Celebrating the start of summer, the Fernie Heritage Library hosted their annual Lemonade Social on June 24.
The event typically invites residents to set up homemade lemonade stands in the library, encouraging the public to come in and sample the various lemonades as a way of strengthening community spirit. Altering the event to accommodate for distancing regulations, the library handed out curbside at-home Lemonade Social kits on June 23 and 24. The starter packs included lemonade recipes, lemons, stir sticks, decorative banners and balloons, as well as an exclusive lemonade social button.
On June 24, participants were encouraged to build their own lemonade stands at home, then to tune into the live Zoom party held from 4 p.m. till 6 p.m. The online event included music by DJ Jay Ray, lemonade facts and quizzes given out by community programmer, Michelle Kucera-Boyd, and a lemonade toast. A total of 40 people joined the online festivities, making homemade lemonade and sharing photos of their summer celebration with library staff.
“We called it when life gives you lemons, make lemonade,” said Emma Dressler, library director. “The idea is that this year, though everything has changed, we can still build community and are still here for everyone.”
Trying to keep the community reading despite the library being closed, staff are also kicking off a number of socially distant community programming events.
In operation since May 2015, the book bike is a community outreach tool the library uses to bring books and exciting programs to the people of Fernie. In the past, it has been used to run storytime sessions in the park, as well as to deliver books to residents unable to visit the library. Recipients of such deliveries include residents of both Rocky Mountain Village and Tom Uphill Manor. The book bike has also been used to deliver free books to members of the community without library cards. Depending on resources and weather, library staff hope to bring the bike out to parks thoughout this summer, hosting socially distant story times.
To further encourage residents to continue using the library’s resources, they have also increased their WiFi reach outside of the library, and have started a new initiative where staff put together personalized bags of books for citizens looking to discover new material.
For updates and information about their community programs, visit the library’s website or Facebook page. Any questions or requests for assistance receiving resources can be emailed to the library at information@fernieheritagelibrary.com.
