Monroeville Public Library celebrates National Library Week

In celebration of National Library Week, Monroeville Public Library is hosting several activities from April 4-9.

The week kicks off with a “Take and Make Puzzles” event on April 4 and wrap up April 9 as the library presents with “Coffee Discovery with the Friends of the Monroeville Public Library.” Each day will have a theme, including National Library Worker’s Day on April 5, Library Giving Day on April 6, Volunteer Day on April 7 and Library Card Sign-up Day on April 8.

Free raffle drawings will be held throughout the week for adults, teens and kids, and visitors can enjoy snacks.

“I think now more than ever, people are looking for ways to reconnect with their community,” said Pam Bodziock, library assistant director. “The theme for this year’s National Library Week is Connect With Your Library. So we’re really excited about giving people new opportunities to come together, reconnect with each other and with everything that we have to offer.”

National Library Week was celebrated in Monroeville the previous two years, amid the covid-19 pandemic, but no events were held in person. Planning for this year’s activities began at least a few months ago, head of public relations Alice Rathjen said.

“We were unable to actually have people come in to the capacity and celebrate the days with us,” she said. “We’re certainly very happy to be able to, once again, dedicate certain days of the week to celebrate.”

Bodziock said library staff members are delighted to be able to return to some semblance of normalcy for the week.

“It’s been magnificent to be able to support people and still provide for people during all the shutdowns,” she said. “But there’s something very special and unique about people being able to come together in person. It’s a whole new level of connection. We’re just really pleased we’re able to do that again this year.”

The week provides the library with special programming for people who visit regularly, while also attracting potential new patrons. Library Discovery Day on April 9 will focus on ways a library card could provide value other than the ability to check out books, including streaming movies or viewing an online magazine.

“We always want to make sure we keep supporting everyone that’s here now, but we’re always trying to think of new ways to really spread the word about what we can do and all of the different things we can offer,” Bodziock said. “We have been pleased that, in the past, we’ve seen new people come in and have said, oh, I didn’t know you could stream things with your library card. I didn’t know you have ‘Take and Make’ cooking programs.”

The celebratory week arrives several months after the mid-December completion of renovations to the library’s front entrance. Approximately $300,000 went to improving outdoor lightning, along with adding reverse-angle-accessible parking and a drive-up drop box. A stormwater issue, which had caused occasional flooding for at least 15 years, also was solved.

“It’s just so much more welcoming,” Bodziock said. “They did a beautiful, fantastic job on that front entrance. It’s modernized. It’s just made it more inviting. I can’t think of having a better symbol than having a few-months-old front entrance, that we’re welcoming people back through the doors into programming and events, and opportunities for them, like we had before the shutdown.”

For more information, visit www.monroevillelibrary.org.