Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties

Mercer proclaims February 'Love your Library' month

By CHARITY SMITH

[email protected]

MERCER, Wis. — February has been declared “Love your Library” month by the Mercer town board, and the Friends of the Mercer Library have planned a month long celebration.

During the month of February it is encouraged that residents visit the Mercer Public Library and explore the wide variety of services , resources and collections of books and other things the library provides, library officials said in a press release. These services include programs, technology assistance, games, puzzles, hobby tools, scientific implements, and audio visual equipment.

“It’s really to bring awareness and interest to all of the services and resources that the library offers the community,” said Beth Wetzler, president of Friends of the Mercer Library. “Throughout the month (we) will be posting things on Facebook about what the library has to offer. You know you can check out a telescope from the library or you can check into the history of Mercer. So there is a wide variety of things that I think that people don’t know about. So this will allow us to talk about those things.”

Wetzler said several libraries across the country celebrate an unofficial “library lovers” month, latching on to a Valentine’s theme.

“Libraries across the country have adopted this to celebrate their library,” Wetzler said. “This is the first year that we have really made a concerted effort to have an organized Love your Library month with programming.”

Wetzler she said they are asking patrons to submit a form or a video online saying why they love the Mercer Library. The written responses will be placed on hearts and hung from a tree inside the library. Wetzler said that people have already started submitting there responses. Patrons who come into the library are also able to take a “shelfie,” a self-taken photo of themselves checking out books and materials from the library shelf. Love your Library participants will be given stickers.

One of the main events this year will be a blind date with a book. Library staff will wrap up books for people to check out. The wrapped books will have a note attached with a few clues about them, that will be worded like a dating profile. Patrons will choose a book, not knowing its title or plot, to take home and read.

“They won’t know what they are checking out, so that’s the blind date aspect of it,” Wetzler said. “That’ll be a fun thing.”

Wetzler said the Friends of the Library are also thinking of some take-home crafts for the month. She said the crafts will be for both kids and adults

The library is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m .; Tuesday and Thursday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m .; and Saturday, 9 a.m. to noon.

For more information, call 715-476- 2366 or visit MercerPublicLibrary.org.

 
 
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