The seventh annual Chesapeake Children’s Book Festival (CCBF)  kicked off the Talbot County Free Library Summer Reading Program on Saturday, June 11.

An estimated 1,000 guests showed up at the Easton Library branch to listen to keynote speakers Carole Boston Weatherford and Bryan Collier showcase their books. Flying Cloud Booksellers and Bluepoint Hospitality were sponsors for the event and provided an estimated 300 book vouchers for children who registered for the summer reading program.

“For the past 7 years, the Chesapeake Children’s Book Festival has evolved into an event that has impacted the children of the Eastern Shore. We have given families attending the opportunity not only to enjoy a wide variety of books and illustrations but also raise awareness of some of the local community resources that make Talbot County whole,” said Christina Acosta, Communications Manager at the Talbot County Free Library during the program.

Love that Jazz Band started the event on a high note with their performance in the library’s meeting room. Other authors who attended CCBF included David Owen Bell, Melanie Conklin, Lee Harper, Michael Rex, Diane Salerni, Nancy Viau, Ginger Park, Frances Park, Joan Waites, and Chesapeake Children’s Book Festival Co-Founder Timothy Young.

Community partners who joined this event included the Academy of Art Museum, Critchlow Adkins, Imagination Library, Judy Center, Shorerivers, Talbot County Public Schools, Friends of the Talbot County Free Library, and the YMCA. Inside the library, families had the opportunity to enjoy a balloon station, a 3D printing station, book making, signing up for the summer reading program, and a pop-up book display.

For more information about registering for the Oceans of Possibility! Summer reading program or the Adult summer reading program, visit www.tcfl.org.

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, digital devices, free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.

Mark your calendars for the upcoming Thrill-Seekers Book Sale taking place on Friday, June 17 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Talbot County Free Library (TCFL) Easton Branch.

Presented by the Friends of the Talbot County Free Library, this first ever themed Book Sale will feature genres including mysteries, mayhem, and more! Book donations will be accepted on a limited basis on June 7 and June 14 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Easton Branch.

Donations will be limited to one box/bag per person, and all items must be in good condition. Friends of the Library President Emilie Knud-Hansen said picking out a theme for this upcoming sale will make the event a little more thrilling.

“We had fun deciding upon a theme, and it actually was pretty obvious we should feature the types of books that seem to have been the most popular in previous sales,” said Knud-Hansen. “We liked the ‘Thrill Seekers’ theme to cover mysteries, crime, horror and daredevil stories, both fiction and fact, serious and humorous. Families love to come to the sale so we will have age-appropriate sections and young children’s books in all subjects.”

When it comes to the donations, the Friends of the Library will be accepting books, CDs and DVD’s in “like new” condition. Water-damaged, mildewed, yellowed, dirty, or books with an odor will not be accepted for the sale.

No medical, financial, or computer books over three years old or textbooks will be accepted. Donated materials may be added to the Library’s collection, sold or recycled. Please be aware that donations are tax deductible.

“This upcoming sale is our way of gradually resuming one of the Friends of the Library’s most popular events,” said Knud-Hansen. “First, book donations are going to be strictly limited to the three Tuesdays before the sale, and only for a few hours. Secondly, we felt having a theme would help reduce overloaded tables. Finally, rather than have a massive sale over three days, we are trying a one-day sale on a Friday this year, with our second sale set for September.”

For more information, visit www.tcfl.org

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, digital devices, free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.

Preparations are underway to kick-off the 7^th annual Chesapeake Children’s Book Festival (CCBF) that will take place on Saturday, June 11 from 10am to 2pm at the Talbot County Free Library Easton Branch.

The theme this year is Oceans of Possibility! Author Carole Boston Weatherford will be delivering the first keynote speech at 10:30 a.m. and Author/illustrator Bryan Collier will deliver the second keynote speech at 11:30 a.m., and the Easton High School Jazz Band will be performing. Thanks to lead sponsor Flying Cloud Booksellers, a Bluepoint Hospitality property, children ages birth – 18, who sign up for the library’s Summer Reading Challenge, will receive a voucher valued at $20 for a free book of their choice from Flying Cloud Booksellers while supplies last. YMCA will be providing a summer reading program prize of a six-month family membership for Easton YMCA, and swimming lessons.

The CCBF is the kick-off event for Talbot Library’s Summer Reading Program (SRP) which runs from June 1 through July 31, 2022. On Wednesday, August 10, 2022 prizes will be awarded for SRP at the library’s End of Summer Celebration.

“The book festival is the kickoff event for summer reading, so one of my hopes is that everyone will sign up for summer reading, and get a voucher for a free book at Flying Cloud,” said Talbot County Free Library Youth Services Librarian Laura Powell. “They take home a book they want to read, and become inspired to read every day for the summer months, building a habit of reading for enjoyment.”

Weatherford has received three Caldecott Honors, two NAACP Image Awards, an SCBWI Golden Kite Award, a Coretta Scott King Author Honor, and more. She is well known for her books, “Dreams for a Daughter,” “Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre,” and “RESPECT: Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul.”

