Voter Registration & Voting Information Table
2024-09-11 14:30 - 16:30 (America/Chicago)
Your vote matters! Volunteers from the nonpartisan Champaign County League of Women Voters will have a voter information-registration table at the Mahomet Library on Wednesday, September 11 from 2:30-4:30 pm.
Stop by the table to:

Confirm you’re registered to vote at your current address.
Register to vote if you’re not already registered.
Learn about upcoming candidate forums, candidate meet-and-great opportunities, and nonpartisan candidate resources.
Get answers to your questions about voting and elections.

Senior Treats and Topics
2024-09-12 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-10-03 10:00 - 11:00, 2024-11-07 10:00 - 11:00
Join us for a thrilling blend of knowledge…and indulgence! Each month promises an exciting speaker with insights on various topics, accompanied by delightful treats! It is not necessary to be a senior to attend.
Dates and Topics:

September 12: Adult Healthcare Options with Sandy Hockman from Evergreen Place

This session will explore the senior living options in the area and covers the spectrum from independent living and assisted living to skilled nursing and hospice care.

October 3: Estate Planning with Theodore Facer from Facer Law Office

Estate planning is a necessary, but often complex area of legal and financial management. This session will cover key topics to help you understand and navigate the process.

November 7: Dementia and Communication with Sandy Hockman from Evergreen Place

Communicating with someone living with dementia can be challenging. This session will provide knowledge on how to positively interact to create a successful and less frustrating experience for everyone involved.

December 12: Holiday Music Memory Game with Library Staff

Enjoy a festive activity to challenge your memory!

For adults. No registration required.

Adult Crafternoon: Painted Quilt Block
2024-09-17 13:00 - 14:00
Join us for creativity, conversation, and fun each month at the Library! Learn a new skill and make a craft with supplies provided by the Library.
Dates and Crafts:
September 17: Painted Quilt Block
October 15: Upcycled Ghost Painting
November 19: Intro to Needle Felting
For adults. Registration required (register for each session individually).

What's It Worth? Antique Appraisal Event
2024-09-21 10:00 - 11:30
Curious about the value of your heirlooms, antiques, or collectibles? This special event, inspired by Antiques Roadshow, offers community members the opportunity to have their treasured items evaluated by professional appraiser, James Hatchel, of Legacy Auctions.
Who Should Attend?: Antique enthusiasts & collectors; Individuals with family heirlooms; Anyone curious about the history/value of their possessions
What to Bring?: Up to 2 items for appraisal (Please ensure they are easily transported. No weapons.); Any documentation/provenance related to items (if available)
For adults. Registration required if bringing in items for appraisal. No registration is required to watch; walk-ins accommodated if time allows.

Adult Take and Make Kits
2024-09-30 09:00 - 2024-10-01 20:00, 2024-10-28 09:00 - 2024-10-29 20:00, 2024-11-25 09:00 - 2024-11-26 20:00
Take home a craft to make! Our take-and-make crafts come with all the supplies needed for a project.

Dates and Crafts:
Beginning September 30: Sun Prints (Cyanotype)
Beginning October 28: Spooky Tiny Glass Bottle Necklace
Beginning November 25: Origami Lucky Star Jar

Stop by the Library to pick up a free kit. Kits are available while supplies last. Limit one kit per person, please!
Adult take-and-make crafts are part of our Adult Craft Connection series.

I'm a Keepy-Uppy Expert: Perfectly Imperfect Parenting Through the Eyes of Bluey
2024-09-30 17:30 - 19:00
As parents, we try to keep all the balls in the air. Different challenges come along, but we can get creative (and be imperfect) with how we manage them. Join us for this Firm Foundations Parent Session as we take some pointers from our favorite Heeler parents, Bandit and Chilli, about how to work through parenting issues such as screen time, bribing our kids, mistakes, date nights, and difficult topics such as infertility and death – all in an imperfect, perfectly realistic way. This session is presented by Staci McNicholl, MSW, LCSW of The Rock Counseling Group.
Firm Foundations Parenting Sessions take place at Middletown-Prairie, with pizza and childcare provided.

Schedule for the evening:
5:30 pm: Pizza
6:00-7:00 pm: Speaker

If you need childcare, please register. Otherwise, no registration is required. For parents of children enrolled in our Firm Foundations program.

