Posted in Events and Presentations, Teen Time

Wild & Wooly Prohibition Events

The Volstead Act, which made the manufacture and sale of alcoholic beverages illegal, turns 100 this January. To commemorate this anniversary, Meinders Library will be hosting several Prohibition-themed events.

On Monday January 14th, we’ll explore Minnesota’s own connection to Prohibition with living history presenter Arn Kind at Meinders Library.

Arn Kind

Join us at the Pipestone Country Club on Saturday January 19th and put your new Prohibition knowledge to the test with Wild & Wooly, a large scale escape room speakeasy.

This event is open to anyone over the age of 21. Assemble your teams, find your best flapper and gangster apparel, and call Meinders Library to reserve your spot.

wild & wooly

We will also host a teen version of the escape room at the library on Saturday January 12th. Open to teens in grades 7-12.

all that jazz

 

 

Posted in Events and Presentations, Story Time, Teen Time

Frankenfun at Meinders Library

Join us in celebrating 200 years of Frankenstein on Thursday, August 16.

The Bakken Museum is presenting a fun-filled day of activities and education in honor of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Events geared toward each age group will take place all day long. Find the one that suits your needs and bring a friend to this celebration.

Frankenstein

  • 10:30-11:30am    Activity Tables for ages 4+
  • 2:30-3:00pm        Finding Frankenstein for Families ages 6+
  • 3:00-4:00pm        Activity Tables for ages 6+
  • 6:30pm                 Finding Frankenstein ages tween through adult
  • 6:30-7:30pm        Frogs, Volts & Vinegar ages 9+ (registration required)

This programming is brought to you from State Farm’s Neighborhood Assist Grant.

neighborhood assist logo

Volunteers provided by Pipestone Area Friends of the Library.

Posted in STEAM Room, Teen Time, Writer's Group

Fall Events Set

Overall, our programming goals at the library are simple: to bring community members together to learn, share and enjoy common experiences.

 

This fall, our focus is on you. Through a variety of speakers and events, we aim to show that everyone’s story is unique, important and worthy of being noted. This doesn’t mean everyone needs to become an author. Rather, it means everyone needs to become the author of their own lives.

That’s the beauty of living. Every moment provides opportunity. And every opportunity provides a moment for growth.

Here’s how you can grow with us this fall:

  • Join the newly formed writer’s group on the 2nd Monday at 6:30pm.
  • Attend Doug Wolter’s author event this Saturday at 2:00pm.
  • Stop by on October 14 for our Patron Appreciation Open House between 2:00 and 4:00pm.
  • Read Andy Steiner’s book, How to Survive: the Extraordinary Resilience of Ordinary People, and discuss it with others at our Community Read book discussion at 6:00pm on October 30.
  • Sign up for Clue-less: an Escape Room Adventure and figure out who dunnit, with what and where. Pre-registration is required and will open on October 2.
  • Learn a new perspective by visiting with journalist and publisher, Andy Wahlberg. He owns Think Piece Publishing–Steiner’s publishing company.
  • Craft with us on the second Saturday of the month from 10:00am-1:00pm. Our first craft club will be held on October 14. Bring your crafting supplies and/or passions to share with other crafty people. We will be using our STEAM Room.
  • Brush up on your work force writing skills on the 3rd Wednesday of the month. From 4:00pm to 6:00pm, this Adult Writing Lab time is the perfect place to hone your resume and cover letter skills. Registration is not required.
  • Encourage your teen to join Teen Time on the 2nd Saturday of each month from 7:00-9:00pm for some supervised fun. (Think Escape Room, Movie Nights, Indoor Golf, etc… and snacks. Always the snacks.)

Still convinced I’m talking about writing your life story? This fall, I might be, as November is National Novel Writing Month. Meinders Library has officially declared itself a Come Write In! location for area writers. Throughout the month of November, we will host several writing sessions, get-togethers, and other crazy writing stuff with the sole purpose of helping you pen the book you always dreamed of writing.

So, if that includes you, please ask Jody all about the ins and outs of NaNoWriMo or check out their website at nanowrimo.org and start outlining your book now.

 

Posted in Events and Presentations, News, STEAM Room, Teen Time

Mugged No More

Don’t Forget: Vote #fullSTEAMahead for $25k to help make more Meinders Memories.

Our weekend of escaping is officially over.

Thanks to all of our wonderful new friends and escapees. We had a blast watching you crack the codes and solve the mystery of I.M. deRyter’s writing journey. Mugged had a 55% solve rate! Go, teams.

Also, a huge thanks goes to GrandStay Hotel and Suites, Pipestone, for all the wonderful props to make Meinders Inn and Suites look and feel authentic. Your little touches in setting the stage made our escape room super awesome.

 

Our Escapees beating the 70 minute mark for the win in Mugged: an Escape Room Adventure

  1. Super Locky! 28 minutes
  2. Team Cheeta: 35 minutes
  3. Dynamic Duo: 54 minutes
  4. Sparkle Squad: 64 minutes
  5. Where’s Walrus? 68 minutes
Posted in Books-n-Brew Book Club, Events and Presentations, Teen Time

They’ve Escaped!

Nothing in the world is more fun than hanging with teens.

Locking them in a room could be the highlight of my kid-centric career.

They've Escaped
The second group of kids to test run our newest endeavor at Meinders Library.

For one hour (and eight minutes), they cracked codes, pieced together puzzles and solved the mystery of Mugged: an Escape Room Adventure.

Our first crew was a bit younger and consisted of four 13-year-olds. While the escape room wasn’t complete at that time, their feedback was invaluable in showing us what needed tweaked.

The last test crew will enter Meinders Inn and Suites on Saturday. Books-n-Brew book club members will have one last crack at solving the mystery before we go live to the public on Friday, August 18.

Thanks so much to all our willing victims!

*No children were harmed in the making of this blog post, though Emily and I have sore abs from laughing at all the wonderful one-liners they provided for our entertainment.

“That’s a lot of locks.”

“This is really confusing. I like it.”

“Don’t panic. That’s helpful.”

“Oh, God, there’s more?”