By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

The library is so much more than books. We have a new addition to the library that we are calling the Memory Lab, a collection of equipment that can be used for converting different kinds of recordings, videos, and pictures to digital files that can be stored on a USB drive or SD card. The Memory Lab is available for use during library hours.  

The Memory Lab equipment includes an Eyesen 8 mm and Super 8 Reels, Elgato Video Capture, and Kodak Slide N Scan, as well as various peripherals and software programs for digitizing video from DVD, VHS and 8mm film formats. Materials that are copyrighted may not be duplicated.  

September is Library Card Sign Up Month. If you don’t already have one, this is an excellent time to stop by or go online and apply for a library card. It costs nothing and requires only a photo ID with a current address. A library card opens a whole new world. Besides books, a library card gives you access to Libby online books, the Iowa Adventure Pass, the Memory Lab, telescope check out, and many online and digital resources. Stop in the library to get a card and see what we have to offer. One card, endless possibilities. 

We have a number of youth programs coming up. Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 2 p.m. Creation Corner will be making  butterfly suncatchers. LEGO Mania Day will be at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 8. Both of these events request preregistration. Remember that each Friday at 10 a.m., we have Preschool Story Hour. The theme of the next story hour will be tractors. 

Friends of the Library will be meeting on Monday, Oct. 6 at 6:15 p.m. If you want to support the library, this is a great opportunity.  

Mark your calendars for our annual Boo Bash on Oct. 31, which is Guthrie Center’s Trick or Treat night at 5-7:15 p.m. We will have family-friendly activities and special treats for trick-or-treaters.  

It’s time to think of signing up to participate in the library’s annual Festival of Trees. This year’s theme is Silver and Gold.

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

“Libraries are community treasure chests, loaded with a wealth of information available to everyone equally, and the key to that treasure chest is the library card. I have found the most valuable thing in my wallet is my library card,” former teacher, librarian and First Lady Laura Bush remarked. Bush understands that a public library encapsulates all that is best about a democracy; resources are equally accessible to anyone who has a library card. 

If you are someone who has not yet obtained a library card, September is your month because it is Library Card SignUp Month. For students, a library card is the beginning of lifelong learning and is the most cost-effective back-to-school item. 

“One Card, Endless Possibilities” is the 2025 theme for this month. From the American Library Association’s website, “It may be small, but a library card packs a punch! Borrow museum passes, musical instruments, and even tools from your library’s collection. Take part in engaging programs like book clubs, movie nights, crafting classes, and lectures. Access technology, Wi-Fi, and career resources to support your goals, whether you’re a student, job-seeker, entrepreneur, or lifelong learner. It’s one card with endless possibilities!” 

Stop by the library during our business hours with a photo ID with current address, or a photo ID and valid proof of current address. If you prefer, go to the library website and submit an online application. It only takes a few minutes to obtain your card, which you can use for a lifetime. 

Adult programs

Card-making class will be on Thursday, Sept. 18, from 9-11:00 a.m. Led by Judi Zimmerline, this class will guide participants through the steps of creating handmade greeting cards. A $5 fee is charged to cover the cost of all the supplies needed to make cards. 

After a short hiatus, Cookbook Club is back. Meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 18, the group will choose recipes from “Wanda E. Brunstetter’s Amish Friends Farm to Table Cookbook.” To participate, stop in the library to choose a recipe from this month’s cookbook. Prepare it and bring it to share with the group the night of the meeting.  

Evening book club, Reads Well With Others, will be discussing Nora Roberts’s first book in the Lost Brides Trilogy entitled “Inheritance.” Copies are still available for check out. The meeting is at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 23. Afternoon book club, Between the Covers, will be reading “Home before Dark” by Riley Sager. 

Youth/family programs

Creation Corner will be on Wednesday, Sept. 24, at 2 p.m. Please remember to pre-register.  

