Whimsical Wonders: Ella Cademartori’s Enchanting Tales and Grant Updates

Greetings from the Stephenson Memorial Library. Winter has arrived, bringing along more exciting updates. We’ve received 91 of the 97 CLiF grant books we ordered, and the final six should hopefully come soon. We are thrilled for you to explore the new books and VOX books made possible by this grant.

On Nov. 22, we welcomed the author and storyteller Simon Brooks at GES for our CLiF kickoff celebration. He was an absolute joy to host, leaving teachers and students in stitches with his retellings of beloved fairy tales such as “Stone Soup,” “The Crab and the Jaguar,” and an “Anansi” tale. Brooks generously contributed three of his CDs and a copy of his book “Under the Oaken Bough” to our library for those interested in hearing more of his captivating stories.

Every First Friend student received two books as part of the grant. In the spring, the older students will receive books at the culmination event of the grant. In November, we were thrilled to learn that the Keith M. Sullivan Foundation in Greenfield granted us an award we applied for in October. This grant will fund the Safe@Home program for 10 students in fourth to sixth grade, two new Vox books, headphones for our Tonie Box, new Tonies, and an additional dyslexic font book. We are extremely grateful for this grant and the chance to assist kids in developing safe habits, reading independence, and helping struggling readers discover the joy of reading!

This fall, we’ve had considerable success with our programs, with 21 participants joining to decorate cupcakes with Ryan Richard in October, 20 individuals attending our Craft Supply Swap in November, 20 attendees for the Greenfield Conservation Commission’s presentation on black bears in New Hampshire, and 20 kids who shopped at our Children’s Holiday Store. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who contributed to the success of these programs!

In the approaching year, Francestown and Greenfield are uniting to establish the Crotched Mountain Consortium. A library consortium will allow patrons from the participating libraries to access both collections using their library card. More details will be available soon. We are looking to implement several new programs during the winter; if any of these programs catch your interest, please let me know:

■ A Show and Tell Story Time: Are you a farmer? Engineer? Baker? Come share a story about your profession and display tools of your trade.

■ Adult Read Aloud and Discussion Club: Have you ever experienced difficulty maintaining conversation in a group? Do you aspire to enhance your public speaking skills? Try this new club to find out. At each gathering, we’ll read a short story, poem, essay, or article that piqued our interest and discuss it. Light refreshments will be provided.

■ Penpal Program: Both kids and adults are encouraged to participate in some enjoyable, traditional letter-writing fun. All correspondence will use the library as a return address to maintain patron privacy.

Would you like to influence the library’s future? The Board of Trustees and I have been diligently engaged in strategic planning and are seeking feedback on the following inquiries:

■ What is the library excelling at? In what areas can the library improve?

■ In five years, the Library is flourishing within the community. What does a flourishing library look like to you?

If you wish to provide answers to the questions above, please consult with me, the trustees, or the trustee alternates. The staff of Stephenson Memorial Library hopes everyone experiences a safe and relaxing beginning to 2025. We look forward to welcoming everyone in the new year.

We have a plethora of exciting programming lined up for this winter, and we hope you’ll join us! Murder Mystery will take place on Jan. 11 from 5 to 8 p.m. Pop-up Play and Create with the River Center is set for Jan. 21 from 1 to 2 p.m. GES First Grade and Meals on Wheels will be happening on Jan. 23 from noon to 1 p.m.

Animal Carving Class (ages 18 and older) is scheduled for Jan. 25 from 4 to 6 p.m. Silent Book Club at Mi Corazon will occur on Jan. 28 from 6 to 8 p.m., and Contra Dance with Dudley Laufman at GES is slated for Jan. 30 at 7 p.m.

For details regarding Greenfield’s Stephenson Memorial Library, visit greenfield-nh.gov/stephenson-memorial-library.

Ella Cademartori is the director of the Stephenson Memorial Library in Greenfield.