Arapahoe Public Library

Our Friends of the Library held their annual Fairy Tale Ball on March 20th! Each young lady received a carnation and were escorted by their favorite guy to a dance and ice cream party!

Mad Science Mondays are back in business! The scientists in this group meet for four Mondays to explore a new area of science each week. This last week, the children learned about the circulatory system, specifically how the heart works. Students had the chance to get hands-on with a beef heart.

Feb 5th: Take Your Child to the Library Day. Join us from 9-12 for our Luau inspired party bags, photo ops available, too.

Reading Bingo Challenge: For children of all ages! Complete the Bingo sheet and turn it in by Feb 28th. 8 names total will be drawn for a $10 Gift Certificate to Tornado Alley and a Free Drink from Arapahoe Floral & Coffee! Each child that turns in a sheet, will receive a free movie pass to the Crystal Theater! Four names will be drawn from the JH/HS level and four names will be drawn from the children who are in 6th grade and younger.

Blind Date with a Book: All month long, take home a wrapped book and see if it’s love at first sight! Every adult that turns in their ‘Rate Your Date’ slip will be entered into a drawing for a Gift Certificate from Cunningham’s and Arapahoe Floral & Coffee.

Thanks to our sponsor: Friends of the Library!

Yesterday’s Lady aka Sue McClain from Beatrice, NE presented Victorian Christmas. Sue brought a sample of her collection to our library which included dresses and traveling clothes from that time period, a German tabletop Christmas tree made from feathers, period postcards and more! Sue gave a historical background to the Christmas traditions we see today. This presentation was made possible by the Humanities NE, the Nebraska Cultural Endowment and in memory of Cal Robinson.

Furnas County Extension Educator, Elena Stout, led the fall session of Mad Science Mondays at our library. Each week, Elena presented a new concept for the group of elementary students. The children get involved with hands-on experiments. Shown above, the group is exploring bio-plastic by using corn based products to create “plastic.” Mad Science Mondays will return in March.

The library is happy to report that our Lego Club is bursting at the seams! We’ve split our club into three groups to make the club enjoyable for all. The Lego bricks are provided in part by our Friends of the Library and we now own a large selection of bases and different colors. The snacks for this program have been generously provided by our community. The kids provide their imaginations! Their creations are put on display, come check them out!

Lego Club also made its return after taking an extended break since March 2020. We were thrilled to have over 60 children in the building! The Lego bricks are part of the library’s collection. Our Friends of the Library group donated to the major purchase of the bricks to get this program started in 2015. When the children arrive they receive a snack and then let their imaginations take over as they free play. Pictured above is a great example of how well the new library design is working. While we had a large group of children playing in the new community room, others were able to find a quiet spot on the other side of the building to work on homework.

After nineteen months, our school visits started again! Every month during the school year, the Arapahoe Public School transports children from grades Kindergarten-8th grade to our library. The younger students are read a story, and every child gets to check out a library book! We are thrilled to carry on this long-standing tradition with our local public school. It was wonderful to see their reactions as they walked into the newly renovated space. Welcome back, kids!

On August 7, 2021 the library celebrated its official ribbon cutting ceremony! Benita Adams (President of the Library Board) welcomed Mayor John E Koller as he gave his congratulations on behalf of the City of Arapahoe. Visitors to the open house enjoyed a slide show presentation of the project from start to finish, and gathered inside the newly renovated building for tours. The library staff are excited to see the doors officially opened to everyone in the community and look forward to serving their community in this new space.