Preschool Story Hour is each Friday at 10 a.m. Cars will be the theme on Sept. 19, while tractors are the focus of the Sept. 26 Story Hour.  

Saturday, Sept. 20, from 10 a.m. to close will be the final Family/ Neighbor Puzzle or Board Game Event. Join us at the library for a fun time and a chance to meet new neighbors.  

A reminder to those of you who want to participate in the National Good Neighbor Day Bingo Challenge: Get a BINGO on your card and turn it in at the front desk by Sept. 30 to be eligible for a prize drawing. 

In celebration of National Good Neighbor Day, the library is providing Good Neighbor coloring sheets to anyone who would like one. Color it and share it with a neighbor, or give it to the library to decorate our walls.

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

Through the month of September, Mary J. Barnett Library is celebrating neighbors and community in honor of National Good Neighbor Day on Sept. 28. National Good Neighbor Day was signed into law in 1978 by President Jimmy Carter, yet it isn’t widely observed.

Since the MJB Library is a hub of our community, we like the idea of getting to know our neighbors better. Neighbors are vital to our library’s mission. The library exists to promote life-long learning and community services to our neighbors. 

Neighbors are also vital to the existence of the library in that they contribute a great deal to our programs and services. While we appreciate the monetary donations to the library and to the Friends of the Guthrie Center Library, we also appreciate many types of gifts from our neighbors.

As Jon M. Huntsman points out, “ Wealth isn’t always measured in dollar signs. We each have time, talent and creativity, all of which can be powerful forces for positive change.  Share your blessings in whatever form they come and to whatever level you have been blessed.”

While working at the MJB Library, it has been my extreme pleasure to get to know my neighbors better and to learn of their gifts and talents. Each month, library patrons are treated to a beautiful quilt created by one of the amazing artisans in our community who have the vision to turn a pile of fabric into a work of art. 

Our display case houses a variety of things including collections curated by dedicated collectors, family heirlooms passed down through generations, or items created as the result of developing a hobby.

We are always looking for quilters who want to share their creations on our quilt hanger or someone who has something to display in our display case for a month.

Many of our programs are an outgrowth of interests or skills that someone would like to teach others. If you have a hobby or skill that you would like to share, or some interesting experience that you would like to turn into a program, reach out to us. 

We know our neighbors are rich in talent and creativity, and we at the MJB Library, as well as our community, appreciate those who are generous enough to invest their time. We are grateful for people who generously take time to make our library such a wonderful place.

The MJB Library Board are volunteers who invest time to make decisions about the policy and the running of the library. We are so appreciative of the energy they invest each month. The Friends of the  Guthrie Center Library are neighbors who work tirelessly to raise money for the needs of the library beyond what is budgeted. Their efforts are appreciated and enjoyed by all who use the library. Friends is open to anyone who would like to join.

We appreciate people like Becky Carico, who donates her time and green thumb to tend to all the gorgeous plants inside and outside of the library. We value Judi Zimmerline, who shares her creativity to lead our card making classes and some youth craft days. Think you have nothing to share with the community at our library? We bet you’re wrong! 

We would love to have guest readers who want to read to our preschoolers during story hour. Let us know if you know how to make something that you can teach others. Join the Friends of the Library for opportunities to enhance our library. We can always use volunteers who are willing to dust and straighten book shelves. Let us know if you have time and talents you want to share.

In addition to our regular programs and activities, we are adding some events to observe National Good Neighbor Day. Join us for Family and Neighbor Puzzle and Board Game events on Saturday, Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Tuesday, Sept. 16 from 4-6 p.m.; and Saturday, Sept. 20, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

We have Good Neighbor Bingo cards with activities to do with your family. Pick up a card at the library, complete the good neighbor suggestions to earn a BINGO, and turn in your card to the library by the end of September to be eligible for a prize drawing.

We invite our youth to sign up for LEGO Mania day on Wednesday, Sept. 10 at 2 p.m. STEM lab will be Monday, Sept. 15 at 4 p.m. while Creation Corner will be Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 2 p.m.  We have exciting things planned, so be sure to preregister.

