The Milton Public Library offers fun and informative Zoom programs in April

The Milton Public Library has a lot of fun and informative Zoom programs to offer adults during the month of April!  On Wednesday, 4/7 at 7:00 p.m. there will be a talk called “Healthy Growing with Brookwood Community Farm.”   Hannah Helfner, Assistant Farm Manager for Brookwood, will tell us all about this wonderful resource located right in our backyard, and will share tips for growing things at home or in a community garden.  Advance registration is required at www.miltonlibrary.org   This event is part of Milton Moves; a year-long initiative of the MPL for all ages focused on fitness, wellness, and healthy eating. 

On Saturday, 4/10 at 10:00 a.m. the Virtual Library Knitting Group will meet online and it offers people an opportunity to see each other, chat, bring a project to work on, and have friends on hand to ask questions when they need help.  If you would like to receive the connection link, Email [email protected] and she will make sure you get on the organizer’s list.  (You do not have to sign up at our website for this program.)  And if you would like to learn more about Spring planting, garden designer and photographer Joanne Pearson will give a one-hour talk called “The Gorgeous Gardens of New England” on Tuesday, 4/13 at 7:00 p.m., which allows the viewer to sit back and enjoy a visual tour of some of the most gorgeous gardens in our area.  This lively presentation features a colorful slideshow of some of Joanne’s favorite public and private New England gardens, and you will learn valuable tips on garden design and techniques for photographing flowers and plants. Advance registration is required and opens on 3/23 at our website. 

Meet our new Writer-in-Residence virtually on Wednesday, 4/14, at 7:00 p.m. What is a Writer-in-Residence?  The Milton Public Library invites the community to a virtual session about our new Herb Voigt Writer-in-Residence Program, along with an introduction to its inaugural selection, local author Joan F. Smith.  Library Director Will Adamczyk will introduce the program, its goals for the Milton community, and describe the selection process as directed by the Library Board of Trustees. Joan will read an excerpt from her forthcoming debut novel, The Half–Orphan’s Handbook, and the session will end with an open Q&A. This program will be offered on Zoom, advance sign-up is required, and Zoom connection information will be shared with registrants on the day of the program. Please go to www.miltonlibrary.org and “events” for details and to register. 

We encourage you to join library staff in person on Thursdays in April from 12:00 -1:00 p.m. for a lunchtime walk through the neighborhood as part of Milton Moves!  During meetings of the MPL Walking Club, participants will be discussing recent reads, the great outdoors, and whatever else may come to our minds.  Here are the dates: 4/15, 4/22 and 4/29 and for this ongoing program we will meet in the library parking lot at 12 sharp. 

Please wear a mask and wear appropriate footwear, and bring an adventurous spirit!  Registration for each session is required in advance at our website and is limited.  Meetings for the club will be weather permitting.  Next there will be an educational and informative program on Tuesday, 4/22 at 7:00 p.m. called “Basic Genealogy: Learn How To Research Your Family Tree” with Michael Brophy. This expert researcher returns to give a presentation to help people work on their family history research.  The talk will cover the basics of starting out in the search for one’s ancestry, and topics to be covered are first why do we study our ancestry, and what makes it so compelling?  The basic methodology will be explained along with the first steps to begin research and a few tips towards organizing a large genealogical project will be given.  DNA testing and the most important Internet websites will be discussed, and record sources such as vital records, the Census, passenger lists, naturalizations and cemeteries will be explored.  Advance registration is required and opens on 4/1.

Armchair travel – everyone’s favorite – continues on Tuesday, 4/27 at 7:00 p.m. with world traveller and photographer Barry Pell, who will present a program called “Namibia – Africa’s Hidden Gem.”  Wedged between the Kalahari Desert and the South Atlantic Ocean, Namibia is a little-known African country containing the oldest rust-red desert in the world, landscapes teaming with wildlife, and a multitude of ethnic groups, including the traditional Bushmen (or San) people.  In this talk we will travel across the length of this large, but low populated, former German colony.  Based on the lecturer’s travels and his digital photography, this event will relay the country’s history and culture, and present an overview of its dramatic canyons, flaming deserts, and the bush and grasslands that sustain a habitat for hundreds of bird and animals species.  Come join us and travel to Africa from your easy chair via Zoom!  Advance registration is required and opens on 4/6. 

And finally on Wednesday, 4/28 at 7:00 p.m. , Library Director Will Adamczyk will host a virtual get-together called “Read Any Good Books Lately?”  He wants to know what you’re reading that you loved, what titles you hated, and everything in between in this fun Zoom discussion! This is a one-hour sharing event to bring people together to just talk books.  You can learn about his favorite author and title picks, and make new friends in the process. Hopefully participation in this program will help everyone find good reads for Spring. Please join us!.

These programs are kindly supported by the Friends of the Milton Public Library and are free and open to the public. 

For more information, Email Jean Hlady, Head of Adult Services/Reference, at [email protected] and to register for a program, please go to this link:   https://tinyurl.com/ydhjo2ky