7-31-2026
Neither 90°+ forecasted heat, nor thunderstorms, nor tornado warnings can stop the Summer Reading Programs final celebration for 2026. We didn’t even get wet.
I could also add hardware store closings to the list of obstacles thrown our way. The Harris family had kindly donated use of a bounce house from Martin’s Hardware only to have their own world thrown for a loop. The closure of the store meant allowing the bounce house insurance to lapse at the end of June and the cancellation of our reservation.
When the FFA Petting Zoo needed to postpone the day of our Kids Parade, it seemed like destiny and we rescheduled for the Pizza Party. I knew it was a risk at the time and wasn’t surprised by the heat postponing them again. The thunderstorms and tornado sirens were a surprise. In the end we gave Mr. Holle his choice of random good weather days. He picked Wednesday, July 29th.
Once again, we were left without a main attraction and an expected 100+ people in the library.
An egg hunt and Plinko were in the original plans. They were moved into the library on the main level. Our apologies for any patrons who hoped to spend a bit of quiet time in the library Monday afternoon. If having 80 people on an egg hunt didn’t ruin that, my microphone and speaker giving directions certainly did. They did a very good job locating the eggs both high and low. However, it is possible a few may remain. Keep an eye open when browsing the shelves for the next few weeks and you may find one too. Plinko, with candy prizes, and balloon animals were run by Miss Maria and volunteers Thomas and Valerie.
In the Lower Level there seemed to be nearly as many volunteers as party goers. Volunteer Eileen helped run kid’s activities bowling, parachutes, and ball toss with Friends member Roberta. A mix of Friends and Library Board Trustees Audrey, Santa, and Mary helped dish up the pizza. From the staff, Anna created face art with Lisa helping organizing the sign up. Brandy’s pictures, taking between temporary tattoo applications, are posted on Facebook. Trustee Annie helped direct traffic between the two levels and was invaluable during clean up.
Thank you to all the volunteers and our main sponsor, the Friends of the ETLPL, as well as Citizens Bank whose donation covered the cost of the actual pizza. Thank you as well for the 300+ patrons who signed up.
We’ll see you next week Thursday, August 6th at 10:00am for Sensory Playtime in the Park.
Reading Now: The Little Liar by Mitch Albom
Listening to Now: The Cut by Richard Armitage
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