Get one of the coloring sheets at the library desk. Color it and give it to a neighbor, someone at the care center or hospital, or return it to the library to decorate our walls. Do something neighborly and tag the MJB Library on Facebook to inspire other patrons. We have a display with ideas on the window behind our front desk at the library. We challenge you to build a stronger community, one neighbor at a time.

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

Sept. 28 is National Good Neighbor Day. Signed into law in 1978 by President Jimmy Carter, people have been celebrating this holiday in big and small ways ever since. After 47 years, this holiday is not very widely known or celebrated. We at the MJB Library would like to invite you all to help us change that.  

Growing up, neighbors were a big part of life. Neighbor kids were my first friends; we traveled in a pack from yard to yard, where every mom treated us like we were their own. Parents coffeed and played cards with the neighbors. If we ran out of milk when the store was closed, we could borrow some from the neighbor next door.  

When I got older, we moved to a farm. Neighbors were further away but were still an important part of life. They were on the party telephone line we shared. We chored for them when they had to be out of town. We took extra zucchini and tomatoes to them when our gardens were bountiful, and they would send us home with a bag of sweet corn. When their cows got out, we drove the cows back home and helped the neighbors fix the fence.  

Growing up, neighbor wasn’t just a noun to describe the people who lived nearby. Neighbor was a verb. We neighbored. When someone was sick and couldn’t do their farmwork, the neighbors would organize and do the necessary tasks. If there was a death in the family, we made food and paid the neighbors  a visit. When a family had a problem, the neighbors pitched in to help out. That is how people neighbored.  

Our world has changed, and so have relationships with neighbors. These days, it seems like being a good neighbor involves being quiet and minding your own business. National Good Neighbor Day seems like an opportunity to change this. 

American author Stuart Dybek said, “The public library is where place and possibility meet.” We at MJB Library agree, so we are inviting you to join us in celebrating Nations Good Neighbor Day this year. We think that a hopeful neighborhood is one with a focus on possibilities, and National Good Neighbor Day is full of possibilities.  

We invite you to stop by the library and follow our news articles and website this month to see the ways you can join us in  celebrating National Good Neighbor Day. 

Share your talents

As we begin planning our fall and winter library programs, we invite you to be in touch with us if you have a skill or talent you would like to share through a program. We would love to have programs by local neighbors who want to share their skills with others. Almost anything can be made into an interesting program. Call or email the library with your program ideas. 

We are still looking for people who have collections or hobbies that they can share in our display case each month. Art, crafts, collectibles — all are welcome to be displayed at the library for a month. Please contact the MJB Library if you have something you are willing to share. 

Kids’ programs

Wednesday, Sept. 10, is LEGO Mania Day at MJB Library; the fun begins at 2 p.m. Guthrie STEM Lab will be Monday, Sept. 15 at 4 p.m., and Creation Corner will be Wednesday, Sept. 24, at 2 p.m. Please remember to preregister for these events online.  

We will have Friday Story Hour each Friday at 10 a.m. for our preschool patrons and their caregivers. Join us for a story and a craft! Sept. 5, the theme will be planes; trains are the story hour topic on Sept. 12.  The focus of story hour on Sept. 19 will be cars, and on Sept. 26, tractors will be the featured topic. 

Book Club Books

Anyone wishing to participate in either or both of the book clubs can stop by to check out this month’s selection.  Between the Covers afternoon book club will be discussing “West with Giraffes” by Lynda Rutledge on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 3 p.m. Nora Robert’s novel “Inheritance” is the book for Reads Well With Others, the evening book club. The evening club will meet on Tuesday, Sept. 23, at 5 p.m.

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

New things are coming to the MJB Library. Thanks to a generous gift to the library, a new sofa and chairs were purchased for the adult area. The new furniture is intended to be more friendly to adults because the higher seats allow for ease in getting in and out of the chairs.  

