Calendar

Russell Library Technology Fair Tuesday, October 4 11-1; 3-5 Wednesday, October 5 11-1; 3-5 Thursday, October 6 11-1; 3-5 Celebrate Digital Inclusion Week (October 3-October 7) with Russell Library! The library offers technology to help you get connected, preserve family history, and share your story. Learn about our circulating hotspots, digital microfilm reader, in-house Chromebook use, Hoopla, Libby, and more! Our amazing library staff will demonstrate how to use the library’s digitization station, do online genealogy research, start a podcast, or use online resources for job searches and homework help. The library is holding sessions on October 4, 5, and 6 from 11am-1pm and 3-5 pm. No sign up is required. Just stop by the library! Participants can enter to win a door prize, including a Chromebook, AirPods, or a Kindle.

Russell Library Technology Fair Tuesday, October 4 11-1; 3-5 Wednesday, October 5 11-1; 3-5 Thursday, October 6 11-1; 3-5 Celebrate Digital Inclusion Week (October 3-October 7) with Russell Library! The library offers technology to help you get connected, preserve family history, and share your story. Learn about our circulating hotspots, digital microfilm reader, in-house Chromebook use, Hoopla, Libby, and more! Our amazing library staff will demonstrate how to use the library’s digitization station, do online genealogy research, start a podcast, or use online resources for job searches and homework help. The library is holding sessions on October 4, 5, and 6 from 11am-1pm and 3-5 pm. No sign up is required. Just stop by the library! Participants can enter to win a door prize, including a Chromebook, AirPods, or a Kindle.

Russell Library Technology Fair Tuesday, October 4 11-1; 3-5 Wednesday, October 5 11-1; 3-5 Thursday, October 6 11-1; 3-5 Celebrate Digital Inclusion Week (October 3-October 7) with Russell Library! The library offers technology to help you get connected, preserve family history, and share your story. Learn about our circulating hotspots, digital microfilm reader, in-house Chromebook use, Hoopla, Libby, and more! Our amazing library staff will demonstrate how to use the library’s digitization station, do online genealogy research, start a podcast, or use online resources for job searches and homework help. The library is holding sessions on October 4, 5, and 6 from 11am-1pm and 3-5 pm. No sign up is required. Just stop by the library! Participants can enter to win a door prize, including a Chromebook, AirPods, or a Kindle.

Join Russell Library and Nakai Northup courtesy of the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center for a presentation on Pequot Traditional and Natural Knowledge, Culture, Hunting, Fishing and Ways of Life in New England, Contemporary Indigenous Environmental Activism, and Tribal Community. Nakai Northup, a member of both the Narragansett and Mashantucket Pequot tribes, is a museum educator at the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and has more than ten years of experience teaching eastern woodland tribal history. Northup has spent his entire life in his Native communities and is passionate about preserving tribal histories and traditions for future generations. (bio source) This event will take place at Crystal Lake in McCutcheon Park. In the event of inclement weather we will move this program indoors to the Hubbard Room at Russell Library (123 Broad Street) This program is aimed at ages 8 . (Remember, a caregiver should remain in the building for young people 11 years old and under. Thank you!) Registration is required (and will close 24 hours before the event begins). Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety we request that if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. Directions: Here is a link to the location of the City Park in google maps: https://www.google.com/maps/place/Crystal Lake Park, Middletown, CT 06457/@41.5145974,-72.6395091,15z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0xe18adeb53786e13e!8m2!3d41.5145974!4d-72.6395091 From Randolph Road (Route 155), turn south onto Millbrook Road. Follow Millbrook Road for 1.5 miles and take a right onto Livingston Road. After 0.2 miles, take the first right off Livingston Road into McCutcheon Park! https://www.middletownct.gov/DocumentCenter/View/2583/Middletown-Trail-Guide-PDF (Pg 31-33) Funding for this program was supplied by the Rockfall Foundation! To find out more about the work that the Rockfall Foundation does promoting and supporting environmental education and conservation in the Lower Connecticut River Valley check out their website: https://www.rockfallfoundation.org/

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

10 week Beginner's English conversation group. A free and safe space to practive your English conversation skills. Register seperately for each session. Coffee Provided. For questions please email: Wafaa Razeq at wrazeq@russelllibrary.org.

