Good afternoon,

Welcome to February. Despite this being the shortest month, we have big plans at the library! It's Black History Month, and our annual celebration is going virtual this year. More details below.

As of February 1, all of our library locations are open to the public again, except the Main Library on Paint St. We are completing a few projects at Main Library, so it will continue to offer curbside access only. Here are all the details about each location's current hours: https://www.crcpl.org/coronavirus-information/

Our county branches' "take and make" activity kits continue to be a hit. Each kit includes materials and instructions for a fun craft or other activity. Please contact your local branch for details.

You may have already heard that Chillicothe is the next city to be featured in WOUB's "Our Town" series. We have two events related to "Our Town," and I hope you will check them out!

As always, if you have suggestions for library events, I love to hear them. See you at the library!

Liz

Adult Services Manager

Chillicothe & Ross County Public Library

Black Communities: Coming Together During the Pandemic

Thursday February 18, 7pm: Streamed online

Our Annual Black History Month celebration is going virtual this year! Join us live on Facebook and YouTube for this special event. Our program will feature greetings from local NAACP Chapter President Adrienne D'Souza and other guests. Rick Smith Sr., CEO of United Way of Ross County, will deliver the keynote address titled "Where do we go from here?"

This event is presented in partnership with the Ross County NAACP.

Diversity in Literature

Thursday February 25, 3:30pm: Streamed online

Join us live on Facebook and YouTube for a discussion of the evolution of diversity in children's literature by Dr. LaKeshia Darden. Her expertise is in Black, or African-American children's literature. Her research has focused on using Black children's literature as a diversity training tool for adults.

This event is presented in partnership with Ohio University - Chillicothe.

Cooking and crafts

Virtual Cooking Class: Tuesdays in February, 4:30pm (live streamed)

Johnna is back with more recipes and tips in this virtual cooking series. Visit our Facebook and YouTube pages to watch the classes live.

Thank you to the OSU Ross County Extension Office for presenting this series.

Make it Monday - Paper Collage: Monday February 8, 4pm (live streamed)

Paper collage can be anything from simply attaching a photo to a pretty background, to an intricate work of art. This class is an introduction to paper collage, and we'll make a fun geometric print with cut paper.

Registered participants will be able to pick up a kit of materials at Main, Northside, or Mt Logan.

This event will live-stream on our Facebook and YouTube pages.

Drop-in Chat With a Peer: Thursdays in February from 2-3pm (Zoom)

This is a weekly drop-in chat with our Peer Support Specialist, Heather Osborne. Heather is available to help with finding resources in Ross County for treatment, mental health, or just to talk.

This weekly drop-in will happen via Zoom. Join us for a few minutes, or the whole hour. Please register so we can send you the link!

Celebrate Chillicothe on Our Town

Chillicothe will be the next city featured in WOUB Public Media's historical documentary series - Our Town. The documentary will examine how Chillicothe played an important role in early state government, as well as many other unique aspects and people of Chillicothe.

Tuesday February 9 at 7pm:

Join us for a live video on Facebook and YouTube as we talk to WOUB's Emmy award-winning Producer/Director Evan Shaw and Community Engagement Manager Cheri Russo about their process of developing the documentary.

Tuesday February 16 from 7-8:30pm:

Your photos and local stories could be a part of the next installment of Our Town! We'll host a meeting via Zoom with Evan Shaw and Cheri Russo, and people from the area can share their stories. "Many know the big events that have taken place in a town. What I'm looking for are the stories that are in the memories of those who have lived there," says Shaw. "Bringing those little-known facts about a town into the present day is what makes this documentary series special."

This event will take place via Zoom. Please register so we can send you a link to join us.

Book Clubs

Virtual Novels at Night: Thursday February 11, 7-8pm (Zoom)

Join us virtually for our Book Club meeting. We'll be discussing Abi Daré's The Girl with the Louding Voice. I'm happy to see that this is a very popular book at the moment, but it does mean that there is now a long waiting list for the digital copies. We do have copies available to pick up at Main Library and the Northside Branch. As always, please feel free to attend even if you have not read the book.

You must register for this event. When you register, you will receive a link to the Zoom meeting.

Virtual Brown Bag Book Club: Wednesday February 17 at noon (Zoom)

Join us virtually for this month's Book Club meeting. We'll be discussing Maisy Card's These Ghosts Are Family. The digital copies of this book also have waiting lists at the moment. There are copies available to pick up at the Northside Branch and Main Library.

You must register for this event. When you register, you will receive a link to the Zoom meeting.

Adult Game Night! Jackbox Games: Monday February 22, 7pm (virtual)

Come show us your skills on "Jackbox"! Please register and we will send you instructions on how to join us in the game. (We're also available to help you get set up, if you've never played before. Please let us know when registering.)

Check out our Blog!

Read about other exciting things happening at CRCPL.