Public Q&A for Upcoming School Referendum
2024-10-03 18:30 - 20:00
This program will take place in the Edgar Room at the Mahomet Library.
As part of our mission to provide Mahomet residents with the information they need, the Library has asked Mahomet-Seymour to send representatives to the Library to answer resident questions about the upcoming school referendum.
This Thursday, October 3 at 6:30 pm, we welcome Superintendent Kenny Lee, a member of the Board of Education, and former superintendent Lindsey Hall to the Library. From 6:30 to 8:00 pm they will be available to answer questions. A library representative will facilitate the sessions.
The Library does not officially support or oppose this referendum, and no one at this meeting will be telling anyone how to vote. Our goal is for community members to have the chance to learn for themselves the details and facts about the school plans so that they can make the most informed decision possible. We plan to hold one additional meeting of this sort later in October, but hurried to get this one done since voting has started for some folks.
There are also resources at the Library for those who want to learn more about the school plan and referendum but cannot attend this meeting.

Stitching Circle
2024-10-05 10:00 - 11:30, 2024-11-02 13:00 - 14:30
Connect with fellow crafters, share your skills, and learn from others! Whether you are an expert or novice, there is something for everyone in our circle. We’ll provide some materials, or you can bring your own project (maybe one you’ve been procrastinating on!).
All skill levels are welcome and there is not need to register. Spread the word and invite your friends. We can’t wait to see you there!

Dates and Times:
Saturday, September 7: 10:00-11:30 am
Saturday, October 5: 10:00-11:30 am
Saturday, November 2: 1:00-2:30 pm

Stitching Circle is a part of our Adult Craft Connection Program series. No registration required.

Voter Registration & Voting Information Table
2024-10-06 14:00 - 16:00
Your vote matters! Volunteers from the nonpartisan Champaign County League of Women Voters will have a voter information-registration table at the Mahomet Library on Sunday, October 6 from 2:00-4:00 pm.
Stop by the table to:

Confirm you’re registered to vote at your current address.
Register to vote if you’re not already registered.
Learn about upcoming candidate forums, candidate meet-and-great opportunities, and nonpartisan candidate resources.
Get answers to your questions about voting and elections.

Role With It! Play-Reading Group: And Then There Were None
2024-10-06 14:00 - 16:30
Join the Library’s play-reading group for theatre enthusiasts! Enjoy a live reading of a full-length play. Participants will be assigned roles and receive a script at the meeting. This session, we’ll read through the play And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie.
Adults. Registration required.

Tuesday Night Book Club
2024-10-08 18:30 - 20:00, 2024-11-12 18:30 - 20:00, 2024-12-10 18:30 - 20:00
Join us at the Library on the second Tuesday of each month as we discuss that month’s great read!
August 13: The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer
September 10: Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Callahan Henry
October 8: Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
November 12: Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See
December 10: Holiday Party
No registration required.

More information about our December meeting:
Our December meeting will be a festive gathering to celebrate a year of reading! We will not feature a specific book, but we will have bookish fun and camaraderie. We will play some games (including gifts and free books), enjoy snacks, and reflect on our favorite reads from the past year. No need to bring anything but yourself and a list of some of your favorite recent reads.

Wondering what books we’ve previously read for Tuesday Night Book Club? Check out our Tuesday Night Book Club Picks list!

Illinois Libraries Present: Being Imperfect with Erika Sanchez
2024-10-09 19:00 - 20:00
Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with Illinois Libraries Present and Erika Sánchez, award-winning author of I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. She will be joined in conversation by Cythia Pelayo.
Erika L. Sánchez is the daughter of Mexican immigrants. Her debut poetry collection, Lessons on Expulsion, was a finalist for the PEN America Open Book Award. Her debut young adult novel, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, was a New York Times bestseller, National Book Award finalist, and Tomás Rivera Award winner. Recognized by Time as one of the best YA novels of all time, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter has also been adapted for the stage at Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago and is being made into a film directed by America Ferrera.
Sánchez’ critically acclaimed memoir-in-essays, Crying in the Bathroom, won the Chicago Review of Books Nonfiction award. Sánchez was a Fulbright Scholar, a Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent fellow from the Poetry Foundation, a Princeton Arts Fellow, a recipient of the 21st Century Award from the Chicago Public Library Foundation, and a recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. She lives in Chicago with her family.
Cynthia Pelayo is a Bram Stoker Award winning and International Latino Book Award winning author and poet. Pelayo writes fairy tales that blend genre and explore concepts of grief, mourning, and violence. She is the author of Loteria, Santa Muerte, The Missing, Poems of My Night, Into the Forest and All the Way Through, Children of Chicago, Crime Scene, and The Shoemaker’s Magician.
This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).
ILP is committed to inclusion and accessibility. To request accommodations, please email illinoislibrariespresent@gmail.com.