Join us for an outdoor storytime under the trees on Russell Library's South side lawn! We will read books and share rhymes and songs for kids birth to 6 years old and their families. Participants are welcome to bring chairs and blankets! This fall family storytime will be repeated twice a week: Tuesday at the Library and Friday at the Farmers Market! (Same books, same songs, on two different days so more people can enjoy!) Registration is required and will close 24 hours before the event starts. For kids age 0-6 (Babies - first grade), siblings and families welcome! In the event of inclement weather we will move this program indoors to the Activity Room! Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Russell Library! Find out more about how you can support them here: russelllibrary.org/friends-of-the-library/

The Dream Big! Competition is an exciting program offered by Connecticut’s Office of the Treasurer. The competition gives Connecticut students the opportunity to win money towards their future education. If your child is in K-12 grade, bring them to the library during this work session to meet with librarians and work on their contest entry. We will have everything you need to submit your child's original piece of work or essay to the contest! This year's Grand Prize winners will recieve $25,000 and many other Connecticut students will win prizes ranging from $500 to $7500! For more specific information visit https://www.fidelity.com/about-chet/dream-big-competition Registration is required (and will close 24 hours before the event begins). Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety we request that if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home.

Heat Smart Info Session: Energy Efficiency in Your Home Want to reduce your energy costs and improve the comfort of your home? Learn how in-person at Russell Library! Come have fun at the Energize ConnecticutSM Energy in Action mobile learning exhibit and then join representatives from the City of Middletown, Eversource, and Abode Energy Management to learn what you can do to save energy and make your home more comfortable in year-round. Energy Efficiency in Your Home 5:00 – 6:30 p.m. Visit the interactive Energize CT Energy in Action exhibit outside Russell Library on the corner of Broad and Court Street (for children & adults). 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. Russell Library Hubbard Room, Learn about energy efficiency in your home, heat pumps, and Middletown’s Heat Smart Round 2 Initiative. Middletown Heat Smart Round 2 is a community-based outreach and education program that promotes energy efficiency and the adoption of clean heating and cooling technologies in Middletown. Through this program residents can learn about Energize Connecticut programs that provide incentives and rebates for home energy efficiency improvements. The program is available to homeowners and renters. Depending on income, some residents may be eligible for no-cost home energy evaluations, free or deeply discounted weatherization fixes for their home, and consultations with heat pump installers. By working together, we can save energy and money, and reduce our carbon footprint. Heat Smart Round 2 is good for people and good for the planet! For more information: https://heatsmartct.org/Middletown or contact the Middletown Recycling Coordinator, Learn more at this info session with Kim O’Rourke, Middletown Recycling Coordinator. at 860-638-4855 or kim.orourke@middletownct.gov. More info with Christy Billings cbillings@russelllibrary.org or with Kim O'Rourke at 860-638-4855 or kim.orourke@middletownct.gov

We invite you to join us for a talk with Dr. Aziz Gazipura, one of the world’s leading experts on social confidence as he discusses how to stop being too nice and worrying about what others might think. Are you too nice? Do you find it hard to be assertive and ask for what you want? Did you know millions of people struggle with being “too nice”? Being nice can make it hard to speak up, say “no,” or do something that might upset someone.This talk will teach participants that the opposite of nice is not mean but rather real. You’ll learn how to say “no” when you want and need to, confidently ask for what you want and eliminate feelings of guilt, anxiety, and worry about what others will think. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

Our October title is A History of the World in 6 Glasses Copies available at the Borrowing Desk. Join us IN PERSON at Stubborn Beauty Brewing at 180 Johnson St, Middletown, CT. Questions? E-mail Christy Billings at cbillings@russelllibrary.org Sponsored by the Friends of Russell Library. Place a hold for curbside pick-up or E-copies are available at www.russelllibrary.org. No purchase is required. More on author: Tom Standage is a British journalist, author, and editorial executive currently serving as the Deputy Editor of The Economist newspaper under He first joined the paper in 1998 as a science correspondent from where he was successively appointed technology editor, business editor, and finally, digital editor. Born and raised in England, Standage graduated from Oxford University. Standage is the author of six books including The Victorian Internet (1998), A History of the World in 6 Glasses (2005), and Writing on the Wall (2013).

