January 2021 Newsletter

News from Castleton Public Library - January 2021 View this email in your browser Notes from Our Director:  Happy New Year! The start of a new year is a great time for a fresh start and to explore new opportunities. Want to join a book club this year, or spend more time tapping into your creativity? See this month's program calendar below for information about our offerings this January.  With a new year also comes new opportunities to step forward as a leader to help your community. CPL's Board of Trustees is currently seeking trustees to fill two vacancies on the Board. The Board is responsible for guiding funds, policies, and strategic planning for the library. The Board meets monthly; the total time commitment for Trustees is approximately two to three hours per month. To learn more about what it means to serve on our Board of Trustees, please attend the next Board meeting (via Zoom) on Tuesday, January 19 at 7:00 p.m. (email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org for meeting connection information) or send an email to director@castletonpubliclibrary.org to let us know you're interested.  Although 2020 was a rough year for many of us, we'd like to share some happy 2020 news! CPL and our staff received some special honors this past year:  In June 2020, CPL was awarded the Youth Program of the Year Award by the Upper Hudson Library System for our "Community Visitors at Storytime" program series in 2019.  In November 2020, our Director was awarded the Mary Bobinski Innovative Public Library Director Award by the New York Library Association.  In December 2020, Library Journal designated CPL as 1 of 262 Star Libraries nationwide, based on metrics such as item loans, visitation, event attendance, and public computer & WiFi use. Although our library operations continue to be different at the dawn of 2021 due to COVID-19 precautions, all of the staff at CPL continue to do our best to provide excellent service to everyone in our community! We look forward to serving you in 2021. Click here for what you'll need to know when visiting the library during this time. Have questions about our services? Email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org or call 518-732-0879.   Best,  Melissa Tacke Download our January Events Calendar as a PDF Our Take-Home Kits Castleton/Schodack Community Window Art Project: Snowflakes! Kit available for pick-up at the library from now through Feb. 27 Let’s create a community-wide snowflake window art project to enjoy this winter with our neighbors! You can make snowflake window art using materials in our Snowflake Window Art kit, or use what you have at home. We’ll have kits available for pick-up any time from now through February 27. Cool Science at Home: Scribble Bots! Kit available for pick-up at the library from Jan. 4 through Jan. 30 In this month's science exploration, make your own Scribble Bot using a motor, a battery, and crayons! How-to video and handout will be added to our Cool Science playlist on 1/4. Pick up the kit anytime from 1/4-1/30. Full playlist here: https://tinyurl.com/CPL-Science  Take & Make Crafts: Crafting Bonanza! Kit available for pick-up at the library from Jan. 4 through Jan. 30 Are you in the mood to make some unique crafts? Engage in open-ended creation with a variety of fun art supplies in our Crafting Bonanza kit. How-to video will be added to our Take & Make Crafts playlist on 1/4. Pick up the kit anytime from 1/4-1/30. Full playlist here: https://tinyurl.com/CPL-Crafts Teen Time: Magazine Collage Kit Kit available for pick-up at the library from Jan. 4 through Jan. 30 (6th-12th grades only).  Make your own unique collage! Teens in 6th-12th grades are invited to pick up a Magazine Collage Kit at the library any time from 1/4-1/30. Prerecorded Online Events - Available Anytime After Posting Date! Local Music Showcase Video available now! Enjoy an "open mic" experience anytime! GypZbilly, Gone Gray, Kevin Haran, and Bill Gonzales play in this local music showcase. Link here:  youtu.be/6QCQIjA_zds Virtual Storytime with Miss Joelle New episode posted every Wednesday - 1/6, 1/13, 1/20, 1/27. Join Miss Joelle for a story and rhymes/songs that you can participate in at home! A new storytime video is posted every Wednesday. All videos are available on-demand to fit your schedule. The complete Virtual Storytime playlist can be found here: https://tinyurl.com/CPL-storytime Snowflake Art Challenge Submit your photos from Jan. 4 through Jan. 22 to enter to win a prize! Show us your snowflake! Have you picked up one of our Community Window Art Snowflake kits? Decorate your unique snowflake and email photos of your creation on display to youthservices@castletonpubliclibrary.org and you’ll be entered to win a $10 Amazon gift certificate (we’ll draw 3 winners randomly!). For all ages. The deadline to send your photos is 1/22. Afterward, we’ll post a video showcasing all of the submissions on our YouTube channel on 1/29: https://tinyurl.com/CPL-YouTube Kids Cook: Chocolate Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bites Video posted on Tuesday, January 12 In this month’s cooking session, we will make simple, no-bake chocolate peanut butter oatmeal bites! The video will be added to our Kids Cook playlist on 1/12. The full Kids Cook playlist is at https://tinyurl.com/CPL-KidsCook Live Online Events Coffee & Conversation Tuesday, January 5, 1:00 p.m. Grab your cup of coffee or tea (or your lunch!) and join us for light, friendly discussion. For adults. Email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org for Zoom connection information. CPL Board of Trustees Meeting Tuesday, January 19, 7:00 p.m. December meeting of CPL’s Board of Trustees, held virtually. Members of the public are welcome to attend. Email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org for Zoom connection information.  Virtual Book Club: Beneath the Tamarind Tree by Isha Sesay Tuesday, January 19, 8:00 p.m. Join us for a discussion of Beneath the Tamarind Tree: A Story of Courage, Family, and the Lost Schoolgirls of Boko Haram by Isha Sesay. Everyone can borrow the eBook or digital audiobook at the same time using Hoopla! For adults. Email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org for Zoom connection information. Craft & Chat Thursday, January 28, 8:00 p.m. Join us with your project and have company while you knit, crochet, quilt, color, or make other art or craft projects. Have a finished product you’d like to show? Feel free to share it! For adults. Email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org for Zoom connection information. Friends of CPL Bottle & Can Drive This fundraiser is ongoing! Location: 6 Center Redemption, 550 South St., Rensselaer, NY 12144 This fundraiser is super-simple -- when you take your returnable bottles & cans to 6 Center Redemption, let them know that you’d like to donate to the Friends of Castleton Public Library.  Please do not bring bottle & can donations to the library. Thanks for your support! Digital Library Resources Check Out Our Digital Collections! The Upper Hudson Library System hosts a great collection of ebooks, digital audiobooks, digital magazines, and streaming video, resources for research, and more! Click here to visit our page about digital resources.  Borrow a WiFi Hotspot Did you know that we loan WiFi hotspots? They can be borrowed for 14 days -- all you need is your library card! Hotspots are available on a first-come, first-served basis and can only be checked out and returned at CPL. Call 518-732-0879 or email director@castletonpubliclibrary.org for more information.  WiFi Outside Our Building Our WiFi is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can access the public WiFi at the picnic table on the front lawn, or alongside the building on Stimpson Avenue (the signal is strongest near the front of the building). Just look for the network called "Castleton Public Library." There's no password to connect!  Copyright © 2021 Castleton Public Library, All rights reserved.