Get ready for a new program at the main library that will encourage kids and adults to learn about planting vegetables and flowers! Staff member Madeleine has set up a “Seed Library” using an old card catalogue cabinet. It will house a variety of seeds donated by seed companies and LSU Ag. Through our partnership with LSU Ag and Evangeline Soil and Water Conservation over the next few months we will offer educational workshops! We are offering this program to anyone with a valid library card.

And, we will also participate in the “Love The Boot” litter clean-up event. With a valid library care, we will have Litter Kits available for checkout, free donuts for those who begin and complete the Trash Pick-Up Challenge and prizes for the most trash picked up by the end of the day! The kit includes a trash grabber, two trash bags, a bright work vest and and lovely tote bag to carry it all in. These kits are available for a one-week check out . This is a great way to participate in this statewide effort to Keep Louisiana Beautiful!

Also, the following documentaries will be shown – “The Business of Trash” – a CNBC documentary @ 11:30 am and Gardening 101: How to Start a Vegetable Garden@ 1:30 pm

Monday, April 15th at the main library, we have two great programs back-to-back! Come for the “Chair Exercise” program at 9:30 am (bring your water bottles) and stay for another “Adults Only Bingo” at 10:30 am in the multipurpose room. We have some great prizes too so spread the word!  We will offer “Chair Exercise” again on Wednesday, April 17^th @ 10:30 am. Then on Tuesday, we will host our usual “Let’s Talk French” @ 1 pm and “Coffee Talk” @ 2 pm. These programs are FREE and available to the public.

On Saturday, April 20^th, the Evangeline Genealogical & Historical Society will meet at 9:30 am in the multipurpose room. Their guest speaker is Alex Lee. Alex has been an active researcher and genealogist for over fifteen years. His extensive knowledge of early Louisiana families and history have allowed him to identify hundreds of formerly enclaved on Louisiana’s plantations and to trace their lineage to modern-day descendants. New members are always welcome.

Early notice: On Monday, April 22^nd, we will celebrate Earth Day, Love the Boot Week and also kick off our new “Seed Library” program! We will have Litter Kits available for checkout, free donuts for those who complete the Trash Pick-Up Challenge and FREE seed packs for those with library cards. We will have prizes for participants. We are offering this program to anyone with a valid library card. Keep an eye out for details coming soon!

EARLY NOTICE: (1) Our Spring Library Fest is slated for Saturday, May 4, 2024. Please The deadline for submitting vendor participation forms for all types of participants is April 19, 2024. Contact Keishia Ford or any employee of the library for more information. This is a FREE family fun event and is a way for the Library to say Thank You to its patrons and to show support for local cooks, artists, performers, authors and civic organizations! Look at the new folks who just signed up: AUTHORS: Amanda Bordelon, Julia Davis, Darisa L.G. Ricks, Debby Lawson, Patricia Williams, Kristal Ben, Pam Ardoin Funderburk, Jasonnaye Wilson, and Rhonda Brasseaux. VENDORS: Kelsie Menard, Jacie Guillory,  Belinda Williams, Victoria Leblanc, Patricia Harris, Kourtney Harris, Health Coach Neil Ortego, Jalaina Freeman & Adrienne Griffith, Earth Angels Honey, Betsy Pitrie, Barbara Batiste, and Lori Butler. COMMUNITY: Krewe de Evangeline Coalition, Louisiana Department of Health, St. Landry / Evangeline United Way and Library “Show Me The Money” – Unclaimed Money Table, Children’s Tent with lots of crafts and The Seed Library table.  COOKS/FOOD: Mamou Community Solutions Resources, Myra Fontenot’s Food Truck, Natasha Edwards, T’Nay – Ha U Want It.  We will also have our usual Book Sale and this year we have lots of Audio Book sets to sell! KVPI will be with us for a live show from 10 am – noon.

Visit the Facebook page of your favorite library branch to see information about programs unique to them. Also, visit our website www.evangelinelibrary.org for updates. You can always call the main library @ 337-363-1369 or send an email to [email protected] for more information and never forget that libraries do change lives…. even in the cloud! Suzy Lemoine.

This essential collection, in the tradition of Dudley Randall’s The Black Poets and E. Ethelbert Miller’s In Search of Color Everywhere, contains poems exploring joy, love, origin, race, resistance, and praise. Jacqueline A.Trimble likens “Black woman joy” to indigo, tassels, foxes, and peacock plumes. Tyree Daye, Nate Marshall, and Elizabeth Acevedo reflect on the meaning of “home” through food, from Cuban rice and beans to fried chicken gizzards. Clint Smith and Cameron Awkward-Rich enfold us in their intimate musings on love and devotion. From a “jewel in the hand” (Patricia Spears Jones) to “butter melting in small pools” (Elizabeth Alexander), This Is the Honey drips with poignant and delightful imagery, music, and raised fists. Fresh, memorable, and deeply moving, this definitive collection a must-have for any lover of language and a gift for our time.

And this from a local Louisiana poet…

Megan’s Guitar and Other Poems from Acadie is both poetic inquiry and poetic exploration. The collection is arranged as a diptych: the first and third sections are a mirroring of the ideas of settlement, displacement, migration, and identity, but mostly they are inquiries into the movements and habitations of the migratory heart, “Acadie tropicale” largely references life in modern southern Acadia while “Acadie du nord” is an attempt to tell the story of the eighteenth-century northern Acadian experience through predominantly historical figures who survived displacement and attempts at erasure. The hinge section suggests that song is both catalyst and clarifier, a requisite antidote to the calcifying lines every history has a tendency to draw around itself if not examined and re-examined in every way imaginable.

“Libraries give us a green light to something truly special: a place to connect with others, learn new skills, and focus on what matters most. Find your crew at your library’s programs, events and book clubs. Enjoy the scenic route through the stacks to find your new favorite story. Or take a virtual detour and see all the resources your library offers online. No matter where you find yourself on the roadmap through life’s journey—preparing for a new career, launching a business, or raising a family, learning skills, or sharing a cup of coffee —your library provides an inclusive and supportive community where everyone belongs! Get ready to explore, become inspired, and connect with your library this National Library Week. Libraries are there for you, all the way to the finish line.” From: https://ilovelibraries.org/national-library-week/

SEVERE WEATHER PROTOCOL:

WE FOLLOW THE PUBLIC SCHOOL DECISIONS CONCERNING CLOSURES DURING SEVERE WEATHER WARNINGS. WHEN THE SCHOOLS CLOSE, WE CLOSE OUR MAIN LIBRARY AND ALL BRANCHES TO INSURE THE SAFETY OF OUR STAFF AND THE TRAVELING PUBLIC.