REXBURG — Each month, the Madison Library District holds numerous events for people of all ages at the library. With Halloween upcoming, the library is planning several Halloween-themed events.
According to Gina Miller, the Children and Teens Programming librarian for the Madison Library District, one of the most popular events of the month is the annual Library Teen Virtual Conference. This year’s theme is “Hauntings.”
“It is over Discord,” Miller said. “It has been going on since Sept. 4. It's based on Hauntings and on the (Discord) server, there are different activities for teens to do that they can go and participate in. Some of those things involve games, art activities, writing activities. We will have panels and chats with guest speakers.”
The conference is for teens ages 13 to 18 and goes through Oct. 27. Along with the virtual conference, the library is set to host other Halloween-themed events.
“Our teen crafts, which happen on the first and third Thursday of the month at 4:30,” Miller said, “we're doing ghoulish wooden block art, and we're also doing Halloween pranks, which are harmless, but they're fun.”
And, of course, what is Halloween without trick-or-treating?
“For the kids, we have trick-or-treating here at the library,” Miller said. “That happens right on Halloween. The fun part for the children is, as they dress up in their costumes, they get to go around to all the librarians. They even get to go into the restricted area of the library.”
The kids can come to the library during one of three time periods on Oct. 31: 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.
Adults are also welcome to join the Creative Writing Club. Miller says the Creative Writing Club will happen on Oct. 11 at 6 p.m. and Oct. 25 at 7 p.m. The club provides a venue to collaborate and brainstorm with other writers, as well as share pieces they have recently written.
When Miller was asked why people should come to the library, aside from all of the special events happening this month, Miller turned to the adventures one can have.
“They can come and do research,” Miller said. “They can also come and get away and take themselves to a great adventure, which can only be found in a book. it also makes your world bigger, especially as you learn how people feel from somebody that might live in Africa, and then you can understand how they feel, because a book is timeless.”
To find a full list of library events for the month of October, and for the rest of the year, visit www.madisonlib.org or, better yet, go check out the library for yourself.