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Come play with us in the Activity Room! Join us each week on Monday mornings to connect with other families and explore the power of play. A variety of toys will be out for free play including building materials, crafts, sensory toys and imaginative play. This is a great opportunity for children not yet in school or homeschool children to get together. The activities we have planned are aimed at children age 3-8, and a caregiver, but all ages are welcome! Registration is required (and will close when the event begins), please register for each week you plan to attend! Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety we request that if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. This program is made possible though the generosity of the Friends of the Russell Library! Find out more about how you can support them here: https://russelllibrary.org/friends-of-the-library/

Ever wondered what you would do if a zombie outbreak occurred in your community? Have you made a list of essential items you would pack? Have you thought about who you would want on your team? Come in and brainstorm with peers about this fascinating, chilling idea! Part discussion, part interactive snacking, Zombie Survival Guide will be fun, freaky, and delicious! Snacks will be provided! The activities we have planned are aimed at young people ages 10 . (Remember, a caregiver should remain in the building for young people 11 years old and under. Thank you!) Registration is required (and will close 24 hours before the event begins). Supplies and seats are limited, so please register each young person who will be participating! Is this session full? There will be two sessions of this program: 3:30-4:15 pm, is Session 1, sign up below! 4:30-5:15 pm, is Session 2, sign up here: https://russelllibrary.libcal.com/event/9659816 This event will take place at the gaming tables in the teen area on the left side of the library, accessible through the lobby. Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety we request that if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. This program is made possible though the generosity of the Friends of the Russell Library! Find out more about how you can support them here: https://russelllibrary.org/friends-of-the-library/

Join us for an outdoor storytime under the trees on Russell Library's South side lawn! We will read books and share rhymes and songs for kids birth to 6 years old and their families. Participants are welcome to bring chairs and blankets! This fall family storytime will be repeated twice a week: Tuesday at the Library and Friday at the Farmers Market! (Same books, same songs, on two different days so more people can enjoy!) Registration is required and will close 24 hours before the event starts. For kids age 0-6 (Babies - first grade), siblings and families welcome! In the event of inclement weather we will move this program indoors to the Activity Room! Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Russell Library! Find out more about how you can support them here: russelllibrary.org/friends-of-the-library/

https://middletownct.gov/129/Agendas-Minutes

Join us in conversation with popular CNN Anchor, Zain E. Asher, as she discusses her moving and inspiring memoir Where the Children Take Us. In Where the Children Take Us, Zain E. Asher, tells the story of her mother's harrowing fight to raise four children as a widowed immigrant in South London. There is tragedy in this tale, but it is not a tragedy. Drawing on tough-love parenting strategies, Obiajulu Ejiofor teaches her sons and daughters to overcome the daily pressures of poverty, crime and prejudice--and much more. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

Are you a teen with ideas about Russell Library? Are you interested in sharing your ideas with peers and a librarian? Join our new Teen Advisory Board (TAB) to chat and brainstorm programs, books, and ideas for how to make Russell Library a great space for teens! This event will take place at the gaming tables in the teen area on the left side of the library, accessible through the lobby. This program is intended for young people ages 12 - 18. Please register below! Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety we request that if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. Snacks will be provided and this opportunity can count towards NHS service hours, or other volunteer hours you may need.

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Join us for a captivating conversation with historical fiction writer Kate Quinn as she discusses her newest release, The Diamond Eye, and her other works. Quinn is the author of several New York Times bestsellers, including The Alice Network, The Huntress, and The Rose Code. Quinn’s latest book, The Diamond Eye, offers an unforgettable World War II tale of a quiet bookworm who becomes history’s deadliest female sniper. Based on a true story. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

What: Mystery! is a Russell Library-run book club for mystery lovers. The book group discusses a new mystery novel every month. When: The group meets on last Thursday of the month at 3pm (or, if Russell is closed at that time, the latest Thursday in the month that we’re open). Where: The group will meet in the Courtyard whenever weather allows. When weather does not allow, we will gather in Meeting Room 2. Books: Book copies are available at the Circulation desk. Click Here to See the List of Upcoming Mystery! Books. Registration: Not required - but if you register, you will be notified via email of any event changes. Questions: contact librarian/group leader Amy Slowik (860-782-4722).

Beware, you’re in for a scare! Join us for a night of ooey, gooey slime making in the Activity Room while we watch the Goosebumps movie inspired by R.L. Stine's classic creepy book series! (2015. Rated PG). This program is intended for children ages 8 - 12 and a caregiver, but older children are also welcome! Registration is required (and will close 24 hours before the event begins). Supplies are limited, so please register each child who will be making slime! Covid Library Event guidelines: to ensure everyone's safety if any member of your household is experiencing Covid symptoms or is quarantining, we ask that you and your family stay home. This event is sponsored by the Friends of the Russell Library! Find out more about how you can support them here: russelllibrary.org/friends-of-the-library/

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...

Come visit Russell Library after hours, in the dark. The heart of Russell Library dates back to 1834. We have grown to include five buildings and many secrets. Library staff will lead you through our buildings and our history for a thirty minute tour. You never know what might pop up in the stacks ...