For adults. Via Zoom. Please register.

Adult Crafternoon: Upcycled Ghost Painting
2024-10-15 13:00 - 14:00

I-Cash Event
2024-10-17 15:00 - 18:00
Are you missing out on unclaimed money? The Illinois State Treasurer’s office holds over $5 billion in unclaimed funds for Illinois residents, and some of it could be yours! Illinois State Treasurer’s office staff will be on hand to help you discover and claim yours. They will also have information about many of their programs including College Savings, ABLE and Financial Education classes.
For adults. No registration required.

Beginner Sourdough Workshop
2024-10-22 18:30 - 19:30
Sourdough bread is trending, but do you know how to make it? Join us for a fun and interactive beginner class at the Library! We’ll learn how to make and maintain a starter, the science behind the sourdough fermentation process, and tips and techniques for making the perfect loaf. Attendees will make starter in class to take home.
Adults. Registration required.

Illinois Libraries Present: Raise Your Voice with Jason Reynolds
2024-10-22 19:00 - 20:00
Welcome Jason Reynolds, #1 New York Times bestselling author, advocate, mentor, and 2020-2022 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. The recipient of a Newbery Honor, a Printz Honor, a Carnegie Medal, an NAACP Image Award, and multiple Coretta Scott King honors, Reynolds’ beloved and award-winning titles include Stamped (with Ibram X. Kendi), Stuntboy, the Track series (Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and Lu), Miles Morales, All American Boys (with Brendan Kiely), When I Was the Greatest, The Boy in the Black Suit, Look Both Ways, Ain’t Burned All the Bright, and Long Way Down. He has appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, Late Night with Seth Meyers, CBS Sunday Morning, and more.
The short documentary “Dear, Dreamer” is a lyrical portrait of Reynolds’ life and work as a rising literary star, as well as a testament to shared experiences and the power of seeing yourself in books. In his podcast, My Mother Made Me, he and his mother, Isabell, explore their shared history and what they’re teaching each other.
Reynolds lives in Washington, DC, where he is on faculty at Lesley University, for the Writing for Young People MFA Program.
This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).
ILP is committed to inclusion and accessibility. To request accommodations, please email illinoislibrariespresent@gmail.com.

For youth and adults. Via Zoom. Please register.

Public Q&A for Upcoming School Referendum
2024-10-24 18:30 - 20:00
This program will take place in the Edgar Room at the Mahomet Library.
As part of our mission to provide Mahomet residents with the information they need, the Library has asked Mahomet-Seymour to send representatives to the Library to answer resident questions about the upcoming school referendum.
At this session, we welcome Village President Sean Widener, Superintendent Kenny Lee, a member of the Board of Education, and former superintendent Lindsey Hall to the Library. From 6:30 to 8:00 pm they will be available to answer questions. A library representative will facilitate the sessions.
The Library does not officially support or oppose this referendum, and no one at this meeting will be telling anyone how to vote. Our goal is for community members to have the chance to learn for themselves the details and facts about the school plans so that they can make the most informed decision possible.
There are also resources at the Library for those who want to learn more about the school plan and referendum but cannot attend this meeting.

Skills for Disagreeing Better with Braver Angels of East Central Illinois
2024-10-28 18:30 - 20:00
In this polarized time, we lack basic understanding of why people on the other political side hold their beliefs. We don’t see them as they see themselves–their core values and central concerns–but instead as we choose to see them. We are tempted to regard our own side as principled and the other side as self-interested.
When we try to communicate across this gap, we often lack the skills for listening carefully, looking for common ground, and sharing our perspectives in ways that connect rather than create more misunderstanding.
We can learn to disagree better in polarized times, which means accurately seeing where we differ and where we share common ground.
Goals:

More understanding of the values and concerns of people who differ from you politically
Better skills for listening in a way so that the other person feels heard
Better skills for sharing viewpoints in a way the other person might hear — even if they disagree

