Here are the headlines from the July 29, 2022 - 📢 Nic News Weekly:  

• Welcome, Katie! 
• WLA Awards & Honors Committee announces acceptance of nominations for Library of the Year, Librarian of the Year, and more 
• Sexual Harassment: How to respond to a customer's inappropriate comments 
• Making neighborhood GAMES and outdoor STORIES with community history, monuments, and art 
• Save the date for NFLS Staff Development Day on September 3 

 
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The Oconto Falls Community Library brought the NEW Zoo & Adventure Park's Zoomobile to the West Side Beach in Oconto Falls for an "edZOOcational" program on June 24, 2022.

Attendees also got to touch a real live bearded dragon at the end. As you can see in the picture below (left), it was very popular, with a long line to see it up close. According to one of the kids in attendance, "The bearded dragon felt just like touching a shark.” Although in a follow-up question he admitted to never having touched a shark.

All the kids in attendance were given a safari animal craft to take home with them.

The library counted 176 in the audience - of which 129 were kids/teens.

The Zoomobile program and safari animal take-home craft were funded by a Youth Services Support Grant from the Nicolet Federated Library System.

Earthaven Museum visited Gillett Public Library on June 17 with a myriad of fossils of coral and sea life collected from Oconto and Door Counties.

Michael Riesch explained to kids and their parents the process of fossilization and how Wisconsin has changed over millions of years. He brought numerous specimens of trilobites, clams, and coral.

Attendees were invited to inspect and examine the ancient artifacts. Every child left the library with a little fossil to call their own at the end of the program.

Holy cow! The Stephenson Public Library in Marinette had special guests at a recent Summer Story Time, Scar and Delilah.

Scar, a 4-year-old cow, and Delilah, a 2-week-old calf, were at the library courtesy of Troy Olsen of Wojciehowski Bros Dairy Farm. In addition to catering to Scar's sweet tooth with bananas and granola bars, the kids got a chance to bottle feed Delilah.

​The Stephenson Public Library is one of seven branches of the Marinette County Consolidated Public Library Service. Visit the library's calendar of events to see what its branches have going on all year long.

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Please check the NEWI list of free webinars to find online continuing education opportunities you may attend from where you are. Most sessions are 60 minutes long, and are provided – at no charge to you – by associations, agencies, companies, and library systems. There’s a lot to choose from, so here’s a sample of topics that may be of interest to you.

Managing stress & building resilience; click title to register:

• Anxiety at Work: 8 Strategies to Help Teams Build Resilience, Handle Uncertainty, and Get Stuff Done  - 10am on Wednesday, June 8
• Beyond Resilience: A New Path to a Strong Culture - 1pm on Wednesday, June 8
• Compassion Resilience: Expectations from Self and Others - 9am on Friday, June 10
• The Relationship Between Personal Stress and Community Resilience - 11am on Monday, June 20
• How Emotional Intelligence Can Help You in the Workplace - 1pm on Tuesday, June 21
• Compassion Resilience: Compassionate Boundary Setting - 9am on Friday, June 24

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI); click title to register:

• Inclusive Leadership for Social Impact - 10am on June 2
• Be Intentional, Not Identical: Creating DEI Strategies for the Library That Serves Your Community - 1pm on Tuesday, June 7
• I See a Library! Making Libraries More Accessible to the Visually Impaired - 9am on Wednesday, June 8
• Policies of Yes - 10am on Wednesday, June 8
• Ensuring Accessibility of Information Products and Services - 10am on Wednesday, June 8
• LGBTQ+ 101 - 9am on Tuesday, June 14
• Creating Healthier Productive and More Inclusive Workplaces - 1pm on Tuesday, June 14
• LGBTQ+ Workplace Inclusion - 9am on Tuesday, June 21

A sample of webinars on other topics; click title to register:

