To Your Health @ the Ridgefield Library

Free blood pressure screenings by the Ridgefield Visiting Nurse Association (RVNA) are the latest health and wellness service being offered by your Library.  From July 13^th through the end of December, RVNA volunteers and nurses will be on hand on the 2^nd Wednesday of each month from 11:00 AM to 12 noon.  Look for the sign-in table in our Main Lobby; no appointments are required, and the service is provided free of charge.

This new service is a perfect fit with several other initiatives currently underway, including our two-year partnership with Lyme Connection and Smart Revenue to build a model community response to end Lyme Disease. In addition to continued Lyme awareness and prevention education, our Summer Reading Program theme of exercising your mind and your body will include several meditation and healing workshops for adults and entertaining and educational encounters with bugs for children.

Also on tap is a series called Summer of Running, supported by our Noreen L. Papa: Mothers Live your Life Fund and featuring a wealth of activities related to running in Ridgefield and around the world. Watch also for announcement of a date for this year’s RVNA flu shot clinic at the Library in the fall.

First Stop on Vacation: The Library

Hitting the road for vacation?  Make the Ridgefield Library your first stop!

Check out the Library Store for roomy book bags to hold all your gear.  Pick up a blank journal to record your travel impressions.  And don’t forget a portable power bank for emergency re-charging of electronics.

Booklists, displays and staff recommendations will help you fill up that bag with great leisure reading choices.  If you are away for some time, many borrowed items can be renewed online (as long as there is no waiting list).  And don’t forget you can log your Summer Reading online while you are on the road, then come in to claim your rewards when you return.

If all the members of your traveling party can agree on a title, the Library has many wonderful audiobook recordings on CD and Playaway, as well as downloadable material available from hoopla and OverDrive which can be played through many car stereo systems.  If your companions have different tastes, you can enjoy individual choices of downloadable and streaming offerings such as eBooks, audiobooks, TV, movies and music – each on your own personal device. 

Just remember to pack your Ridgefield Library card and check in at ridgefieldlibrary.org!

What Are You a Fan Of?

It might not be quite grammatically correct, but this question nicely expresses the philosophy of our upcoming 2^nd annual celebration of popular culture, coming August 12^th and 13^th.  Last year we held a comic con, focused primarily on the Summer Reading Program superhero and comic book theme.  In 2016, we are expanding to something we are calling RidgeCon, which will encompass a wide range of fandoms, from youngsters obsessed with Disney princesses to older adults who can’t get enough of Downton Abbey.  And of course, there will still be plenty for followers of the big pop culture phenomena of the summer, from X-Men, Star Trek and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies to the release of the long-awaited new Harry Potter novel.

Activities during RidgeCon will include cosplay, face painting, drawing workshops, gaming, themed trivia and scavenger hunts, green screen photo ops, live entertainment, visits from costumed characters, choose-your-own-adventure scenarios and even a special Friday evening event for adult fans of All Things British.

Businesses and individuals interested in purchasing a vendor table, program book ad or event sponsorship should visit ridgefieldlibrary.org or call John Casiello at 203-438-2282 x11006

So, whatever you are a fan of, we hope to see you in August – in costume or not!

June Is Audiobook month @ the Library

On the go or on the track? In the car or in the kitchen?  These are just a few of the places you can enjoy listening to audiobooks any time.  And the Ridgefield Library can help you find a wealth of titles for all ages available at no cost to you.

Almost every kind of book is now available in audio format, from romance and science fiction to memoir and non-fiction. You can learn a language, catch up with a favorite series character, explore the ideas of great thinkers, sample a new author or re-visit a beloved classic.

Our newest offerings are downloadable audiobooks from OverDrive and Hoopla, two subscription services available to Ridgefield Library cardholders.  Learn how to access these from most computers or devices by asking at the Adult Services desk or visiting our Digital Library Page at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org.

Many listeners are partial to the convenient Playaway format, which incorporates a playback mechanism into the packaging of each title, so you don’t have to have yet another device.

And, of course, we also have the traditional book-on-CD format featuring adult, teen and children’s titles, along with read-along kits for youngsters including a book and an audio narration.

Happy listening!

Get Ready to Read this Summer

On your Mark, Get Set…Read! No matter what happens at the Summer Olympics in Brazil, we expect to set new records in reading right here in Ridgefield this summer, with the annual Summer Reading Program, which begins June 13th.  Pre-schoolers, elementary school students, teens and adults are all invited to take part and earn prizes, enjoy entertaining programs and more.  The formal program runs through July 30^th, but you can continue to log your reading and collect prizes until the day before school starts. Find out all the details at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org.

June 13^th is also the beginning of our summer schedule.  From then through Labor Day, the Library will be closed on Sundays; the rest of our schedule remains the same as always: Monday – Thursday, 10:00 AM – 8:00 PM, Friday 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM and Saturday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM.  And don’t forget to visit our “virtual library branch” online 24/7 at www.ridgefieldlibrary.org for eBooks, downloadable audiobooks, music and video, research databases and much more.

Other highlights of the summer include RidgeCon on August 12 and 13 (our 2^nd annual celebration of popular culture) and writing contests for children and adults (details to be announced shortly). See you at the Library!