Paul Szmal: Good morning, it's 8.40, it's FLX Morning, the Monday edition, and we're Zooming in with Brandon Roselle at the Geneva Public Library with their brand new, easy-to-remember website gplny.org. Good morning.
Brandi Rozelle: Good morning.
Paul Szmal: So, before we talk about the programs coming up, do you track the number of patrons who come in, or volumes checked out, or things like that, in terms of how much traffic you have in a year?
Brandi Rozelle: We do on a monthly basis. So at the end of every month, we take down our statistics, and that piles up for an entire year. So what's a typical month for the library?
Paul Szmal: Oh, that's a good question. Sorry, I took you on the spot. I know, I don't have that statistic in front of me, but we've actually increased in the past couple of years from what we used to be.
Brandi Rozelle: Wow, good. Yeah, so, yeah, we're almost to about, probably about 10,000 a month.
Paul Szmal: Wow, that's terrific. So let's talk about it. I'm always amazed at the variety of programs, just all across the spectrum of different kinds of programs. We're going to talk about some of the things largely for kids, starting with the First Friday program, Friday, January 3rd at 5.30. It's bedtime yoga. I never would have thought of this. Vanessa from Harness Yoga will show the kids some basic yoga, and it's a good way to prepare to go to bed at night.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, so sometimes we start off with a little story, and then they get to learn some different yoga poses, and we tend to have a little craft at the end for the kids to do as well, but it's a great way for them to unwind after, you know, two weeks of holidays.
Paul Szmal: Yeah. This is a great way for them to unwind and learn some relaxation techniques. And it's really easy to sign up for these programs. If you go on the website and go on the event calendar, each one now has a code, so you just put your phone there and click, and you're all signed up.
Martin Luther King Day program, Monday, January 20th, Celebrating the Dream, King Junior Day Family Crafts and Fun. What are you going to be doing that day?
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, so this is one that's in collaboration with Geneva 2030, Hobart & William Smith, and the Dove Block. So we're going to have the kids make a dream catcher, and then we'll have a few other little craft activities for them to do as well. And then the library will actually be open just from 1-3 that day for this special event.
Paul Szmal: And that is in cooperation with Geneva 2030, terrific organization, and with Hobart & William Smith and the Dove Block, thank you. You have coming up on January 16th, Thursday the 16th, a Teen and Tween Cooking Class from 330 to 445. What's on the menu?
Brandi Rozelle: Yes, so Simply Homemade comes and they usually make some kind of dish that the kids can recreate at home in an easy way, whether it's just using a oven top or your toaster or your microwave. So they teach them some really easy skills that also have very healthy menu items in them.
Paul Szmal: So do you have cooking gear right there? Do they cook there or do they just get the recipe to take home?
Brandi Rozelle: So they actually make it here. So they learn how to make it and then they have a recipe that they get to take home. So if they want to make it at home, they can.
Paul Szmal: So is that your stuff at the library or does Simply Homemade bring that in?
Brandi Rozelle: Simply Homemade brings it in for us.
Paul Szmal: Wow, that's perfect. And they're also, that one is for teens and tweens. And then on Monday, January 27th, you have another cooking class. This one's for grades 2 through 5.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, so the kids get to learn too. Sometimes they do the same recipe, depending on if it's an easy one. And sometimes they do something a little bit easier for younger kids to make. So they'll do that as well. They like to make it so that the kids learn a skill. One time they got to make their own tomato sauce by crushing up tomatoes.
Paul Szmal: Oh, neat. Yes. The other one that I really like is they teach them how to make something in a toaster because a toaster is easy for kids to use. So it's an easy, healthy choice for them to make on their own.
You have family movie nights, and the next one of those is Friday, January 17th. I don't know this one. The Wild Robot. Tell us about that movie.
Brandi Rozelle: Yes. So The Wild Robot is actually also a book. And a lot of kids have been reading it in school. And it just came out in the theaters, and now it's out on DVD. So we're going to watch The Wild Robot. So if they've read it at school, they can come to the library and they can actually watch the movie as well.
Paul Szmal: One of the things that I really like, we're talking with Brandy Burzell from the Geneva Public Library, is you do a lot of cultural programming and education about other cultures. Here's one on Wednesday, January 29th, celebrating the Lunar New Year with stories, crafts, and snacks.
