501-918-3025
calsfoundation@cals.org
calsfoundation@cals.org
Top 10 Things to Do in April
They say that April showers bring May flowers, but what if it’s just because we plant flowers during Earth Month? CALS is showing out with all the fun, educational, and Earth-friendly events this month.
- Welcome back Williams! Celebrate that the Williams Library is back and better than ever with three different events! Family Dinner Night is ticketed ($75 per person) and features food and drink from neighborhood restaurants on April 18, the Ribbon Cutting makes everything official the next morning, and the Neighborhood Block Party (May 4) is a time to celebrate! Find details on all the events here.
- Stare at the Sun (safely, of course) Central Arkansas has the pleasure of being in the path of totality for the eclipse Monday, April 8. CALS patrons can get up to 8 pairs of eclipse glasses for free with your library card. All CALS locations will be closed from 1:30-2:30 p.m. to allow staff to experience the eclipse. We’ll see you before and after! Get all the details here.
- Thank a volunteer! National Volunteer Week is April 21-27. In 2023, CALS had 668 volunteers donate nearly 12,700 hours in our branches for events including Six Bridges Book Festival and for the Used Book Sale. Interesting in becoming a volunteer? Find out more here.
- Celebrate Earth Month. “Naturally Arkansas, Bring Nature to your Yard” will be held at Children’s Library Saturday, April 27, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Learn how to make your yard hospitable for native plants and animals. Find all the Earth Month events here.
- Ready, Set, Library! National Library Week is April 7 –13. It brings a whole week of celebrating that in our always-online world, libraries give us a green light to something truly special: a place to connect with others, learn new skills, and focus on what matters most. Monday, April 8: Right to Read Day, Tuesday, April 9: National Library Workers Day, Wednesday, April 10: National Library Outreach Day, and Thursday, April 11: Take Action for Libraries Day. Stop by Lost Forty on April 9, 5 – 8 p.m., for a pop-up book sale to celebrate National Library Week.
- The Dude Abides. Catch the cult classic The Big Lebowski on the big screen at Ron Robinson Theater on Saturday, April 13, at 8 p.m. And no need to wonder, “Dude, where’s your car?” because there’s free parking in the CALS lot and deck (just bring your ticket in for validation). Buy tickets here.
- An Ode to thee, the tree. April is also National Poetry Month, get the kids excited about writing with the Poetreehouse (poetry-tree house, get it?) at Mini Main on Tuesday, April 9, or Tuesday, April 16 at 4 p.m. Details here.
- Big Read is Big! Join in the NEA Big Read with writing events at Roberts Library and Dee Brown focused on There There by Tommy Orange (and don’t forget to put his live, free talk at Ron Robinson Theater on your calendar for May 16). All the BIG information on the BIG read can be found here.
- Don’t trash it, repair it! Embracing the spirit of Earth Month, let’s keep more items out of the garbage and fix them instead of adding to the landfill. Stop by Dee Brown Library for their Repair Cafe! Bring your broken but repairable items on Sunday, April 21, 2 – 4 p.m. to get help from knowledgeable volunteers that will either fix it or help you fix it yourself.
- Plant something! CALS has all the tools you need to get in the garden (no, seriously!). Stop by Dee Brown Library and check out the Tool Library – take home up to 5 tools or 3 power tools at a time. Then swing over to McMath Library and peruse the seed library. There you can “check out” seeds, plant them and then save the seeds after the harvest and return them. How fun is that?
