Richmond Free Library

The Storybook Egg Hunt is back on! Although we needed to postpone the  Hunt in April to ensure everyone’s safety and abide by Gov. Scott’s restrictions on outdoor recreation, he lifted those restrictions two weeks ago and is encouraging everyone to get some fresh air outdoors while being smart and safe. With that in mind, and as a sign of our beautiful VT spring, we are excited to finally put out the storybook eggs that Radiate Art Space & the Richmond Free Library collaboratively worked on well before the outbreak! Similar to last year, 30 large paper mache eggs will be hidden between the walkable area from the Round Church to the Richmond Elementary School / Camels Hump MS, including the river walking trail on Volunteers Green. The egg hunt will take place over the course of a week — Saturday, May 23rd through Sunday, May 31st. Each egg has a picture with a different storybook character. When you find an egg, you simply identify the character and check it off a checklist.

To keep with the State’s recommendations to make this safe, we require your help in maintaining the social distancing that Governor Scott still has in place. While the egg hunt takes place outside, happens over the course of a full week, and does not require ANY touching of the eggs (or exchange of items between people), it is up to you to make the social distancing work. Obviously, anyone who suspects they have been exposed to COVID should not take part. Also, we ask that you do not all rush out on the first Saturday to find the eggs — they will be there all week, so take your time and pick various times of the day to attempt your search. Also, do not approach an egg if you see others gathered around it – wait until they have moved on for several minutes before you continue your search. Please use the 6-foot rule as a minimum distance guideline. We recommend wearing a mask if you see others on the hunt as well. You will not need to touch the eggs — the story characters will be visible from a distance. You can download our checklist to take with you, or submit a form online for a chance at a gift card (www.radiateartspace.org). If it appears that people are not following the rules and putting others at risk, we will sadly have to end the egg hunt immediately for the safety of everyone. For those of you who might miss out because you are self-quarantining indoors, or have concerns about taking part, Radiate will be posting pictures of all the eggs on their website + Instagram, Facebook after June 1st, so that you can see them, too!

Final notes!! Please do not go in construction zones — all eggs will be placed on the west side of Bridge Street away from the section they are working on. Also, last year there was some confusion about the eggs. There is no candy/surprises/etc. inside the eggs – so do not touch them and don’t try to break them open! The fun is in the search itself. Happy hunting!

Find all the details here: http://www.radiateartspace.org

We wish we could celebrate in person, but that is still not possible. This year the slogan for National Library Week was going to be “Find your place at the library.” With the introduction of Covid-19 into our communities and the dramatic changes in how we are all currently living our lives, that slogan has been flipped around to “Find the library at your place.” Here are some of the ways you can do that right now!

Online Library Books for Adults and Kids  All patrons may set up an account with GMLC Overdrive and download ebooks and audiobooks with a valid card. If your card expired, please send us an email with your current contact information(name, address, phone, email)  and we can get it renewed. Overdrive comes with a very helpful app called Libby. We recommend downloading to whatever device you’re using.  (It’s not yet available on Kindles.) If you need some help navigating with Libby, this booklet should help. Help with Libby. Let us know if you need more help.

Online Storytimes  Please visit the Library’s Youth Services page. Here you will find a link to a short storytime that Ms. Wendy recorded at the library on April 17. We have also provided links to Tumblebooks, a read-aloud platform for all ages and to Storyline Online which offers some excellent picture books read by authors and celebrities.

Continuing Education  Are you or someone in the family home from school and needing help with various subjects or certification programs? LearningExpress is a highly acclaimed eLearning platform that provides support to students and professionals for academic skill-building, tutorials, occupational exploration, standardized test prep, career certification test prep and more. Patrons will create their own account where they can keep track of modules explored. Brush up on your math, science or writing skills, study for the GED, SAT, ACT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, a variety of Allied Health Certifications, Firefighting, Plumbing and more. Explore the possibilities at Learning Express. Go to our Online Resources page for more continuing education opportunities.

Internet Access  Our wifi will stay on and patrons can access the internet from outside the building.

The Richmond Free Library closed effective 6 pm, Friday, March 13 for the safety of its patrons and staff.

Until the Governor’s Executive Order of Stay Home, Stay Safe, we had been offering curbside pick-up of physical items. We have now discontinued that service until further notice.

If you have any items out right now, don’t worry.   All items are renewed to May 1.  Please hold on to them until then, if you can.

In the meantime, please visit www.richmondfreelibraryvt.org and explore various offerings on the website.

All patrons may set up an account with GMLC Overdrive and download ebooks and audiobooks with a valid card.  If your card expired, please send us an email with your current contact information(name, address, phone, email)  and we can get it renewed. Ovedrive comes with a very helpful app called Libby.  We recommend downloading to whatever device you’re using.  (It’s not yet available on Kindles.)  If you need some help navigating with Libby, this booklet should help. Help with Libby. Let us know if you need more help.

Are you missing Storytimes at the Library.   While no digital display can replace the incomparable Wendy, Jennifer and LJ, in the meantime please visit the Library’s Youth Services page.  We have provided links to Tumblebooks, a read-aloud platform for all ages and to Scholastic’s Learn at Home packages from grades pre-K to high school. We’ve also created a link to the Big List of Children’s Authors.  Everyone from James Dean (Pete the Cat), Oprah Winfrey reads Thelma Godin’s Hula Hoopin’ Queen, Grace Lin shows how to draw Chinese Dragons,  Mo Willems shares PIggie & Elephant activities.   There are also many links to authors of young adult books.  Vermont’s Children’s Literacy Foundation has also provided an extensive collection of Literacy Resources for Learning.   You can’t check out a book from the library right now, but do check out all of these great resources.  We’ll continue to add materials for entertainment, education and enrichment!

Are you or someone in the family home from school and needing help with various subjects or certification programs?   LearningExpress is a highly acclaimed eLearning platform that provides support to students and professionals for academic skill-building, tutorials, occupational exploration, standardized test prep, career certification test prep and more.  Patrons will create their own account where they can keep track of modules explored.  Brush up on your math, science or writing skills,  study for the GED, SAT, ACT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, a variety of Allied Health Certifications, Firefighting, Plumbing and more.   Explore the possibilities at Learning Express.

Stay Home – Stay Safe – Read (or listen)!