Brooks Memorial Library - Brattleboro VT

Commemoration of the March on Washington
2023-08-28 19:00 - 20:30 (America/New_York) | Main Reading Room
Sixty years after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963, poet and performer David Mills will present an hour-long dramatic presentation, portraying Dr. King’s transformation from his early uncertainties about Civil Rights into the iconic figure he became. The show highlights Dr. King’s, “Letter from a Birmingham Jail,” “I Have a Dream” “Promised Land” “If I had Sneezed,” and “Early Days.” Mr. Mills’ stirring presentation looks at the public figure and the private man.
Community members who were present at the original event sixty years ago are encouraged to share their stories by sending them to starr@brookslibraryvt.org

Brattleboro in Stitches
2023-09-02 11:00 - 14:00 | Meeting Room D – Quiet Reading Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Bring a work in progress to sew, knit, crochet, embroider, or mend. Sewing machines, irons, and companionship will be provided.

Game Cafe!
2023-09-02 14:00 - 16:45, 2023-09-09 14:00 - 16:45, 2023-09-16 14:00 - 16:45 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Come join game enthusiasts in playing Magic the Gathering in various formats (including Commander/EDH) as well as other fun and creative board & card games.
Bring your favorite games- All Ages Welcome!

Mineralogical Society
2023-09-05 18:00 - 20:45 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Study of Minerals and Geological topics

Rhyme Time
2023-09-06 10:30 - 11:00, 2023-09-13 10:30 - 11:00, 2023-09-20 10:30 - 11:00 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Join us on Wednesday mornings @ 10:30 am for 30 minutes of stories, songs, and fun!
Rhyme Time is for kids 5 & under and their caregivers.
Here is a handout featuring some of the different songs, fingerplays, and movement games we use!

Can we protect religious liberties and LGBTQ+ rights? Discussion series with Meg Mott
2023-09-06 19:00 - 21:00, 2023-09-13 19:00 - 21:00, 2023-09-20 19:00 - 21:00 | Main Reading Room
Constitution Wrangler Meg Mott will lead a three-part series on the contentious issue of school vouchers. Following a 2021 Supreme Court decision, Vermont may no longer exclude religious schools from the voucher program. Some argue that this program will legitimize religious beliefs that discriminate against sexual minorities. Others argue that if parents can send their kids to private schools, why shouldn’t they be able to send their kids to parochial schools? Under the laws of polarization, those two positions are mutually exclusive. But under the pleasures of complex understanding, there are myriad arguments to explore.
September 6: What the Court Said: The Supreme Court case that forced Vermont’s hand is Carson v. Makin. Besides considering the arguments of the Court and the dissent, we’ll look at the practical implications of this decision and how activists on both sides are using it to increase polarization.
September 13: What We Could Say: Makin maps out the tension between religious liberties and non-discrimination, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. We will explore a rhetorical ecosystem using the ideals of progressives, libertarians, and conservatives to consider both points of view. What would a conservative argument against the voucher program sound like? What about a progressive argument for the voucher program.
September 20: What We Need to Say: In this final class, we’ll consider productive reframes to decrease polarization. What sort of language might convince progressives that school choice is in their best interests? What sort of language might convince conservatives that non-discrimination concerns are important to their cause? If persuasion is more pleasurable than polarization, maybe we can kick this self-destructive habit!

LEGO-Palooza
2023-09-07 15:00 - 17:00 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Join us on Thursdays after school from 3-5pm to play with LEGOs!
We provide the LEGOs. You build. Do not bring your own LEGOs.
Children cannot keep LEGOs, but if there is enough room, we will display them in the window.
Free and open to the public!