Brandi Rozelle: Yes. So this year it's the Year of the Snake. So we're going to read some books on Lunar New Year. We're going to do a whole bunch of different crafts around the Year of the Snake. And then we'll have some little snacks that the kids can make by themselves.
Paul Szmal: That's really neat. Yeah. So we're really excited about this one. Now you've got a pair of self-defense classes, and again, that's another neat thing is you offer these things in different age groups. On Saturday, January 11th, it's a free kid self-defense course, and then a little more advanced one on the 21st for teens.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah. So our Saturday one for the kids that are ages six to 11, they are taught by Master Micah from the Taekwondo Studio here in Geneva. And the kids really love it. It's a great way to at least get them those beginner skills in self-defense. Also helps them with some concentration and some relaxation as well. And then our new one for self-defense for teens, the Geneva Police Department is actually going to be teaching this one for our teen classes.
Paul Szmal: Oh, that's neat. So go to our website, gplny.org. Even for the free ones, you're asked to sign up just so for supply purposes and number of seats, depending on the size of the room. Those are some of the special programs in January. And then the ongoing ones, you do Messy Story Hour. Are you going to offer an adult version of this any time?
Brandi Rozelle: Not yet. It would be nice to have a day for adults to come in and play the messy stuff. I know I enjoy it.
Paul Szmal: That's Mondays and Wednesdays from 10, or at 10 a.m. It's for a birthday preschool. And Dungeons and Dragons is still huge, and we're talking about not online, not computer, but the dice and paper original game.
Brandi Rozelle: Yes. So we do have, we have our teen Dungeons and Dragons that is every other Monday at 3.30 for grades eight through 12. And they have a great group of kids there. So if you have a teen who wants to join, they can feel free to just come in and join with us. And then we also do a Dungeons and Dragons one shot that is for grades eight to adults. So adults can join in as well. This one has been very popular. It's every Saturday at 10. It's a three hour session. And right now we have so many people joining that we have broken it off into two separate groups.
Paul Szmal: Wow, terrific. So yeah, it's very popular. They're a great group of people that come in. So if anybody wants to come meet new people and have fun with Dungeons and Dragons, they can come join us on Saturdays.
For the little kids, on Tuesdays at 10 a.m. you do sensory shenanigans, where they just learn about touch and taste and smell and all the senses.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, we play with different things that get their senses going. It's also a great way for them to socialize with other kids in the area. So they get to play, they get to learn different senses and smells. It's a lot of fun. We have great groups of parents and kids that come in every Tuesday.
Paul Szmal: Here's a neat program for middle school kids. Thursdays at 3 for 6 to 8, you do middle school breakaways. So they can come right from school and have a little party and hang out with kids their age.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, we do lots of different activities. Sometimes the kids kind of help us decide what activities they want to do on a weekly basis. Their favorite one is bingo. So we tend to do bingo on a regular basis. They like the video games, they love to craft. So yeah, they have a good time.
Paul Szmal: Two more here before we run out of time. This is one of my favorites for girls 3 to 6, is Girls Who Code. So some of these girls that have been this for a while must have some pretty good coding skills by now.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, some of them have been with us for a few years now. So yeah, they really enjoy it. They learn different coding techniques. And we have a few different programs that we use to do Girls Who Code.
Paul Szmal: And the other one is the homeschool meetup group on Fridays at 1 for grades K through 5. I love how you support these homeschool families because that's a hard job to do. And I know they're always looking for resources and people who can help.
Brandi Rozelle: Yeah, so we meet up every Friday at 1. And we do different types of STEAM activities. And then we also have been collaborating with the 4-H group in Ontario County. And they come in once a month and do an activity with the homeschool group as well.
Paul Szmal: So that's the highlight. We never have time to do every single one. So go to the website, gplny.org. Right up top you see adult programs, youth programs, services. If you want to reserve one of the rooms to have a little meeting or put your own thing together, you can do that as well. Of course, check out the collection through the OWL system. You can get your hands on anything real quick. Brandy, thanks. And thanks everybody who's been talking to us. We're happy to bring the news of the library home to people each month.
Brandi Rozelle: Yes, thank you very much.