Collier is a beloved author/illustrator known for his unique style of combining watercolor and detailed collage. He is a four-time Caldecott Honor recipient for “Rosa,” “Martin’s Big Words,” “Dave the Potter,” and “Trombone Shorty.” His recent books include “The Five O’Clock Band,” “Between the Lines,” and “By and by, Thurgood.”

Other authors attending CCBF include David Owen Bell, Melanie Conklin, Lee Harper, Michael Rex, Diane Salerni, Nancy Viau, Ginger Park, Frances Park, Joan Waites, and Chesapeake Children’s Book Festival Co-Founder Timothy Young.

“I hope children and families will be inspired to enjoy reading everyday; and that meeting and talking with children’s book authors and illustrators ignite an interest in a particular book or subject. You can read anywhere, it’s free and makes you feel good,” said Powell.

Partners and Sponsors of the 7^th annual CCBF include Bluepoint Hospitality, What’s Up? Media, Maryland Public Television (MPT), Academy of Art Museum, Country School, Critchlow Adkins, Flying Cloud Booksellers, Friends of the Talbot County Free Library, Imagination Library, Judy Center, Horn Point Lab – University of Maryland, Talbot County Council, Talbot Arts Council, Talbot County Public Schools, YMCA, and Easton High School Jazz Band. CCBF is funded in part by Talbot Arts with revenues provided by the Maryland State Arts Council and the governments of Talbot County, Easton, Oxford, and St. Michaels.

Young has noted that the festival has evolved since its inception in 2016. He hopes the festival will expand to newer heights in the future.

“We are thrilled at the reaction to the festival. From our very first one in 2016 we have had hundreds of families attend and the numbers have grown each year,” said Young. “Many have returned each year and we’ve even had folks travel from well outside the Eastern Shore to visit our authors.”

Visit chesapeakechildrensbookfestival.org and www.tcfl.org for information about all of our authors and the full schedule of presentations.

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, digital devices, free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.

Talbot County Free Library welcomes the community to provide input for the new three-year strategic plan by taking a survey and participating in an upcoming focus group meeting.

The strategic planning process will examine what the Talbot County Free Library needs to focus on to serve the evolving needs of residents. The first Strategic Plan Focus Group will aim to get feedback from teens (ages 12-18) on Thursday, April 28 from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., at the Talbot County Free Library’s St. Michaels Branch.

This event will give teens a chance to earn service-learning hours and help the Talbot County Free Library. Participants will answer questions in a small discussion group and provide their thoughts and opinions about library services for teens. Teens are encouraged to bring their service-learning papers. Free pizza will be provided.

“During each focus group session, we’ll ask participants about their needs and thoughts about what the library can do for them and how the library can better reach and support all of our residents,” said Dana Newman, Talbot County Free Library Director.

Another Strategic Plan Focus Group will take place at the St. Michaels Branch on Monday, May 2, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. This focus group invites community members of all ages to answer questions designed to help the library plan for future services, and the upcoming expansion of the St. Michaels library.

Another focus group will then be held at the Easton Branch on Thursday, May 5, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The library will also hold one at the Chesapeake Multicultural Resource Center on Thursday, May 12, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. A teen focus group is being planned for the Easton area, and it is highly encouraged for everyone to check the library’s website for more information.

Refreshments will be served at all of the focus groups sessions.

“From the feedback we receive, we hope to find ways in which the Library can more effectively serve both individuals and the community,” Newman said.

Talbot County Free Library not only encourages the public to participate in the focus groups, but also with the Strategic Planning Survey. The survey will be on the library’s website until Tuesday, April 19.

Talbot County Free Library encourages those who take the survey to share their insights about community needs that the library could help meet. The library also wants to know what services and programs patrons want to see in the library in the future.

“Library staff hopes the entire community will participate in the survey and let us know what they want to see at the library,” Newman said.

For more information, please call (410) 822-1626 or visit www.tcfl.org. Registration is not required for the Focus Groups.

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, and digital devices, as well as free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.

Dana Newman, director of the Talbot County Free Library, announced that the library has been awarded a $10,000 grant to create “The Talbot Boys Collection,” which will be in the main library’s Maryland Room.

The collection will be a comprehensive compilation of materials related to the Talbot Boys statue and Talbot Boys. The collection will tell the story of the varied and changing impact the statue had on Talbot County for over twelve decades, told from all sides of the issue.

The anonymous donor expressed the hope that the grant “will demonstrate that our community was able to preserve Talbot history and remove the monument as well.”  The library has the sole authority over all aspects of the collection, but the donor’s wish is that “the library assemble and organize as much information and material of all varieties as it reasonably can, from a wide variety of sources and of varied types…that the collection preserve Talbot’s history by being a repository for the whole story of the statue, not any one story in particular.”

The library is currently in the process of hiring a graduate intern to collect, archive, and arrange the collection. The public is asked to hold items including letters, photographs, articles, personal communications, and any other documents related to the Talbot Boys statue that they wish to contribute.