The furnishings previously in that area have been moved to the teen area to allow for more comfortable seating in that area. 

Another new addition that will be coming soon is the Memory Lab, which is a collection of equipment that can be used for converting different kinds of recordings, videos and pictures into digital files that can be stored on a USB drive or SD card. The equipment includes Eyesen 8 mm and super 8 reels, Elgato Video Capture, and Kodak Slide and Scan, as well as various peripherals and software programs for digitizing videos from DVD, VHS and 8 mm film formats. Materials that are copyrighted may not be duplicated.  

Library closures

Because of county fair activities on Friday, Aug. 29, there will be no preschool story hour; the library will, however, be open the regular 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. hours that day. Due to the county fair and parade, the library will be closed Saturday, Aug. 30. Monday, Sept. 1, the library will be closed all day in observance of Labor Day.  

Book clubs

Between the Covers afternoon book club will meet on Tuesday, Sept. 9, at 3 p.m. to discuss the Lynda Rutledge novel entitled “West With Giraffes.” Reads Well With Others, the evening book club will meet at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 23, to discuss “Inheritance” by Nora Roberts. Copies of both books are available at the front desk for check out.  

Our after school activities will be in full swing in September. LEGO Mania Day will be Wednesday, Sept. 10 at 2 p.m. Guthrie STEM Lab is Monday, Sept. 15 at 4 p.m. Creation Corner will be Wednesday, Sept. 24 at 2 p.m. Preregistration is required for these activities.  

Thursday, Sept. 18 will be a busy day with card making club taking place from 9-11 a.m. followed by Cookbook Club at 6:30 p.m. As  usual, cribbage will meet from 9-11 a.m. on Mondays, and bridge club will meet the same hours on Wednesdays. 

By Karen Kelly | Special to the Times Vedette

In addition to the many materials on our shelves, the Mary J. Barnett Library website provides a huge number of online resources.  We have a new resource called Mometrix, which can be accessed at the website under “online resources.” 

Mometrix eLibrary is a powerful new resource that is a one-stop hub for test prep, study tools and career support. If you need to prepare for a major exam such as the ACT, SAT, GRE, NCLEX, Praxis or civil service tests, or are brushing up on professional certifications or high school placement, Mometrix has what you need. 

If you access the site, here are a few things that you will find: easy-to-follow study guides that break down complex topics; practice tests to help you check your progress; flashcards for fast review; and memorization tools for students, professionals and career changers. All of this is free and available anytime when you log in with your library card.  

In addition to Mometrix, you can find a link to the DOT practice tests, educational resources and home activities. A link to the Digital Newspaper Archives allows access to digital copies of the News Gazette and The Times-Vedette. 

Take some time and explore the online resources that you can access through the Mary J. Barnett Library website. There’s something on there for people of all ages. 

Creation Corner will be Wednesday, Aug. 20, at 4 p.m. for youth of all ages. Join the fun to make creative projects; please remember to preregister for this event.  

Card making class will be from 9-11 a.m. on Thursday, Aug. 21. Judi Zimmerline, leader of the class, will share techniques to create unique greeting cards. All materials needed to create cards are provided; participants need to pay a $5 fee to cover materials.  

Friday morning Story Hour for preschoolers on Aug. 22 will center around the topic of cows. Stories begin at 10 a.m., followed by crafts. There will be no Story Hour on Aug. 29 because of county fair activities. 

Reads Well With Others, the evening book club, will meet at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 26, to discuss Jeneva Rose’s thriller entitled “The Perfect Marriage.” Copies are still available for check out for those who would like to join the group. Between the Covers afternoon book club is reading “West with Giraffes” by Lynda Rutledge. 

The library will be closed on Saturday, Aug. 29, for the Guthrie County Fair and on Monday, Sept. 1, for Labor Day. Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, Sept. 2.