Calendar

LinkedIn TearDown with Don Wittman Russell Library presents weekly opportunities to network with other job seekers, as well as receive the advice of professionals. The focus will be on the job market and provide updated industry information during this uncertain time of COVID19. The Job and Career Group hosts virtual workshops and a weekly networking session via WebEX. You will need to download WebEx to attend. Registration is required. Questions? Christy Billings cbillings@russelllibrary.org This group is possible from a City of Middletown Block Grant, Liberty Bank Foundation Grant, and The Family of Thomas J. Regan.

Reboot Eco and Russell Library: Swap Your Stuff: Holiday Style. Have you acquired too much holiday décor over the years, or do you need something new to make your home feel special this year? Join Reboot Eco and Russell Library for Swap Your Stuff: Holiday Style. Downsize the décor you no longer need, and look for something new for the holidays. We ask that all items donated be clean, intact, and in good working order. Items can be dropped off at Russell Library during open hours, from Friday, November 25th-Friday, December 2nd. Drop off items at the library for an Early Bird ticket: Friday, November 25th-Friday, December 2nd. Open Hours. 9AM-8PM, Monday-Thursday, Friday, and Saturday 9AM-5PM, Sunday 1PM-5PM. Those who donate will receive a ticket to enter the Swap Studio during the “Early Bird” time of 10AM-11AM on Saturday, December 3rd at Reboot Eco, 131 River Rd, Middletown, CT 06457 The swap will be open to all on Saturday after 11AM, even if you did not bring anything to swap. Items that can be donated include working lights, ornaments, figurines, wrapping paper, tree trimming items, garlands, wreaths, and more. Gift your holiday décor and find something new to you! Questions? Christy Billings ~ Info Department ~ cbillings@russelllibrary.org

Join Russell Library and our friends from QPlus as we make a stress ball while we talk about what causes us stress and how to manage it, including sharing various stress relief/management techniques, identifying ‘warning signs’ for when you need to take a self care break, and how to decide what type of self care is necessary (sure, blast your favorite song, but also have some water). This session will take place at Russell Library in the Teen Area (located on the first floor). For young people age 13 - 20. Registration is required and will close 24 hours before the event starts. 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 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) Q Plus started as a grassroots, community based, youth led, volunteer run organization with the goal of filling gaps we saw in queer youth programming across Connecticut. We are a group of teens, young adults, and older adult supporters working to create more youth accessible spaces, uplift youth voices, and empower young people. Our overall goal is to create space for queer youth to be authentically and entirely themselves. Every event and program we put on is born of a need identified by queer young people, rather than suggested by adults. Our plan is to continue changing and evolving as the needs of queer youth continue to change and evolve. For more information on QPlus, please check out their website: https://www.qplusct.org/

American Job Center Table Darlena Young, from the American Job Center (AJC) Ambassador in the South-Central Region of CT with Singquel Short, Communication Specialist will be available to speak with patrons, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7th, 11AM-1PM. From Darlena: "It’s our mission to serve our communities by helping people live their best lives and would love to come and share information about our job opportunities, programs, and training services available at the American Job Centers. Please feel free to visit our website to learn more at www.workforcealliance.biz. I am available to answer any questions that you may have." dyoung@workforcealliance.biz, (203) 624-1493 ext. 243 (office) Questions? Christy Billings cbillings@russelllibrary.org

Our friends from Pawsitive Therapy will be at the library Thursday evening from 6-7 pm in the teen space. Stop by to enjoy a quiet study session and spend some calming time with therapy dogs. This program is intended for young people ages 10 (remember: a caregiver should remind in the building for young people 11 years old and under. Thank you!) No registration required, this is a drop in program. 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.

Friends of Russell Library Book Sale Dates December 9-11, 2022 in the Hubbard Room Hours Friday, December 9th, 9am-5pm Saturday, December 10th, 9am- 5pm Sunday, December 11th, 1pm-5pm

Join us for an online chat with bestselling author Fredrik Backman as we discuss his outstanding body of work, including his breathtaking new novel, The Winners, the third installment of the Beartown series. Click here to register.

Russell Library is open Sundays 1pm-15pm from October 2, 2022 - March 26, 2023.