An announcement will be made when the donations will be accepted.

“The discussions, printed material, presentations, etc. taking place within the past several years regarding the Talbot Boys statue have been quite emotional, and passionate – on both sides.  The work contributed by a focused scholar should allow future Talbot Countians and researchers the possibility to view all aspects, thereby being able to form their own conclusions,” said Becky Riti, Talbot County Free Library Maryland Room Librarian.

“During the pandemic, quite a few individuals directed their attention to researching the Talbot Boys statue.  It was discovered that there really was not a great deal of information readily available about the statue being erected,” said Riti. “If the scholar working on this project can uncover more information about the Talbot Boys statue around the time period of 1916, this would help to fill in a gap. Additionally, any further information pertaining to the statue throughout the 20th century will be, for the most part, new material. That would be exciting.”

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, and digital devices, as well as free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.

Everybody has a COVID-19 pandemic story to tell, and the Talbot County Free Library wants to hear and record those stories starting on Wednesday, March 16.

Local residents can set up an appointment, for either a Tuesday or Wednesday, to tell their stories in the Frederick Douglass Meeting Room by calling (410) 822-1626 or in person at the Library. Interviews will be done until June 29 at the main branch, and will move to the St. Michaels branch in July. The statewide initiative will become a part of Enoch Pratt Free Library’s Digital Maryland and Maryland State Archives.

The project will be done in an interview style in the Frederick Douglass room with the help of Dick Peskin, a volunteer for the Talbot County Free Library. Peskin has been a part of a couple of oral history projects for the library’s Maryland Room in the past, and wanted to participate because there are many unique stories to tell during this pressing time in history.

“This is a recording of what has happened during this momentous time in our history, a time we have all participated in willingly or not” said Peskin. “I hope that we get a wide range of different stories. I would also hope that people who hear these stories see that we are in this together; this is a common experience that we are living through in similar and different ways.”

The Global Z Recording Project has partnered with the Talbot County Free Library as well as 14 other libraries across the state of Maryland. This project was made possible by a grant from Maryland Humanities, and through support from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

“The project empowers Marylanders, providing a rare and valuable opportunity for all citizens to tell their stories. These personal recordings will become a part of our history, collectively informing the world and future researchers how COVID-19 impacted individuals and our local communities,” Bill Lord, Founder and Executive Director of The Global Z Recording Project said in 2020.

For more information, call (410) 822-1626 or visit www.tcfl.org.

“When I first heard about the project, I thought that it was very important that the library be involved to help capture our residents stories, understandings, hopes, beliefs, and values about the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Talbot County Free Library Director Dana Newman. “These oral accounts will be a resource to help researchers, policy makers, artists, and communities interpret and respond to current and future pandemics.”

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, and digital devices, as well as free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.

The Talbot County Free Library has recently submitted their FY23 budget request to the county; and would like you to answer one question: How has the Talbot County Free Library made your life better? Your voice is important.

All you need to do is go on the website, www.tcfl.org, and click on the “How Has the Library Made Your Life Better,” to answer the question either in English or Spanish. You can also stop by one of the library branches and give us your response.

The final day to collect testimonials is Thursday, March 31. Talbot County Free Library Director Dana Newman would like the testimonials to be available in time for the upcoming Talbot County Council and Easton Town Council budget hearings.

“It is important that elected officials hear how library services help support people in our community to find information and jobs, overcome problems, and complete projects,” said Newman. “The library is a trusted community resource not only by helping individuals to better their lives but by partnering with other organizations to make improvements in the community.”

Your participation in this survey also allows the library to use your responses in promotion and advocacy materials for the library. Personal information included in the story will be removed to provide anonymity.

One of the items included in the Talbot County Free Library budget request is county funding for the design of the St. Michaels expansion and renovation project.

It is important for you to let everyone know how the library has impacted your life, whether the library staff has helped you with an urgent task, or improved your life in any other way.  The Talbot County Free Library is a busy community hub that aims to enhance the lives of anyone who enters one of our branches, with resources including books, e-resources, virtual and in-person events for children and adults.

“Our library at its heart is a service organization.  In addition to providing books, TCFL makes sure people in our community have access to the information, technology, and services they need.  We are in the process of exploring what the community needs from the library as a part of our strategic planning process over the next few months and want to hear from residents about how the library is serving them and how those services impact their life,” Newman said.

For more information, visit www.tcfl.org.

About Talbot County Free Library

It is the mission of the Talbot County Free Library to enrich and renew the lives of the people it serves. There are two locations: The main library in Easton is located at 100 W. Dover St., and the St. Michael branch is at 106 Fremont St. The Maryland Room in the Easton branch holds a voluminous collection of genealogical resources and historical documents. Services at both locations include the circulation of books, DVDs, and digital devices, as well as free Wi-Fi, public computers, exhibits, and programs for both children and adults. For more information, please visit www.tcfl.org. Be sure to like the library on Facebook and follow us on Instagram @Talbotcountyfreelibrary.