Ohrt

ALBION — The Albion Municipal Library & Heritage Center is soon to kick-off its summer programming, with the outer space theme of “A Universe of Stories.”

Music in May will offer the public three free concerts: GMG students vocal performance at 1 p.m. May 2; MHS instrumental performance at 4 p.m. May 8 and the sounds of Billy Wilson at 5 p.m. May 23 for his Irish Music program.

“I wanted to have different kinds of programs,” Library Director Julia Ohrt said.

These musical shows are made possible in part through a grant from the Martha-Ellen Tye Foundation.

The library hosts a monthly Travelogue, put on by an area resident. The one slated for 5 p.m. on May 6 will be hosted by Mary Dooley, with the theme of “traveling with grandkids.”

At 5 p.m. on May 13, Master Gardeners Shelly Applegate and Reed Riskedahl will discuss mulching and compost. Ohrt said the library has many print resources on this topic, which will complement the program.

New in 2019 is a monthly community potluck at the library, with the next one scheduled for May 29 at 11:30 a.m.

“We’re opening the library up to unify the community,” Ohrt said. “We’re very rural, and we’re finding a lot of people live here as a bedroom community, with children enrolled in several different school districts, so this event allows people to come together.”

Ohrt said the community is gearing up for Albion Pride Day, which is set for June 1. This year’s slogan is “Albion is the pearl of the prairie.” A library sale and vendor show are some of the activities planned.

“At 2 p.m. that day, there will be a signing of the time capsule document when we bury a new time capsule,” she said.

A weekly Galaxy of Movies series kicks off at 3 p.m. June 10 with a screening of “ET” and a weekly Universe of Stories series starts at 1 p.m. June 12 with books, games projects and snacks.

The library is open Mondays and Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to noon. To learn more, contact Ohrt at 641-488-2226 or albionlib@heartofiowa.net.

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Contact Sara Jordan-Heintz at

641-753-6611 or

sjordan@timesrepublican.com