It’s easy to get caught up in the beach life and forget that there is a whole world outside of Brunswick County. Thanks to staff and helpful patrons of the Rourk Branch Library in Shallotte, though, students in the area have an exciting travel itinerary available this summer as they explore far off places and cultures.
The summer reading program, “Adventure Begins at Your Library,” gave library staff the idea to embark on a travel-focused program to help students learn about other parts of the world and the people who live there.
“A lot of these kids are not getting to travel and we’re trying to broaden their horizons and give them a taste of life outside of Brunswick County,” Branch Manager Kelly James said. She said there are only so many hours in a school day, and this program will give students the opportunity to learn more about the world.
“We wanted to show what they could learn about in the future as far as learning languages and cultures. We’re just trying to show some of that diversity,” she said.
James also said that when staff were planning this year’s summer reading program, they knew they wanted to get the adults in on the adventure too.
“We put up a huge map in the library and a post box and we asked them to send us postcards” James said. Pins are added whenever a new place comes in via postcard.
“We’ve gotten postcards from Holland, Ireland, England, Charleston SC, California, and Canada,” James said. “We started asking about a month ago (in May) and have had an overwhelming response.”
Library Assistant Heather Brown also said that postcards have been coming in from other countries, but also Disney World and even Mount Rushmore.
“I think the most surprising part of this whole engagement is how excited the senior citizens are about it,” Brown said. “They’re even more interested in these postcards than the kids, I think.” A large display in the library includes the mailbox for postcards, maps for placing pins, some of the postcards on display, and a great selection of books about states, countries, and all things travel.
“A whole bunch of travel books have been getting checked out,” Brown said. “We have a lot of kids checking out atlases this summer, and I have raided my display.”
The Library will be collecting postcards through the end of July. Students will be looking at the postcards and will get prizes for meeting their reading goals this summer.
“We’ve gotten a lot of good feedback,” James said. “It’s a bit quirky but fun too. It appeals to a wide range of students.”
James explained that the summer reading program is connected to another program the library scheduled in July, called Travel Club Adventures, for students in grades 3-5.
“We’re just trying to stress that reading is the big adventure,” she said. “First we go to the Philippines, then to France, Italy and Mexico. They will be sampling different foods from the country. They’ll get an introduction to the country through speakers, some games and crafts. Each participant will also get a passport stamped for each country.”
James said Brown lived in the Philippines for a couple of years, so she was very excited to start the students’ world tour there. When the staff was in the planning stages for the Travel Club, Brown said they were wondering how they were going to pay for it, and just a few minutes later, someone walked in with a donation for the library. She credited the Friends of the Library – Rourk Branch group with really helping to promote the program.
“Without Friends of the Library pushing it out, it wouldn’t be nearly as successful,” Brown said. “I don’t think I could do half of what I do without them.”
For the Travel Club Adventures, they’ll also use a green screen to take pictures of the students and drop in scenery from the featured country that week. James said they planned the France adventure to coincide with the start of the summer Olympics, being held in Paris this year.
Registration is required, and the classes will be capped at 20 students. The Travel Club Adventures program runs for four weeks, on July 10, 17, 24 and 31. Brown said that students can sign up for one or all four of the sessions; they don’t have to be able to attend all four.
“I hope they realize as awesome as it is to live in Brunswick County at the coast, there is so much more out there. I hope they learn that you can make friends anywhere,” Brown said.
For more information on the summer reading program or any other programs at the Rourk Branch Library (5068 Main St. in SHallotte), visit https://www.brunswickcountync.gov/160/Library. Find Friends of the Library on Facebook or visit https://www.folrourk.org/.
