Whitefish Community Library

The trombone and steel drums were favorites when North Valley Music School took over the library’s portico for an Instrument Petting Zoo on July 28th. Kids and adults tried stringed instruments, woodwinds, brass and percussion. And especially in the case of the trombone, it was a blast!

Summer Adventures slows down for a week (while we go to the State Library Convention) and heats up again the second week of August.

We host Flathead Valley Disc Golf in our Big Back Yard (Thursday, August 11 at 10:30 a.m.), and

The 5th Annual Edible Book Contest & Feast on Saturday, August 13th. Details here.

And take a look at the Whitefish Lake Institute Mural – the lake is full of Whitefish stickers! We’re getting pretty close to the 500 mark, which means that Whitefish Credit Union’s full donation of $500 will go to the Whitefish Lake Institute to help them do the research necessary to keep our water resources clean.

The Reading Education Assistance Dogs were featured guests at last Thursday’s Summer Adventures program. Susie Gonaver and her dog Ande presented with help from two other dogs, Shelby and Kate, and their R.E.A.D. partners. Ande meets a new friend: R.E.A.D. is an outreach of the Intermountain Therapy Animals organization based in Salt Lake City. Ande, Shelby and Kate are certified Therapy Dogs. They and their partners have undergone another layer of training certifying them to be powerful allies to children practicing reading skills. A family reads to Kate: Coming up at the library on Thursday, July 28, North Valley Music School brings their Instrument Petting Zoo. Join us at 10:30 a.m. for a look at strings, percussion, woodwind and brass instruments.

Our guest this week was Sue Couser, art instructor and board member for Stumptown Art Studio. She read “Larf” by Ashley Spires. Larf is a sasquatch who likes it when things go as planned. He’s never met someone like himself. Is he willing to risk uncertainty to meet another sasquatch? Read the book to find out! After that, we dressed Larf and Shurl, including feathers and jewels!

WHAT’S NEXT?

Coming up next week:

Monday, July 18th – pre-registration begins for the 5th Annual Edible Book Contest & Feast. Pre-register only if you are entering an edible book. Pre-registration ends on Friday, August 12.

Thursday, July 21, 10:30 a.m. Meet the Reading Education Assistance Dogs, known in the library as the “R.E.A.D. dogs.”

Thursday, July 21, 6:30 p.m. Author visit by James L. Thane. “From Glacier to Blue Deer to Poisonville and Lakeside: Crime Novels set in Montana.”

And here’s someone showing off Larf, complete with bling!

For more pictures visit Whitefish Community Library’s Facebook page.

See you at the library!

The day each summer that Montana Wild Wings brings their rehabilitated raptors is one of our favorites. The rain cleared off and we had a great (although wettish) morning for seeing magnificent raptors. Check out some pictures below, but first…our upcoming events:

Tuesday, July 12 at 10:30 a.m. – North Valley Music School holds a Music Together session for preschoolers and caregivers.

Tuesday, July 12 at 6:30 p.m. – A Visit with Annie Oakley in the Community Room. Suitable for ages 10+

Thursday, July 14 at 10:30 a.m. – create art with Sue Couser of Stumptown Art Studio in the library’s Community Room – elementary age and caregivers.

Now for some raptors:

ARTHUR THE FERRUGINOUS HAWK

A PYGMY OWL (smallest owl in Montana)

AMERICAN KESTREL

As the summer warms up, so do Summer Adventures at the Library. Our most recent guest was Luke Walrath of Alpine Theatre Project. He has lots of experience with kids having fun in the theatre. We warmed up our bodies! We warmed up our voices! And then we became part of a story called “The Apple-Pip Princess.” And we vowed to participate in more live theatre because it was so much fun!

Our first week of Summer Adventures is in the books (hee hee) and it was fun! We celebrated Make Music Day for the first time, with North Valley Music School. We had a preschool music class in the morning:

and in the afternoon, an Instrument Petting Zoo: Do not fret if you missed these. NVMS will repeat these programs later in the summer – check our calendar.

On Thursday, Whitefish Lake Institute (WLI) came and we were Bug Detectives! After an introduction to Benthic Macroinvertebrates (aquatic animals without backbones that are large enough to see without a microscope), we observed these fascinating creatures in fresh streamwater captured that morning by Cynthia and her assistant, Sam from WLI. These attendees were gently scooping mayflies, stoneflies and more into their trays for close observation.

COMING UP JUNE 27-30:

Alpine Theatre Project visits Thursday, June 30th at 10:30 a.m. Join us in the library’s Big Back Yard for acting warm-ups and antics hosted by ATP’s “Chief Evangelist” Luke Walrath. He keeps his plans a secret and we are never disappointed. These kids were following warm-up instructions at a previous year’s session.

AND DON’T FORGET – kids 18 and under can pick up a free lunch Mondays – Fridays from 11:20 to 11:40 a.m. in the library’s circular drive – absolutely free and no paperwork involved.

See you at the library!

The library’s StoryCircle takes a break for the summer and Summer Adventures takes over beginning Monday, June 20th with the start of the Summer Reading Challenge. Sixteen events are scheduled throughout the months of June – August. Recurring programs continue as well. Check our calendar for details. “Bug Detectives” search stream water for aquatic insects during the Whitefish Lake Institute’s program in 2021.