Ainsworth Public Library

A Poison Prevention Class will be held at the Ainsworth Public Library on March 12^th from 4-5 p.m. for children to learn what poison is and how to protect themselves.    This class will be open to the young children in our area from the preschool age to second grade. 

Pinky the Elephant will help guide the children on lessons of what is a poison; medicine safety, and where do you find poison.  A color book in Spanish and English featuring Pinky will be given to the children along with other educational materials to take home for the parents/guardians.

More than two million poisonings are reported each year to poison control centers throughout the United States.  Ninety percent of poisonings occur at home and at least fifty percent involve children under the age of six.  Most of the cases, however, were safely managed at home and did not require an emergency room visit.  The Nebraska Regional Poison Center provided the material for the Library to use in this poison prevention class.  The Nebraska Regional Poison Center is one of 55 poison centers in America.  The center is staffed with experts in poison information 24-7-365.  When someone calls the poison center, they speak immediately and directly with a registered nurse specialist who will quickly and efficiently assess the situation and give recommendations for treatment according to the toxicity of the substance.  A call to the poison center can prevent many expensive and unnecessary trips to emergency rooms every year.  This is a free and confidential service available to everyone.  The Library will be handing out magnets with the Poison Control phone number.

JEAN PINNEY is the winner of the Blind Date with a Book “Cozy Up & Read Basket”. Hope that your date was a great one!

We had a total of 23 Blind Date Books checked out by 12 different readers. Thanks for taking part in this fun program!

Read Across America Week will be celebrated next week. Our library will be holding a Dr. Seuss Hour to celebrate Seuss’s birthday on Monday, March 4th, from 4-5 p.m. Dr. Seuss lovers of all ages are welcome to attend!

Please note that the Library will be closed on this Friday, Feb. 23rd, so that library staff may attend this all-day conference. We will be open on Saturday as usual!

The Book Club’s March selection “Educated” by Tara Westover is now available. Come check out the title and join us on March 18th at 2 p.m. to share thoughts on it.

A memoir about a young girl who, kept out of school, leaves her survivalist family and goes on to earn a PhD from Cambridge University. Born to survivalists in the mountains of Idaho, Tara Westover was seventeen the first time she set foot in a classroom. Her family was so isolated from mainstream society that there was no one to ensure the children received an education, and no one to intervene when one of Tara’s older brothers became violent. When another brother got himself into college, Tara decided to try a new kind of life. Her quest for knowledge transformed her, taking her over oceans and across continents, to Harvard and to Cambridge University. Only then would she wonder if she’d traveled too far, if there was still a way home.

Great news! Our library now has a Community Blood Pressure Monitor for the public to use. This action was made possible through the collaborative efforts of the North Central District Health Department and the HeartCorps Program of Public Health AmeriCorps at the American Heart Association. There will be no fee to use the monitor. Come try it out!

The Storytime topic on Tuesday will feature “Love”. This will run from 4-5 p.m. for the Preschool-Second Grade children. Hope to see you there!

Library will be closed on February 19th for the holiday.

The Ainsworth Public Library held its regular monthly board meeting on February 7, 2024 at the Ainsworth Library.  This meeting was advertised in the local newspaper, on the radio, on the Library’s website and Facebook page, plus posted at the Library.  President Phyllis Leach called the meeting to order at 5:15 p.m.  Notice was given on the posting of the Nebraska Open Meeting Act.  Roll call showed three members present (Phyllis Leach, Todd Flynn, and Luke Hitchcock).  Members Stacy Gilliland and Alane Lentz were absent.  Library Director, Gail Irwin, was also present for the meeting.  

Todd Flynn made the motion to approve the minutes of the last meeting.  Phyllis Leach seconded this with all members in favor of.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to approve the claims for payment.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members present voting in favor of.  The Monthly Library Report and list of titles purchased was shared with the Board.  The Statistical Report for 2023 and the Nebraska Library Commission Supplement Report was shared with the board. This was submitted to the Nebraska Library Commission on January 22^nd.  A copy of this report has been given to the City Clerk for her records and to share with the Mayor/City Council.  

A review was given on recent activities at the Library.  Discussion was held on upcoming events such as Book Club, Story Time, the Primary Poison Education/Prevention Class on March 12^th, and the Blind Date with a Book program.   It was noted at this time that the American Heart Association and Heart Corp will be delivering a Blood Pressure Monitor for the public to use at the library.  A Heart Program will be presented in March to go along with this monitor.  Smokey the Bear is turning 80 years-old this year.  The Forest Department will be working with the public libraries on doing a Smokey Bear Reading Challenge through November 2024.  Information was shared on this program.  Our library will be doing the challenge later in July and August.

Reviews were given on workshops/meetings that staff has attended.  It was noted that staff attended the Director’s Zoom Meetings on Jan. 4^th, and 11^th; plus the Word Press meeting on Jan. 18^th, the NCompass Auditing Library Website on Jan. 26^th and Word Press Website Refresher on Jan. 31^st.  Wanda and Gail attended the Summer Reading Program Workshop in Lexington on the 23^rd.  Upcoming meetings include the Library Foundation Board on Feb. 21^st and the All-Day Conference of Big Talk from Small Libraries on Feb. 23^rd.  Luke Hitchcock made the motion to close the library that day so that staff could attend the sessions.  Todd Flynn seconded this with all members voting in favor of.  Board members were encouraged to attend. The Board needs 6 more continuing education hours for their certification in September.

Under correspondence, a letter from a nine year-old from Bowling Green, Ohio was shared.  The Library is in the process of replying back with information from our local area.  Information from the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation’s Wander Nebraska Program was shared.  Articles of interests from library journals and newsletters were shared with the Board.

The next meeting date/time was set for March 6^th at 5 p.m.  Since there was no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned at 5:50 p.m.