It's National Library Week, a great time to celebrate, explore, and rediscover all the many ways libraries bring people together, spark imagination, and support lifelong learning. What draws people to the library? Everything! From books and digital resources to job assistance and creative programming, libraries are essential to thriving communities.
Libraries serve as hubs for learning, creativity, and connection, helping people of all ages explore new ideas and opportunities. National Library Week events at the Rock Island Library include:
- Spring Vegetable Garden series on growing warm season vegetables with the Illinois Extension Service. Monday, April 7 at 11 am, Watts-Midtown Branch.
- An evening with Dave Markward, author of “From Dubuque to Selma and Beyond,” about his personal journey to understand racism in America. Markward is the former superintendent of the Rock Island-Milan School District 41, and a longtime advocate for social justice. Monday, April 7 at 6 pm, Rock Island Library Watts-Midtown Branch, 2715 30th Street.
- Preview and discussion of the new Independent Lens documentary, Free for All, The Public Library. The Indie Lens Pop Up event presents the story of one of America's most beloved, yet often endangered, public institutions, from the quiet revolutionaries who began them to the tales from libraries today. Tuesday, April 8, 2 pm, Rock Island Downtown Library, 401 19th Street.
- Programs for ages birth to five to encourage early learning and eventual kindergarten readiness. Those weekly programs include 10:30 am Tuesday and Friday storytimes at the Watts-Midtown Branch, and a special “Petite Picassos” messy art program, on Wednesday, April 9 at 11 am, Rock Island Library Southwest Branch, 9010 Ridgewood Road.
- Twice-weekly afterschool events for elementary-age students to provide positive after-school activities: 3:30 pm to 4:30 pm, Tuesday at the Watts-Midtown Branch and Thursday at the Southwest Branch.
- Coffee & Conversation event on April 10 to help provide social connections for seniors and retirees. 10 am to noon, Rock Island Southwest Branch.
- Another installment of Illinois Libraries Present online conversations, this one with outdoor educator Alexis Nikole Nelson. 7 pm online, Thursday, April 10. Nelson uses her platforms, TikTok account alexisnikole and Instagram page blackforager, to celebrate edible plants hiding in plain sight, and uncover African American and Indigenous food traditions. Illinois Libraries Present is a collaboration among member libraries to provide high quality content.
On Wednesday, April 9, the Rock Island Public Library celebrates National Outreach Day by making two special bookmobile stops in Rock Island parks. Look for the Library2Go bookmobile at Longview Park from 3:30 to 4:00 pm, and at Hodge Park, from 4:15 pm to 4:45 pm.
This National Library Week, rediscover the library and see how it draws us together as a community.
First celebrated in 1958, National Library Week is a national observance sponsored by the American Library Association and libraries of all types across the country each April. Highlighted national celebrations include National Right to Read Day on Monday, National Library Worker Day on Tuesday, National Outreach Day on Wednesday, and Take Action for Libraries Day on Thursday.