The Friday Grab Bag is a weekly series that highlights fun, unique, and interesting happenings in Colorado libraries, and includes news from the Colorado State Library.
Let’s open the Friday Grab Bag!
Celebrating Culture
Basalt Regional Library is celebrating Day of the Dead with a full week of events from October 29 to November 2. Families are invited to two movie screenings, a sugar skull decorating competition, and two themed craft events. See their events calendar for details.
Poudre River Public Library District is hosting a Día de los Muertos celebration on Friday, November 2 at the Northside Aztlan Community Center. The event features a bilingual storytime, music, dance, sugar skull decorating, and traditional Mexican food.
Montrose Regional Library District’s Día de los Muertos/Day of the Dead event includes lotería tickets, crafts, and stories from Pam Faro of Rocky Mountain Storytelling. The fun begins on November 2 at 3:00 pm.
Culture Fest returns to Mesa County Libraries on November 2 and 3. Join them at the Central Library for an Art Reception and Celebration featuring dance groups, food, and kids’ activities.
Longmont Public Library invites the whole family to Diversity Storytime: Native American Heritage Month on November 19 at 6:00 pm. This all-ages event focuses on stories from the Arapaho and Cheyenne tribes.
National Novel Writing Month
Bud Werner Memorial Library will kick off National Novel Writing Month 2018 (NaNoWriMo) with an introductory event on October 29 at 5:30 pm. Get motivated to write an entire novel during the month of November with support from the library, Off the Beaten Path Bookstore, and other local writers.
Aspiring novelists in Aurora are invited to the NaNoWriMo Pre-Party on October 28 at the Aurora Central Library. This event lays the groundwork for a month of writing and related activities at the library and around town.
Pick ‘n’ Mix
Are you curious about the benefits of meditation? Anythink Bennett will host Meditation to Manifestation, an informational presentation on the science behind the subconscious, on November 3 at 10:30 am.
Grand County Library District wants to help you stay safe in the high country this winter with the Know Before You Go avalanche education program that contains life-saving information taught by an instructor from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. Join them at the Fraser Valley Library on November 7 at 5:30 pm.
West Custer County Library welcomes retired librarian and meteorologist Ted Ballard for Ted Talks Weather, a presentation on the unique winter weather conditions in the Wet Mountain Valley. Join him on Friday, October 26 at 10:00 am.
Role-playing enthusiasts in grades 6-12 are invited to Longmont Public Library’s Dungeons & Dragons Drop-In Adventure each Tuesday beginning November 20 at 6:30 pm. The group is run by the participants; the library will provide snacks and the meeting space. Registration required.
Libraries Making News
The Daily Sentinel: Library now patent, trademark center | Mesa County Libraries
What’s New at the Colorado State Library
Learning Opportunities
CSL in Session: “Library Marketing 1.0: How to successfully market your library without getting another degree”
- Nov. 8, 2018, 12:00 to 1:00
- Free! No registration required
- Join online
RIPL Quarterly Webinar: “The Data We Don’t Collect: How it Drives Funding Decisions by People Who Don’t Use the Library”
- Nov. 13, 2018, 10:00 to 11:00
- Free! Limited to first 100 participants
- Join online
View other upcoming online learning opportunities for October 2018. For Colorado-specific events check the Library Learning & Creation Center.
Serving the Underserved
Mallory Pillard, Director of the Carnegie Public Library in Trinidad, authored a guest post on Colorado Virtual Library that reflects on homelessness and facing obstacles at the library. Read Serving the Underserved.
Colorado Blue Spruce Award
Blue Spruce is Colorado’s own young adult book award, where teens and educators select the nominees and vote for their favorite. Visit the Colorado Blue Spruce Award website for a list of nominees, printable posters and bookmarks, and the link to submit your vote by December 31.
Colorado State Publications Library Blog
This post is part of the Spotlight on Sharing initiative, which aims to increase the visibility of resource sharing in Colorado libraries. Do you have a story from your library to share? Email Amy Hitchner, ahitchner@coloradovirtuallibrary.org. Also, be sure to follow Colorado State Library on Twitter and Facebook.
- Friday Grab Bag, November 16, 2018 - November 15, 2018
- Friday Grab Bag, November 9, 2018 - November 9, 2018
- Friday Grab Bag, November 2, 2018 - November 2, 2018