if you would like to be notified once a date is set.
On Friday, Dec. 13, staff are seeking 1-2 people to help with set up from 3-5pm (this will involve moving tables and chairs).
On Saturday, Dec. 14, from 9am-4pm, the library invites folks to volunteer in shifts of 2-3 hours. Available assignments include:
Setting up (9-10am only),
Working the bake sale table,
Selling hot dogs (11am-2pm only),
Working Anne’s Attic gently-used holiday item sale,
Greeters,
Craft area monitoring,
Clean up (staring ~4pm) to move tables and chairs, put everything away
To get involved with the WFM activities above, please reach out to Julie by email.
A Vision Takes Shape as Garden Project Sees Flurry of Progress
In the last five weeks:
The Board received a final draft of the plan for a new gathering area in the ‘Children’s Garden’ behind the library from project lead George Ludewig of Breckstone Architechture, and voted unanimously to accept it.
After a preliminary meeting, the Friends have been invited to apply for a grant from the Crestlea Foundation that may cover a portion of the construction cost (projected at $50K).
The Trustees of the New Castle Common, owners of the library property, considered our plan and the design proposal from Breckstone. That board also gave unanimous approval, allowing the Friends to move forward to permitting and other next steps.
Based on the accepted design, Breckstone Architecture agreed to donate a poster-quality, full-color rendering of our vision for the garden that we can use as the central image of a fundraising campaign. See below.
So here we go…
Now it’s time to pull that campaign together! We will be having a formal launch event in the next couple months and rolling out a media campaign to invite our community to contribute directly and specifically to this project.
Please reach out if you’re interested in contributing to to the Garden Gathering Campaign in any capacity (alongside helpful board members), such as:
organizing a fun Campaign Launch Event (urgent),
helping to prepare grant applications,
speaking about the Friends and the project at library events,
designing and sending campaign mailings, and
good, old-fashioned “dialing for dollars.”
This is an exciting undertaking that will provide a lasting improvement to the garden, enabling greater use by staff and patrons and and enjoyment by the whole community. That’s what Friends are for!
It’s Already “Beginning to Look a Lot Like” Holiday Raffle Time
Fresh off an amazing set of prizes that were a huge hit at Art on the Green, Raffles chair Jenn Ramsdell is already thinking about the prizes we’ll have for this year’s Winter Festival & Market book sale.
“For the Winter Market baskets I want to highlight the holidays, being cozy, family time, and food,” she explains.
For Friends who may be able to help out, Jenn has offered a list of items sought (in good condition with minimal (or no) wear and tear):
baskets of any size (but especially large baskets) - and similar large, attractive containers, especially with seasonal themes,
unused candles,
serving platters,
unusual or ornate Christmas ornaments,
gift cards for local venues, shops, restaurants, or artisans,
fancy oils, spices, honey, and syrups,
cocktail/wine/beer related items, and
knickknacks, tchotchkes, and other small, decorative items
Like book donations, baskets and boxed items may be left for the Friends by the elevator at the library. To arrange a donation of items that should not be left out - or if you’d like to help Jenn with Raffles - please contact her by email. Thanks!
Still to Come in 2024 for NCLF
Meeting dates are subject to change. If you’re interested in attending, please give us a head’s up so we can include you in case that happens.
October 19 (Sat.) - Breakfast with Bluey
Friends-sponsored children’s event featuring the popular children’s character.
November 13 (Wed.) - NCLF Board Meeting
Open to all members. 7pm at New Castle Public Library.
Date TBD - Friends’ Holiday Wrapping Party
(See above - email the Friends to receive an invite once date set.)
December 14 (Sat.) - NCPL Winter Festival & Market (Book Sale)
A ‘full collection’ book sale in the Library’s Conference Room.
Thanks for reading, and for your support of New Castle Public Library!
