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Join us for a monthly library chat. We'll talk about a variety of library related topics, from books to events, and plans for the future.
Hello a very happy new year to you. This is Caroline Barry and this is the Westmeath Libraries podcast. Well, it is 2024 and deep in the middle of winter. So hopefully you had a fabulous Christmas and you got lots of books and perhaps you want to join a book club. Well, Westmeath Libraries runs lots of book clubs. So for example Athlone Book Club is meeting on the 4th of January.
Now if you've missed that one, they meet every month at the beginning of every month. So just go to www.westmeathculture.ie and you'll find out what book clubs are running in your area. But Athlone run one, Moate library runs one. It's running a beginners one on the 25th of January from 11 a.m. until 12 p.m.
Mullingar run a Book club. It's starting on the 25th of January, 6:30 p.m. in the evening until 7:30 p.m. and it meets on the last Thursday of every month. And I know for example, here in Kilbeggan Library we have a science fiction book club and it meets when everybody has finished the book. So it's a much more moveable feast. So as part of the group, you keep an eye on when your next meeting is going to be.
And then for younger readers here in Kilbeggan Library, we run an under 12 book club and it's extremely popular. So at the moment we are meeting again on the 12th of January on a Friday afternoon. We meet every Friday afternoon. They all insist that they want to catch up with their books every Friday afternoon at 3:10 until around 4:00.
At the moment we're reading the series Murder Most Unladylike, but we also do a little bit of creative writing. We have discussions. We look at critiquing and how you critique a book, and it's very vibrant and great fun. So if anybody is under 12 between eight years and 12 years, and interested in joining that book club, come along to Kilbeggan library.
But for anybody out there who wants to get involved in a book club, go to our site www.westmeathculture.ie and you can find out where the nearest book club to you is.
Now for all of you that have toddlers or little babies. We also have book clubs for toddlers and storytimes and rhymes for babies as well.
So in Mullingar we have the baby book club and it's extremely popular. It's meeting on the fifth, 12th, the 19th and 26th of January. So it means once a week, every Friday morning from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.. It's fantastic, popular. It's a great way for children to interact. There's usually a little bit of singing. I know Catherine runs the baby book club there over in Mullingar.
She does a fabulous job and at one morning she registered there was 40 there was 40 people in the room. So there was lots of toddlers and lots of parents. And it's a great way for toddlers to interact, for parents to meet each other and to have a lovely way to spend a Friday morning. So you're welcome to go along.
There is no booking required for that. Every Friday morning from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Mullingar Library. Then over in Athlone on Saturday the 13th of January, there is a toddler storytime and rhyme. Now you do have to book in for this particular storytime and rhyme, and the tickets can be booked in the adults name, but so you can either go online to do that or you can.
Well, actually, it's best to just go online to do that and just say that although you have to book everything is free. So do make sure that you have a place. Go online and book for that Saturday morning in the toddler storytime and Rhyme. And keeping with the theme of toddlers and babies, there is a breastfeeding support group that meet in Mullingar library and they meet weekly.
So the next meeting is going to happen on the 12th of January, followed by another meeting on the 19th and on the 26th. And this support group is led by a public health nurse. Anybody can join. It starts at 11 a.m. in the morning. They meet for an hour until noon. So go online if you need any contact details or you want to have a chat with the nurse. There is a number online. So you go to www.westmeathculture.ie.
Now for older children who are very creative and who enjoy building things, our Lego blockbuster free play is extremely popular and Athlone Library are running a free play on Saturday, the 20th of January at 10.30 in the morning. It'll run for an hour.
All the children have to be accompanied by an adult. The sessions are free, but they are so popular, you do have to register. So go online, register your place and start creating.
For any of you that love to knit or crochet. There are groups that meet in different libraries throughout Westmeath, so for example, there's a Knitting and crochet social group that meet on the ninth and 23rd of January this month are 10:30 a.m. to 12 in Athlone. But there are also groups in Kilbeggan and here in Kilbeggan the Knitting and Crochet Group meets on a monday afternoon at two. There are other groups in Moate and in Castlepollard. So if you are a complete beginner or if you are a seasoned measure and crocheting, why not go online and see what library is running a group near?
You go on to www.westmeathculture.ie.
