Zoo to You comes to Market on Maple

Gibson Memorial Library’s plans for the annual Market on Maple has changed after a series of conversations with event administrators.

Originally, Director Danielle Dickinson Thaden hoped to offer space to Market on Maple vendors or offer “mini-maker” areas. In general, the hope was for the library to be considered part of uptown.

However, event administrators said the library was too far from the planned event route.

“They were willing to get us involved but they really wanted to keep the uptown area as compact as possible and didn’t want to extend all the way down maple to us, which is understandable,” Dickinson Thaden said.

Instead of being directly part of uptown, the library will be hosting the Blank Park Zoo’s Zoo to You program. This conservation education program brings a zoo educator and a number of small animals around Iowa to share the zoo’s mission with children. The library has hosted the Zoo to You program in previous summer reading programs.

“We’ll host that piece of Market on Maple here in the genealogy room for them,” Dickinson Thaden said. “Since it is in this space, we’ll have to limit the attendance of it.”

Market on Maple takes place at 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 11.

In other library news...

The supplies for the pavilion kit has been delivered after a series of delays. Dickinson Thaden said building should start today and take about four weeks.

“May will be a fabulous month,” she said about the completion of the project.

The library board selected Access for the library’s IT services. The vendor with the best bid, Access has been the IT service provider for the library in the past.

As library assistant Terry Madison’s notary certificate expires soon, assistant director Jordan Foote will be getting his notary certificate. This free service will be available more often since Foote is a full-time employee.