Brattleboro in Stitches
2023-09-09 11:00 - 14:00, 2023-09-16 11:00 - 14:00, 2023-09-23 11:00 - 14:00 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States

Vermont River Conservancy & AARP: Face the River Workshops
2023-09-11 16:00 - 17:45, 2023-09-13 16:00 - 17:45, 2023-09-14 16:00 - 17:45, 2023-09-15 16:00 - 17:45 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
We all have a river story – what’s yours?
In this week-long workshop, older adults, younger adults, and adolescents in our community will share and compare personal experiences of rivers and floods. Then we’ll work together as a multi-generational team to propose river access and conservation strategies that build on our strengths, and meet our needs. Participants can expect to learn about and engage with VRC’s existing riverfront place-making projects in southern Vermont, from swimming spots and fishing holes to parks and nature preserves. Participants’ feedback and ideas will help the Vermont River Conservancy improve existing projects and envision future accessible parks, trails, and open spaces.
This workshop will be facilitated by Hayley Kolding, an ecologist and former high school teacher serving as VRC’s Southern Vermont Conservation Manager. The event is sponsored by AARP.
Advance registration is requested. Sign-up here: https://vermontriverconservancy.org/our-work/engage-communities/south

Author Talk - Susan Avery on Addicted
2023-09-11 19:00 - 20:45 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Susan Avery will conduct an author talk on Addicted: Our Strength Under the Influence. (Due to the personal nature of her story, Susan wrote under a pen name to protect family members who are all so important to her.) “Life’s experiences can offer a meaningful journey. What you will read therein was life happening in real time, family members struggling, often just to survive.”

Chapter One, excerpt. “The tail of the heroin dragon is uncontrollable. Visualize a gnarled, spiked weapon, swiftly and viciously impaling the vulnerable and afflicted while taking down families in it’s path of destruction. This is the true nature of addiction—and how this powerful “brain disease” can turn a once beautiful, intelligent viable child into prey.”

Library Board of Trustees
2023-09-12 16:30 - 18:00 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Monthly meeting of the Brooks Memorial Library Board of Trustees. Citizen attendance and commentary welcome!
Board of Trustees

Public Forum on Fire-EMS
2023-09-12 18:00 - 19:30 | Main Reading Room
The Town of Brattleboro is in the process of developing alternatives for how it provides Fire and EMS services. Town staff is gathering information and analyzing costs and risks. Staff will review in detail any viable EMS alternatives, compare them, and invite the public to ask clarifying questions and otherwise express their opinion at this public forum.

September Sci-Fi Reading Group Meetup
2023-09-18 19:00 - 20:30 | Meeting Room D – Quiet Reading Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
The Sci-Fi Reading Group will meet Tuesday, September 19th Monday, September 18th, in the Quiet Reading Room from 7-8:30 pm to discuss The Employees by Olga Ravn.
“A workplace novel of the 22nd century
When the Six-Thousand Ship takes on a number of strange objects from the planet New Discovery, the crew is perplexed to find itself becoming deeply attached to them, and human and humanoid employees alike find themselves longing for the same things: warmth and intimacy. Loved ones who have passed. Our shared, far-away Earth, which now only persists in memory. Gradually, the crew members come to see themselves in a new light, and each employee is compelled to ask themselves whether their work can carry on as before – and what it means to be truly alive.”
The Sci-Fi Reading Group meets the third Monday of every month and is open to curious minds of all ages, whether or not they’ve read this month’s selection.

Brattleboro Stamp Club
2023-09-18 19:00 - 20:45 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States

SEVT Audubon Society
2023-09-19 19:00 - 21:00 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Join South Eastern Vermont’s Audubon Society on for a monthly program featuring nature and the environment.

Public Input Meeting for Medicaid HCBS Services Residential Alternatives
2023-09-20 14:00 - 15:30 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Aspire Living & Learning is seeking input regarding Medicaid HCBS residential services on behalf of the VT Department of Disabilities, Aging and Independent Living (DAIL)

Friends of the Library
2023-09-20 16:30 - 18:00 | Meeting Room A – Community Meeting Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Monthly meeting of the Friends of the Library. Citizen attendance and commentary is welcome!
Friends of the Library

War Tax Resistance Office Hour
2023-09-21 15:30 - 16:30 | Mezzanine Conference Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Hosted by Taxes for Peace New England this hour is a time to come ask questions about war tax resistance, learn about its role in creating a peaceful world, and get practical guidance about how to be less complicit in violent systems and the climate crisis.

Compassion Towards Non-Human Animals
2023-09-21 16:30 - 18:00 | Mezzanine Conference Room, 224 Main Street, Brattleboro, VT, 05301, United States
Ask your questions about veganism, check out books and information on animal rights, and learn about how sharing compassion with animals can help with the climate crisis. Take home some tasty vegan goodies by an award winning baker.