Now I know it's early in the year, it's January, but there are students out there that are thinking about the career prospects and about where they're going to go when they finish school. So for any of the parents out there of these children, there is a talk in Moate on the 24th given by Fiona Murphy, who's a guidance counselor with Longford Westmeath Educational and Training Board. And this talk is really to look at CAO alternatives. It's really for parents, it's focused on parents. Fiona will go through. She'll be hosting an information session on the alternatives to the CEO process. So college is not for everybody. So this information session is aimed at parents who want to look at what else a school leaver can do. And there's lots on offer, such as PLC places. There's traineeships, there's apprenticeships and even college in Europe. And at the end of Fiona Murphy's talk there will be room for questions on any questions and answer sessions, basically any queries that you will have, there's no booking required. So that's in Moate of the 24th of January at 2 p.m. to 3 p.m..
And if you miss Fiona Murphy's talk in Moate, she will be giving it again in Athlone on the 31st of January at 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. So you've two venues to go and explore that. So that's a fantastic opportunity just to get all the cards in a row to see what might be out there for your child.
Cara Cunningham is going to go to Moate Library on the 26th of January at 10:30 a.m. in the morning to 11:30 a.m.. And she's going to give a presentation on the practical ways to reduce the risk of stroke. So it's a very informative talk from the HSE community dietician Cara Cunningham, and she cover topics like what is a stroke, how to recognize it, cholesterol, she says you have to know your numbers, risk factors for strokes, diabetes and it's linked to strokes, blood pressure and food. Best weight for health and practical tips for a Cardioprotective Diet. So this is a free event and what a great way to start the year. Just looking at your own self care, the presentation is really on practical ways to reduce stroke, so there's no registration required. So just turn up. It's on the 26th of January, 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in Moate.
Looking after our mental health is extremely important. And in Athlone Library there is a group that is open to the public and anybody who's living with mental health challenges, they meet fortnightly from 1:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.. Their first meeting was on the 3rd of January. The next is the 17th and then after that the 31st. And the group is open to anybody who has an experience of living with mental health difficulties. The group provides a safe and confidential space for people to share their experiences. It's facilitated by a peer facilitator who has the expertize of living with mental health difficulties, as well as years of experience and recovery and supporting others on their journey. So it's very recovery focused, this group. The group provides a safe place where people can discuss some of the challenges they have faced on their recovery journey, and they can feel understood and supported by those who've had similar experiences. The group also share tips, knowledge and skills that have worked for them, so that's every fortnight in Athlone Library.
Now, also in Athlone Library, the Athlone Social Club run by the Alzheimer's Society meet and it meets in the Aidan Heavey Library from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.. And it's a support group that provides an opportunity to meet others in a similar situation and to share stories and experiences and to access information and practical advice in a relaxed understanding and supporting environment.
So if you're interested in improving your spoken Irish, theres a little Irish group that meet regularly every week in Kilbeggan Library, every Thursday at 430 until around 5:20, and all we're doing is sitting there chatting, as gaeilge and trying to improve our vocabulary. So we do bring along a notebook and we sometimes jot down the odd word. We're very, very fortunate with a fabulously fluent, retired Irish teacher called Sister Immaculata, who's absolutely brilliant. And she does give us fantastic vocab. So we write down our new words. And really it's just about sharing, speaking in Irish, trying to get into the habit of thinking in Irish. So it's all just about improving any little bit of Irish you have. So no matter how rusty you are, don't you worry, you're very welcome. As long as you want to just try and improve your Irish and it might be of interest to Leaving Cert students out there who might like to prepare for the oral. So you're all very welcome as well. It's fantastically relaxed. We usually discuss current affairs or something topical and we do have a great laugh. So for any of you interested in Irish, come along to Kilbeggan library from 430 to 530 every Thursday.
And then just to let you know that the our librarian here, Manus Lenihan, is going to give a local history talk on January the 25th. And in this talk he's going to look at Kilbeggan during the 1798 rebellion. So that's really fascinating about what has happened, what took place right outside just where the library is here on the square here in Kilbeggan and add that talk will take place at 3 to about three 3.45. So please do join us on the 25th of January.
And that's the round up of four events that are happening in Westmeath libraries during the month of January. We hope to have a very exciting year here in Westmeath libraries. We always have some event running in the local library, so if you need to know what's going on and when it's happening, just go online to www.westmeathculture.ie and we look forward to seeing you and to running events and to serving you the community over the year.
So have a Happy New Year and I'll talk to you in February.