Planted, Connected, and Ready to Celebrate! Update from the Friends
Letter from the President: A Busy Spring, an Epic Fall, and Ways to Get Involved This Summer
The temperatures are climbing and so is the momentum. what a spring it has been! Read on for the latest on our pollinator garden, Comic Con, and the MBCPL Centennial Celebration!
Read the full Letter from Marlan
FOMPL in the Community: A Busy and Beautiful Spring
April and May were two of the most active and exciting months yet for the Friends of the Martinsburg Public Library. Our members and volunteers showed up in big ways, and we have so much to celebrate!
🍀 Tabling at the St. Patrick's Day Festival The Friends kicked off the spring season at the biggest St. Patrick's Day Festival in West Virginia, connecting with neighbors, welcoming new members, and selling books in the heart of Downtown Martinsburg.
🌎 Earth Day in the Plaza On April 25th, the Friends tabled in the MBCPL Plaza alongside Eastern Panhandle Policies Over Parties, who hosted a Container Gardening Mini-Workshop for the community. A wonderful morning of learning and library pride!
📚 Spring Members Meeting Friends members gathered at the Downtown Martinsburg Library for an evening of updates, connection, and conversation about what is ahead. Thank you to everyone who joined us!
🌿 Monarch Waystation: Bed Prep Day On May 2nd, eleven volunteers cleared 550 square feet of weeds, rehomed 25 or more landscape plants, and regraded the garden beds in the library plaza ahead of planting day.
🌻 Monarch Waystation: Plant Pickup On May 14th, volunteers picked up more than 350 native pollinator plants from Sunny Meadows Garden Center in Boonsboro, MD, made possible through the Monarch Alliance grant from the Potomac Valley Audubon Society.
🦋 Monarch Waystation: Planting Day On May 16th, twenty volunteers donated 34 hours to plant our beautiful new Monarch Waystation pollinator garden in the library plaza. Thank you to every individual, organization, and library supporter who made this garden a reality!
Thank you to every volunteer and community supporter who made this spring so meaningful. Your dedication to this library and this community means everything. 💚
What's Coming Up: Don't Miss These Events!
Summer is here and we have two incredible events on the horizon! Mark your calendars and get ready to celebrate with the Friends of the Martinsburg Public Library.
🦸 Comic Con at the Martinsburg Public Library Join MBCPL for a free, family-friendly day of nerdy fun at the Downtown Martinsburg Public Library on Saturday, June 6th from 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM! Enjoy a D&D workshop, cosplay contest, author Q&A, artists, vendors, and so much more. The Friends will be there with our table and book sale, so stop by and say hello. Come in your best cosplay or your favorite nerdy t-shirt, all ages and all fandoms welcome!
FOMPL Volunteer: Comic Con Sign-up
🎉 The Centennial Celebration & Fundraiser Mark your calendars for the most glamorous event of the year! On Saturday, September 19th from 6:00 to 10:00 PM, the Martinsburg Public Library transforms into a Roaring Twenties Speakeasy to celebrate 100 years of library service in Martinsburg. Live jazz, Charleston dance lessons, a piano bar, back-room gaming, and heavy hors d'oeuvres by Brix 27, all in support of the Martinsburg-Berkeley County Public Libraries. Tickets are on sale now, and you will not want to miss it!
🧩 Childcare: Will be offered in the children's library during the event for children 7 years old and up. The cost is $25.00 per child and can be purchased at the same time as a ticket. Spaces are Limited to 20 children.
🐦 Early Bird Special: Save $10! Purchase your ticket by midnight on July 19th and get $10 off the regular price of $75. Grab your tickets now at friends-of-mpl.org/100-years before the early bird price ends!
Use promo code: centennial
Grab your tickets here
🎟️ Members: Want to Save on Your Ticket?
If you volunteer at the Centennial Celebration & Fundraiser for at least 60 minutes, your ticket is just $55, a $20 savings! This offer is exclusively for Friends members and applies only to the person volunteering.
Want your guest to save too? They will need to be a Friends member and sign up to volunteer as well. Visit friends-of-mpl.org to get them signed up, then fill out the volunteer form with their information. Once you fill out the volunteer form we will email you the promo code.
Fill out the volunteer form
Know a Local Business? Share the Sponsorship Opportunity!
Do you know a local business owner or community partner who would love to be part of this milestone celebration? Sponsorship opportunities are available from $250 to $5,000, with recognition at the event and across all marketing leading up to the big night. A wonderful way for local businesses to show their community commitment and support 100 years of library service!
Learn more about Sponsorships
👉 Visit our Events Page to stay up to date on upcoming activities, volunteer sign-ups, and ways to get involved.
Mr. FoMPL's Corner: What a Spring It Has Been!
Well, my fellow FoMPLonians, this little gnome is absolutely buzzing about everything happening during this Centennial year of our Library!
What a spring it has been! From tabling at the St. Patrick's Day Festival and celebrating Earth Day in the plaza, to our Spring Members Meeting and three incredible Monarch Waystation volunteer days, twenty volunteers, thirty-four hours, and more than 350 native plants in the ground. The garden is planted, the butterflies are coming, and the library has never looked more alive. 🌻
And we are just getting started! 🦸 Comic Con is right around the corner on June 6th, the Friends will be there with our table and book sale, so come say hello and show off your best cosplay!
And then there is the big one, the Centennial Celebration & Fundraiser on September 19th. A Roaring Twenties Speakeasy. Inside the library. To celebrate 100 years. Start planning your flapper dress or your fedora now, best attire awards will be given, and I intend to win! 🎩
Thank you for your love for this library and this community. We have something truly special here in Martinsburg. 💚
-Mr. FoMPL
Your Friendly Local Library Gnome 📚🦋💚
PS: Tickets for the Centennial Celebration & Fundraiser are on sale now! Visit friends-of-mpl.org to get yours today!
Be Part of the Story at Your Library
There has never been a better time to get involved with the Friends of the Martinsburg Public Library! From Comic Con to the Centennial Celebration, we have an exciting summer ahead and we would love to have you with us.
📚 Follow us on Facebook and Instagram
💬 Like and share our posts
🤝 Invite your neighbors and friends to become members
Together, we can keep the library at the heart of our community and make this centennial year one to remember. 💚 Become a member at friends-of-mpl.org Questions contact us at: [email protected]
