Upcoming Events

Details listed below for these library-sponsored activities & events:

Patron Appreciation Day

Village of Oak Lawn Centennial

Children's Program Spotlight

Adult Program Spotlight

To find out what's going on at the library see also:

Adult Programs | Children's Calendar | Community Health Screenings | Computer Classes

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Patron Appreciation Day

Sunday, September 14, 2008 -- Starting at 1 p.m.
Live Music | Giveaways | Prizes | Refreshments

On the first day the library reopens for Sunday hours, 1-5 p.m., we would like to thank Oak Lawn taxpayers for their continued support.

• As you walk in, receive a free gift!
• Lively tropical music will be performed by a steel drummer and tasty treats will be available in the library’s lobby from 1-3 p.m.
• Families may attend a free program from 3-4 p.m. Holography Artist Jim MacShane will demonstrate the relationship between art and science through the use of lasers in light sculpture, light shows and holography. Be prepared to be amazed!
• Oak Lawn residents can enter a one-day raffle to win a $10 gift card for a local restaurant.
• Stop by the Friends of the Oak Lawn Library table and draw to win a “like new” book.
• Visit the Local History Room, second floor, to see the Village of Oak Lawn Centennial 'teaser' exhibit and the plans that are underway.

Village of Oak Lawn Centennial

The library's Local History Unit is now in the process of gathering material and information for a special exhibit and public programming that will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Village of Oak Lawn in early 2009.

Residents with photographs, clothing or other physical items related to the Village’s police, fire, government, schools, churches and civic organizations, or any material that touches upon the history of Oak Lawn, are urged to consider a donation or loan of their items to the Local History Unit for use in the exhibit.

The library has an Oak Lawn Local History Club that meets once a month to discuss and raise community awareness of the Village’s rich history. The club next meets on Saturday, August 16 at 9 a.m. in the library’s Local History Room. New members are always welcome.

For more information about the library’s centennial celebration and other local history topics, you may view a pamphlet here or contact Local History Coordinator Kevin Korst by phone, 708-422-4990, or email, kkorst@oaklawnlibrary.org.

Children's Program Spotlight

These free activities are offered for children ages six months through grade 10, their parents and care givers. Registration for many of these programs begins on Saturday, August 30. Sign up in person at the Youth Services Desk. You must present the child’s library card to enroll. Preference is given to Oak Lawn residents and students.

• Free Child ID Program -- Saturday, September 13 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. -- The Oak Lawn Police Department will create free Child ID reports that include a color photo, fingerprints and information that could help authorities locate children in the event of an emergency. No advance registration, just stop in and make an appointment that day.
  
• Read to Rover (Age 7 & up) -- Saturdays, September 13 and/or October 11 -- 15 minute period during 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. -- Young readers (and special needs children) are invited to sign up for a 15-minute time slot to read aloud to a registered therapy dog who will calmly sit and listen. The dogs are provided by the Rainbow Animal Assisted Therapy of Chicago. Advance registration required. Participants must sign up for each month separately.
• Laser Arts Productions (All ages) -- Sunday, September 14 from 3-4 p.m. -- Holography Artist Jim MacShane will demonstrate the relationship between art and science through the use of lasers in light sculpture, light shows and holography. Be prepared to be amazed!
• Science Club (Grades 3-5) -- Tuesdays, September 16 and/or October 21 from 4-5 p.m. -- Explore interesting and fun aspects of science. In September, the focus is “Technology” and in October it will be “Things That Go.” Advance registration required. Participants must sign up for each month separately.
• Guys Read (Grades 3-5) -- Tuesdays, September 23 and October 28 from 4-5 p.m. -- All guys read, but they don’t always get to choose what they want. This monthly after-school program will help guys explore their reading options through fun and challenging games and activities. Snacks are provided. Advance registration required.
• Teen Game Night (Grades 6-10) -- Wednesdays, September 24 and October 22 at 7-8:30 p.m. -- Teens will compete and play various games, including a Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) competition. Snacks are provided. No advance registration.
• Drop-In Stories (3-8 years & their families) -- Saturday, October 4 from 11-11:30 a.m. -- On the first Saturday of each month, the library offers a half-hour program of stories, songs, action rhymes and more for busy, on-the-go families. No advance registration. Parents are welcome to attend. Library closed on September 6.
• Mother & Daughter Book Club (Grades 3-5) -- Saturday, October 18 from 11 a.m. to noon -- Girls and their moms, grandmas, aunts, etc. are invited to explore a great story and join in a lively discussion with related activities and snacks. Advance registration required.
  

Be sure to check our Youth Services Current Program Guide for additional activities and events.

Adult Program Spotlight

With so little offered for free these days, we want you to know about these unique educational and entertainment opportunities provided at no charge to you. Lower level meeting room.

• Open Mic Readings -- Wednesday, September 17 at 7 p.m. -- Local writers are invited to share original poetry and short stories. Five minute time limit. Light refreshments.
• Social Security Online Services -- Saturday, September 20 from 2-3 p.m. -- Advance phone or in-person registration requested -- A representative from the U.S. Social Security Administration will present a live demonstration of the online services and personal account information available at their web site (www.socialsecurity.gov). To receive a special packet of handouts, advance registration is requested. However, non-registered patrons are welcome to attend and listen in.
• Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn -- Thursday, October 2 at 7 p.m. -- John Vittallo, NASA Jet Propulsion Lab Solar System Ambassador, will share incredible images and breakthrough scientific findings from this seven-year mission to Saturn and its many moons in a visually spectacular multi-media presentation. Learn about the objectives of the mission, spacecraft instrumentation and the mysteries of this ringed planet 930 million miles from the Sun.
• Novelist’s Boot Camp -- Saturday, October 25 from 1-4 p.m. -- Advance phone or in-person registration requested -- Former Army Infantry Airborne Ranger, West Point Assistant Professor and award-winning novelist Todd A. Stone will conduct a three-hour workshop providing a book-writing battle plan, strategy, tactics and a ‘kick-in-the-pants’ for both aspiring and experienced authors. To receive a special packet of handouts, advance registration is requested. However, non-registered patrons are welcome to attend and listen in.
• Movie Showing: Rear Window (1954) -- Tuesday, October 28 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. -- In this Alfred Hitchcock classic, Jimmy Stewart stars as a photojournalist confined to a wheelchair with a broken leg. While laid up, he becomes convinced that a murder has been committed by a neighbor across the courtyard and sends his girlfriend Lisa, played by Grace Kelly, to investigate.
  

Be sure to check our Adult Program Listing for additional activities and events.