Come play with us in the Hubbard Room while we are under construction! 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 1-5, 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/

Join us for a fun family storytime in the Hubbard Room where we will read books and share rhymes and songs for kids birth to 6 years old and their families. Registration is required (and will close 24 hours before the event starts). Space is limited, so please let us know how many people will be in your party (all young people any caregivers = the number of people attending.) We know family schedules can change from week to week, so please register for each session you plan to attend! For kids age 0-6 (Babies - first grade), siblings and families welcome! 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/

You’re invited to explore early-American history during an online afternoon conversation with Pulitzer Prize winning historian Nicole Eustace as she discusses her 2022 award winning book Covered With Night: A Story of Murder and Indigenous Justice in Early America. On the eve of a major treaty conference between Iroquois leaders and European colonists in the distant summer of 1722, two white fur traders attacked an Indigenous hunter and left him for dead near Conestoga, Pennsylvania. In Covered with Night, Dr. Eustace reconstructs the crime and its aftermath, bringing us into the overlapping worlds of white colonists and Indigenous peoples in this formative period. As she shows, the murder of the Indigenous man set the entire mid-Atlantic on edge, with many believing war was imminent. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER.

Our friends from Pawsitive Therapy will be at the library Thursday evening from 6-7 pm in the teen space. Stop by to enjoy a quiet study session and spend some calming time with therapy dogs. This program is intended for young people ages 10 (remember: a caregiver should remind in the building for young people 11 years old and under. Thank you!) No registration required, this is a drop in program. 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.

All aboard for The Polar Express! Our conductor, Phil Pessina, will enchant children with a live reading of the holiday classic, The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg. What would happen if a mysterious train stopped in front of your house on Christmas Eve? If you still believe, it would take you on a journey to the North Pole where you’d meet Santa and his hundreds of elves getting ready for the most magical night of the year. But before Santa begins delivering gifts to children around the world, one child, aboard the train, will receive the first gift. What would you choose? This is a family program for all ages. We encourage kids to wear their pajamas! Tickets are limited, so please let us know how many people will be in your party (all young people any caregivers = the number of people attending)! 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. 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/

Russell Library is open Sundays 1pm-15pm from October 2, 2022 - March 26, 2023.

Come play with us in the Hubbard Room while we are under construction! 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 1-5, 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/

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

American Job Center Table Darlena Young, from the American Job Center (AJC) Ambassador in the South-Central Region of CT with Singquel Short, Communication Specialist will be available to speak with patrons, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 21st, 11AM-1PM. From Darlena: "It’s our mission to serve our communities by helping people live their best lives and would love to come and share information about our job opportunities, programs, and training services available at the American Job Centers. Please feel free to visit our website to learn more at www.workforcealliance.biz. I am available to answer any questions that you may have." dyoung@workforcealliance.biz, (203) 624-1493 ext. 243 (office) Questions? Christy Billings cbillings@russelllibrary.org

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.

The library will close at 1pm for the Christmas holiday.

The library is closed for Christmas.

The library is closed for the Christmas holiday.

Join us for a fun family storytime in the Hubbard Room where we will read books and share rhymes and songs for kids birth to 6 years old and their families. Registration is required (and will close 24 hours before the event starts). Space is limited, so please let us know how many people will be in your party (all young people any caregivers = the number of people attending.) We know family schedules can change from week to week, so please register for each session you plan to attend! For kids age 0-6 (Babies - first grade), siblings and families welcome! 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 in for an afternoon of board gaming at the library! Hang out, learn to play new games, or enjoy a game you may already know, no matter your ability level! (Pizza and snacks provided.) This program is intended for young people ages 12-18. (If you need a ride to or from the library from somewhere in Middletown to attend this program, we can help! Please register below and then fill out the form linked here: https://forms.gle/JVXUwfhKdqXB6Knp8 ) Registration is required and will close 24 hours before the start of the program. 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. Funding for this program was provided through the City of Middletown's Educational Incentives Grant.

Come in for an afternoon of board gaming at the library! Hang out, learn to play new games, or enjoy a game you may already know, no matter your ability level! (Pizza and snacks provided.) This program is intended for young people ages 12-18. (If you need a ride to or from the library from somewhere in Middletown to attend this program, we can help! Please register below and then fill out the form linked here: https://forms.gle/JVXUwfhKdqXB6Knp8 ) Registration is required and will close 24 hours before the start of the program. 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. Funding for this program was provided through the City of Middletown's Educational Incentives Grant.

Join us for afternoon of sing-along fun as we watch the fantastical musical about a Colombian teenage girl who faces the frustration of being the only member of her family without magical powers. (2021. Rated PG). This program is for all ages! Space is limited, so please let us know how many people will be in your party (all young people any caregivers = the number of people attending)! 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/ (Call us if you can't guess the film from this description!)