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Lots happening at RH Public Library
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A new year is upon us and like everyone else, this is a good time to look back on the previous year and take a closer look at what we achieved. 
I would like to take the opportunity to share with the Richmond Hill community a little bit about what’s been going on at your public library.
Over the past year we have shared the pain with other state agencies because of decreased revenues. To us, that means having no state money available for purchasing new books, DVDs and so forth.
That being said, lets look to the positive side of things.
Over the past year we have been able to add to our programming by creating the American Girl Book Club, which has been a huge success for girls of all ages. The program explores the historical time frames of each American Girl Doll.
We also added two adult book clubs that offer a wonderful opportunity to explore a variety of different books and lead to interesting discussions.
Our in-house Common Threads knit and crochet group took matters to new level and added a quilting group that also meets weekly. Both groups work diligently in supporting programs like Relay for Life, Project Linus, Warm Up America and many more.
Last summer we were able to offer the Summer Reading Program, which due to generous funding from our Friends of the Library, included a variety of different performers as well as prizes for children that kept track of their reading over the summer. We would also like to say “thank you” to First Baptist Church of Richmond Hill for letting us use their space for the performances.
Nero the Therapy Dog has been coming to the library every Thursday and enjoys listening to the children reading stories aloud. This helps them with fluency as well as confidence in their reading skills.
Thanks to many volunteers we were able to paint our conference rooms and do some much-needed cleaning. 
Toward the end of the year, our Teen Advisory Board (TAB) decided to apply for a program grant to add to what we are able to offer.
This resulted in 2011 starting with a big bang – Coastal Electric Cooperative Foundation awarded our TAB group a $1,000 grant that will purchase a projector and a movie license. Movie events, such as Teen Night, themed marathons, Disney adventures and more are coming to the library. Our TAB group is working on the details, and we will announce events as details become available. “Thank you” to Coastal Electric Cooperative Foundation for supporting our teens.
What else is coming this year?
• Storytime for ages 3-5 is back and will happen every Wednesday at 1:30 p.m.
• You can now check out e-books via Georgia Download Destination from your public library.
• Our Friends of the Library Yard/Book Sale is happening again this spring. Please look out for information on the date and the details.
• Exciting things are going to happen this summer when we explore the “One World Many Stories” Summer Reading Program.
We will do our best to make this coming year a great success and let the Richmond Hill Public Library be a vital part in our community.
If you would like to support the Richmond Hill Public Library, here are some ways to do so:
• Donations of audiobooks and  DVDs  (no R-rated movies please).
• Become a member of the Friends of the Library.
• Donations of yarns or fabric for Common Threads.
For questions or more information, contact us at 756-3580 or check the website at www.strl.info.

George is the assistant manager of Youth Programs at the Richmond Hill Public Library.

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