Note: Mahomet Public Library is partnering with Braver Angels of East Central Illinois to offer this workshop.
Braver Angels is a strictly non-partisan group working to helping Americans bridge the divide and reduce the polarization we see so much of in our current political climate. The Champaign area is home to one of three Braver Angels Alliances in Illinois, Braver Angels of East Central Illinois. Immediately following this workshop, the East Central IL alliance will hold its regular monthly meeting. If you are interested in learning more or possibly joining the group, you are welcome to stay and attend that meeting.
Mahomet Library Director John Howard says this about Braver Angels: “In late 2023, I tried to create some workshops for the Library which would demonstrate how we as citizens could talk together better to find solutions to our society’s biggest issues. I feel that the public library should be a safe place in our community where we can productively have these hard conversations. While I was struggling to create these workshops from scratch, I found that there was an organization who was already doing the very same thing! After some research, I was proud to join Braver Angels, and I plan to bring their positive brand of non-partisan communications to our community. If, like me, you are frustrated with the nastiness that is so common in our political conversations these days, I encourage you to attend upcoming Braver Angels programs at the Library, or even become a member yourself.”

Adults. Please register.

Adult Halloween Bingo & Costume Contest
2024-10-29 18:00 - 19:30
Get ready for a spooky evening of Halloween fun at the Library! Dress up in your favorite costume (optional, but encouraged), and compete for festive prizes in both the costume contest and BINGO games.
Adults. Registration required.

Cookbook Club: Brilliant Bites
2024-11-07 18:00 - 19:30
Join us at the Library to explore new recipes, share cooking tips, and enjoy delicious food together! This program is intended for adults who enjoy cooking and sharing food together. All experience levels are welcome. Each Cookbook Club will feature a selected cookbook and attendees will bring a dish from the book to share.
Copies of the cookbook will be available one month in advance at the Library’s Circulation Desk. Registered participants will receive a link to a Google form to include the name of the dish they will be bringing. Participants may contact Alyssa with any questions.
Registration is required.

Dates and Cookbooks:
Tuesday, September 3: The Weekday Vegetarians by Jenny Rosenstrach
Thursday, November 7: Brilliant Bites by Maegan Brown

Adult Crafternoon: Intro to Needle Felting
2024-11-19 13:00 - 14:00

Illinois Libraries Present: Holiday Tricks and Tips with Chef Art Smith
2024-11-20 19:00 - 20:00
Join Chef Art Smith to learn about his culinary journey and bring some culinary inspiration into your holiday season. A two-time James Beard Foundation award winner, Smith believes “The art of cooking, the act of feeding people, is the most engaging, most memorable way to connect with people.”

Smith began his career at the Florida Culinary Institute and honed his skills working with top chefs in France before finding himself in Chicago. Here he served as Oprah Winfrey’s personal chef for a decade and opened his first critically-acclaimed restaurant, Table Fifty-Two, known for its modern Southern dishes and locally sourced ingredients.
Smith is also a prolific cookbook author and TV personality, sharing his passion for Southern cuisine. He has appeared on Top Chef, Top Chef Duels, Top Chef Masters, Iron Chef America, The Today Show, Good Morning America, Entertainment Tonight, BBQ Pitmasters, The Oprah Winfrey Show and more.
Named Chicagoan of the Year by Chicago Magazine and Humanitarian of the Year by the James Beard Foundation, both in 2007, Smith is currently Executive Chef and Co-Owner with restaurants in Chicago, Orlando, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Common Threads, a non-profit organization teaching low-income children to cook wholesome and affordable meals.
Smith will be joined in conversation by Monica Eng, award-winning Chicago journalist and co-host of food podcast “Chewing” w/ Louisa Chu.

This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).
ILP is committed to inclusion and accessibility. To request accommodations, please email illinoislibrariespresent@gmail.com.

Illinois Libraries Present: The Magic of Raina Telgemeier
2024-12-10 19:00 - 20:00
Join us for a night with critically acclaimed comic artist, Raina Telgemeier! Raina is the author and illustrator of the graphic novels Smile, Drama, Sisters, Ghosts, and Guts, all #1 New York Times bestsellers. She also adapted and illustrated four graphic novel versions of Ann M. Martin’s Baby-Sitters Club series, and has contributed short stories to many anthologies. New in 2024, The Cartoonists Club is a one-of-a-kind graphic novel from Raina and Scott McCloud.
Raina’s accolades include six Eisner Awards, a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor, a Stonewall Honor, and many Best-of and Notables lists. Raina grew up in San Francisco, then moved to New York City, where she earned an illustration degree at the School of Visual Arts. Raina currently lives and works in San Francisco, CA.
Children’s Librarian Genevieve Grove will join Raina in conversation.
This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present (ILP), a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).
ILP is committed to inclusion and accessibility. To request accommodations, please email illinoislibrariespresent@gmail.com.
Via Zoom. Please register at the link below.