• Supporting Families and Young Children in Times of Fear and Anxiety - 1pm on Wednesday, June 1
• Info Lit 101 Part 3: Misinformation and Disinformation - 3pm on Thursday, June 2
• Instagram Basics for Libraries - 1pm on Wednesday, June 8
• How to Turn Real Events into Fantastic Fiction - 6pm on Monday, June 20
• From Numbers to Narrative: Getting from Data to a Visual Story - Noon on Wednesday, June 22
• Am I Doing This Right? Advice for First Time Managers - 1pm on Wednesday, June 22
• Classic Picture Books are Boring and What You Should Read in Storytime Instead - 1pm on Wednesday, June 29

Algoma Public Library was able to once again hold its Annual Easter Egg Hunt. Library staff hid many eggs (children were limited to five eggs, which held treats and small prizes), played some Easter-themed games, and had crafts available to work on either at the library or to take home with them.

​The library had a wonderful turnout, with approximately 140 participants coming and going within an hour period. This was definitely more than had shown up to any of the library's previous Egg Hunt programs.

Thanks to Cathy Kolbeck, Director at Algoma Public Library, for contributing to this post.

Farnsworth Public Library started new partnerships with two local organizations this spring, leading to some wonderful events for the community of Oconto.​

First, the library reached out to the Bond Community Center about participating in their monthly Family Night events. While normally membership is required to attend events at the Bond Center or use their facilities, Family Nights are free and open to the public.

​The Bond Center typically picks a theme and then organizes activities for children, and makes the pool and gym facilities available. The library's first Family Night was in April, where library staff facilitated a craft, bookmark-designing competition, and coloring and activity sheets. The Easter-themed Family Night brought in 175 people! "These families had a great time, and it was a mutually beneficial experience for the library and the Bond Center - we were able to provide a quiet room with options for those families that weren't interested in swimming or hitting the gym, be an extra set of eyes and hands for Bond Center staff, and reach many new families who aren't regular library users," said the library's director, Kristin Laufenberg. "It was a wonderful partnership that we are eager to continue in the coming months."

The library then partnered with the Oconto Elks Lodge #887 to provide an Easter egg hunt at the library. In years past, the Elks have hosted an egg hunt at a local park. But unpredictable weather, water and ground conditions at the park, and then COVID has meant that an egg hunt hasn't happened for several years. Laufenberg said "the library asked the Elks if they would be interested in co-sponsoring an egg hunt held in the library, and they graciously accepted." The Oconto Elks and the Friends of Farnsworth Public Library were jointly able to sponsor an egg hunt, craft activity, book and prize giveaways, snacks, bike and scooter raffles, and an appearance by the Easter bunny to over 250 people on Good Friday! "This turnout far exceeded what we expected, and we never would have been able to host an event of this size without the monetary donations and hours of work from our local Elks."  And while it did snow that day, the library was toasty warm inside for a wonderful Easter celebration.

The Brown County Library and Ledgeview Parks and Recreation have teamed up to offer a Storywalk® throughout Ledgeview Park along the East River Trail from May through October.

Storywalk will feature a new book each month displayed on yard signs along the trail. This is a great way for adults and their children or grandchildren to enjoy a story together, practice literacy skills, and enjoy healthy exercise as they walk from sign to sign.

​The Brown County Library Bookmobile will be on site June – August and staff will lead storytime and crafts for all ages in the Ledgeview Park shelter, 2064 Dickinson Road.

Here are the headlines from the March 25, 2022 - 📢 Nic News Weekly:

• Nominate someone for the SSCS Paralibrarian of the Year Award
• June National Pollinator Month Workshops for Public Libraries
• WiLS Ideas to Action Fund application period opens April 11
• Continuing Education:
  • April Webinars from OverDrive
  • Wisconsin Libraries Talk About Race: Sensitive Conversations & Handling Pushback

During the month, patrons were encouraged to read one (or all!) of the titles and to participate in several anti-racist awareness activities independently available through a Beanstack challenge.
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