We have made it through June and July. August is here with all the activities it has to offer:  well checks, dental visits, back to school clothes shopping, new shoes, school supplies, last minute getaways, band camp, two-a-days, and everything else that goes with the end of summer.

We have had a great Summer Reading Program. We visited Addie E. McFarland Center seven times with short programs and opportunities to check out books.  We were at the Primary and Elementary School campuses during the three weeks of summer school.  In the Library, we had eight programs for teens / tweens and for K-fifth grade reaching about 300 children. At each weekly activity we offered something different. Anything from outdoor water games, personal pendants, Old Timer Raccoon and the Creature Teacher with her baby wallaby and Kangaroo Jack.

We also partnered with Circle of Ten / Gateways to American Opportunities to offer Money Camps for children and for teens and those were sponsored by Capital One Bank, City National Bank, Mineola Community Bank and Mineola Kiwanis club.  At these camps, participants learned about money - differences between needs and wants, saving and spending, budgets, etc. in fun ways.

Throughout the summer, we continued to have American Girls Historical Reading Club, Lego Club, Family Craft day and our own Library Book Club. We also kept the wheels on the bookmobile rolling on its usual routes.

Now comes August. It will be a quiet month in the library. We will still have American Girls on the second Saturday of the month.  We will have the Library Book Club on the third Thursday of the month. Lego Club will happen, too.  But, we are taking a break from everything else. The staff needs a chance to recharge and plan for the next eleven months.

It is also time for inventory. Just like any business, we need to take stock of what we have and where it is. You will see us putting books on carts to inventory at the front desk. You will see us in the stacks with laptops scanning bar codes.  You will see us putting books in proper order. Hopefully, we can complete this task in the month of August.

We have a great staff at the Mineola Memorial Library. We are once again saying good-bye to a long-time staff member:  Richard. He is going back to school and taking a new job.  We wish him well. That leaves us with one opening.  Ask at the front desk for details. Remember, this is not a “sit and read” type of job; there are lots of things to do and that must be done.

A great big thank you to all the volunteers we have had over the summer and especially the last week of July. Three staff members were out of the office on vacation that week and these volunteers came in to fill the gaps.

And from one of the staff members that was out of the office - a super big thank you for the staff for holding down the fort!

Please, come by and see us in the month of August.  We love seeing you!

Finally, remember the Mineola Memorial LIbrary is a 501(c)3, non-profit and your donations are tax-deductible.

(Contact Mary Hurley at minmemlib@gmail.com)