Bank's travel theme receives honors

During the month of May The Library partnered with the Mountain West Bank Ponderay Branch to encourage reading, travel, and traveling through reading. While our travel-themed display in the bank lobby is now gone, you will always have access to travel with your passport (AKA library card).

Mountain West Bank hosts branch contests several times throughout the year, giving each branch and other internal departments creative license to promote a set theme. I am proud to announce that our local Mountain West Bank Ponderay Branch won the May contest out of 11 other Northern Region branches.

While staff are given a very limited decorations budget, the stakes are high. Their winnings could mean group dinners, special events, Silverwood excursions, and other outings that give them a chance to celebrate their success and build camaraderie among team members. They are understandably motivated to get creative with construction paper.

“Here in Ponderay we’ve had things such as a disco party, a camping theme, a construction site, a pajama party, a Super Hero day, to name a few. We dress to the theme, and customers love to see what we’ve come up with,” Judy Baird, vice president and branch manager, said.

They often use those themes as a springboard to benefit our local community. In the past, they have raised funds for the off leash dog park, the Soup Kitchen in Ponderay, Food for Our Children, the waiting room at the hospital Emergency Room, and funds to help eliminate the student lunch debt at Lake Pend Oreille High School. These special promotions have also served to benefit other local not-for-profit organizations such as the Sand-point Area Seniors and the DayBreak Center.

“We’ve had a lot of fun with the theme and have been able to welcome new customers to Mountain West Bank and help them establish a free checking account with us. I also believe the partnership has been successful in spreading the word about what wonderful resources we have right here at The Library,” Judy said.

East Bonner County Library District schedule

- Saturday, June 1 — Sandpoint Friends of the Library book sale, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Support your library while supporting your book habit with deals on hard-cover classics, non-fiction, mysteries, and westerns. Shop our replenished fiction selection and pour through lots of music CDs too.

- Fridays — Explore virtual reality (reserve sessions), 10 a.m.-1 p.m.; reserve a 15-minute session in the VR room at ebonnerlibrary.org/Events on the event listing. Information: Contact the Tech Desk 208-263-6930, ext.1251.

- Saturdays — Bookmobile at Farmer’s Market, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at Farmin Park. Browse books, movies, and music. Sign up for a library card. Pick up holds (reserved materials) or return items. Chat with Michelle, our friendly bookmobile driver. Bookmobile will be at the Farmer’s Market every Saturday through the season. Information: 208-290-3622.

- Saturdays — Explore Virtual Reality (reserve sessions), 2-4 p.m. Reserve a 15-minute session in the new VR room at ebonnerlibrary.org/Events on the event listing. Information: Contact the Tech Desk 208-263-6930, ext.1251.

- Tuesdays — Mother Goose, 10 a.m. Stories and singing for babies and toddlers 0-3 years old and their caregivers with stay & play until 10:40 a.m. Information: 208-263-6930, ext. 1211; or email suzanne@ebonnerlibrary.org.

- Tuesdays — Preschool Story Time, 11 a.m., in the glass children’s area. Stories and crafts for kids and their caregivers. Information: 208-263-6930, ext. 1211; or suzanne@ebonnerlibrary.org.

- Tuesdays — Explore virtual reality (drop-in sessions), 3-6 p.m., drop-in 15-minute sessions. First come, first served. All ages welcome. Under 18 must accompany parent consent form. Youth under 10 years old must be accompanied by parent/legal guardian. Information: Contact the Tech Desk 208-263-6930, ext.1251.

- Tuesdays — MAGIC the Gathering. 3:30-5 PM in Community Room A. Role playing game where a battle between wizards employ spells, artifacts, and creatures depicted on individual Magic cards to defeat their opponents. Information: 208-263-6930, ext. 1245; or email kimber@ebonnerlibrary.org.

- Wednesday, June 5 — STEM at the Farmers Market. 3-5 p.m. at Farmin Park during the Wednesday market. Fun with science, technology, engineering, and math with a new theme each time. This week kids make seed tape — a plantable strip of seeds to take home for free. Information: 208-263-6930 ext. 1211.

- Wednesday, June 5 — Clark Fork 3D Printing Club. 4-5:30 p.m. at the Clark Fork branch library. Drop in to collaborate with others and learn more from staff about 3D printing and design. A few laptops will be provided or you may bring your own device. Open to all ages and skill levels. Information: 208-266-1321.

- Thursday, June 6 — Afterschool Gardening. 3:30 p.m. in the Library Garden or Community Room B if it rains. Come help us dig in the garden … and plant herbs. (Project may change depending on the weather and garden needs).

- StoryWalk — Pages from a children’s book are posted along a trail for a fun, family experience. StoryWalk books will be updated at various times during the summer with titles based on the 2019 Summer Reading theme, “Universe of Stories.” Pages from a children’s book are posted along a trail for a fun, family experience. Read, connect, and get outside at a StoryWalk, a partnership of The Library, Kaniksu Land Trust, city of Dover, and city of Ponderay. For more information, visit Facebook.com/BonnerStoryWalk.

Marcy Timblin is in charge of public relations, marketing & community development for the East Bonner County Library District. She can be reached at 208-208- 208-208-263-6930, ext. 1204.