Friday Grab Bag, January 12, 2024

The Friday Grab Bag is a weekly series that highlights fun, unique, and interesting happenings in Colorado libraries, and includes news from Colorado State Library.

Let’s open the Friday Grab Bag!

Telling Stories

Ignacio Public Library is on an ongoing quest for stories from Ignacio area residents for their Voices of Ignacio oral history project. Stories can be recorded at the library or at home. Their January newsletter contains a prompt to inspire story ideas: What was your first experience at Bear Dance? Contact the library to arrange a recording session.

The Cañon City Journaling Club meets the 3rd Tuesday of each month from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm at Cañon City Public Library. Bring your own materials and spend time journaling and sharing ideas with like-minded people. Their next meeting is January 16.

Summit County Library is hosting two Short Story Workshops for teens in preparation for this year’s writing contest. Join them on January 16 or February 13 at South Branch for an hour of workshopping with staff and peers.

Denver Public Library invites you to two upcoming book events. Battle of the Books with Author Jim Mustich is on January 19, 6:00 pm, and will be hosted on Zoom (please register for a link to join). The author talk will precede the Battle of the Books, with the audience vote determining the champion. The next event is Author Event with Tracey Baptiste on January 23, 5:00 pm, at Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library. Baptiste will present the paperback release of African Icons: Ten People Who Shaped History.

Arts & Crafts

Bud Werner Memorial Library is hosting January Jazz at the Library with The Cat Pack, January 15 at 6:30 pm. The evening will also include casual conversation about the history of the tunes they will perform.

High Plains Library District’s Vintage Movie Club revisits stars and movies from the 1950s through the 90s. Join their next meeting on January 20, 6:00 pm, at Kersey Library.

South Routt Library is holding A Fiber Fiesta on January 13 at 1:00 pm. All ages and abilities are welcome to spend the afternoon knitting, crocheting, needle felting, weaving, and spinning on wheels and drop spindles.

Always Learning

Durango Public Library invites you to Improve Your Handwriting in 5 Easy Steps. During this hands-on class on January 23, participants will learn ways to improve their handwriting and the benefits of writing by hand. All supplies will be provided.

Garfield County Libraries announces their Winter Reading Kickoff on January 15, 6:00 pm at New Castle Branch Library. The event includes cocoa and a history presentation by Neva Hiscock, relative of New Castle early pioneer Jasper Ward.

Is getting organized one of your New Year’s resolutions? Join Jefferson County Public Library’s Tech Tips for Staying Organized in a Busy World to learn how to use digital alarms, electronic calendars, notes, and bookmark managers. Register to attend on January 12 at Belmar Library.

Do you get a lot of suspicious phone calls, texts, or emails? Mesa County Libraries wants to help you Learn How to Recognize a Scam and How to Prevent being Scammed. Join them for the class on January 16, 10:00 am, at Clifton Branch Library.

Lyons Community Library will soon have trail cams available for checkout. Learn how to use them to capture footage of wildlife around your home or property at Trail Cam 101, a class on January 16 at 6:30 pm. Registration is required.

What’s New at Colorado State Library

Library Research Service

• Tracking Changes Through Time

Cataloging Fundamentals

• Organizing Your Cataloging Toolkit

Learning Opportunities

• New Mental Health & Wellness Discussion Group for Library Professionals!
  • Registration required by January 26 for this 6-month series
• Denver’s Plaza Conversation Maps: Transforming English Language Learning with Empowering Discussions
  • January 18, 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
  • Registration required
• Effective Library Leadership for Reducing and Responding to Staff Stress and Trauma (Colorado Only)
  • January 23 & 30, 12:00 – 1:30 pm
  • Registration required
• Adventure Begins at the Library Summer 2024 Workshops
  • January 24 & 31, 12:30 pm – 2:30 pm
  • Registration required
• CSL in Session: Sticky Situations: Patron privacy, and customer service
  • January 25, 12:00 – 1:00 pm
  • No registration needed
• Virtual Partner Forum: My Colorado Journey from Colorado Workforce Development Council
  • February 13, 11:00 – 11:30 am
  • Registration required
• De-escalation Skills Workshop (Colorado staff only)
  • February 22, 1:00 – 3:00 pm
  • Registration required
• Find even more learning opportunities by browsing the Libraries Learn Calendar from Colorado State Library or the Continuing Education Calendar from Maine State Library.

Library Jobline

Are you considering a job change this year? Check out Library Jobline for hot new library employment opportunities, like this selection from around Colorado.

• Youth & Family Services Librarian – Douglas County Libraries
• Library Associate Childrens – High Plains Library District
• Librarian Teen Focus – High Plains Library District
• Librarian Adult Services – High Plains Library District
• Library Associate Sub – High Plains Library District
• Innovation Technician Woodshop – High Plains Library District
• Innovation Technician Makerspace (Erie) – High Plains Library District
• Innovation Technician Makerspace (LINC) – High Plains Library District
• Access Services Specialist – CU Anschutz, Strauss Health Sciences Library
• Library Clerk, Aurora Public Library

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This post is part of the Spotlight on Sharing initiative, which aims to increase the visibility of Colorado library programs and resource sharing. Do you have a story from your library to share? Email Amy Hitchner, ahitchner@coloradovirtuallibrary.org.

All images are from the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection, a service of Colorado State Library.