PROGRAMS
Adult Programs
Regular Programs
Highland Hookers Crochet Club
Monthly on the first Friday
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Crocheters of all skill levels are invited to bring their yarn and hooks to the library to crochet in company! Participation is free and everyone is welcome.
Cookbook Club
Monthly on the first Monday
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Do you enjoy cooking and sharing meals with friends? Join us for Cookbook Club! On the first Monday of each month, we will discuss a specific cookbook selected by the group. Members make a recipe from the book, bring their dish and share. Each month’s cookbook selection is on reserve at the library desk. Pick a recipe from the book, and we’ll make you a copy to take home.
Afternoon Book Club
Monthly on the last Thursday
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Our afternoon adult book discussion group reads a variety of popular fiction and non-fiction. New members are always welcome! Come by to share your thoughts – or just listen – and pick up a copy of next month’s title. A current library card is required to borrow materials.
Chapter Two Book Club
Monthly on the last Thursday
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Our evening adult book discussion group reads a variety of popular fiction and non-fiction. New members are always welcome! Come by to share your thoughts – or just listen – and pick up a copy of next month’s title. A current library card is required to borrow materials.
Podcast Brunch Club
Monthly on the third Thursday
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Podcast Brunch Club (PBC) brings the book club concept to podcasts. Every month one of PBC’s members chooses a theme and curates a podcast playlist that includes 3-5 episodes. At some point during the month, chapters around the world will meet up in person to discuss what they heard.
When it is released, you will find the most recent Listening List here: https://podcastbrunchclub.com/listening-lists
If you’d like to sign up or just want to follow along, please fill out the form here to receive each month’s podcasts in your email: https://podcastbrunchclub.com/johnstown/
Stories & Stouts
Monthly on the third Friday
6:00 pm – 7:30 pm
Stories & Stouts is a short story discussion club hosted by Highland Community Library. Our library staff carefully selects short stories by a variety of classic authors whose work is primarily in the public domain. We post the stories for you to read every month for free, and we typically meet at a local bar or restaurant to discuss them over dinner and drinks.
Visit http://bit.ly/2vqjSpg to find more information about the discussion group and read this month’s stories.
Community Game Night
Monthly on the last Saturday
6:00 pm – 11:00 pm
Play board games for all ages at Community Game Night! We will have a selection of games available for you to play or you can bring your own. Bring a friend, grab a game and play. Walk-ins are welcome all night long!
Tech Tuesdays
Tuesdays
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Do you have technology questions? On Tech Tuesdays, a friendly and knowledgeable Tech Helper will answer your questions about technology and library services. Learn how to use a tablet or e-reader, get a free email address, learn basic Internet searching, and more. Tech Helpers will NOT assist with any kind of hardware or software repair. If you need help with a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or other mobile device, please bring it with you. Remember to bring any usernames and passwords you might need so we can work successfully together. Tech Tuesdays are walk-in only, and assistance is on a first-come, first-serve basis for up to a half an hour at a time. If you need more assistance after that, we may schedule an additional one-on-one appointment at a later date.
Annual Programs
VITA Tax Preparation
February – April
The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program offers free tax help to people age 60 or older, people who make $54,000 or less, persons with disabilities, and limited English speaking taxpayers who need assistance in preparing their own tax returns. IRS-certified volunteers provide free basic income tax return preparation with electronic filing to qualified individuals. This service is FREE for those who qualify; however, printed copies of your returns will cost $0.10 per page. By appointment only.
How to Hygge
January
Hygge (prounounced “hoo-ga”) is a Danish word used to describe the feeling of coziness, comfort, togetherness, and well-being through connection and treasuring the moment. Join us for an evening of hygge at the library! We relax with hot drinks, warm snacks, soft music, dim lights, and some relaxing activities, including coloring pages, a simple craft, and the Hygge game. Come in your comfiest clothes and have a calm, restful evening among new friends. We even have some giveaways so participants can take a little bit of hygge home with them.
Oscars Preview Party
Friday before the Oscars
At our annual Oscars Preview Party, we show the trailers for films nominated for awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Animated Feature, and Best Foreign Film. We discuss the films we have seen and predict the winners. Ballots are distributed and whoever correctly predicts the most winners receives passes to the Richland Cinemas! Light hors d’oeuvres are served.
Bad Art Night
March
Create your very own disasterpiece with a wide variety of craft supplies (you can even bring your own). Zero artistic skill required, and making a constructive mess is encouraged. You have an hour and half to make anything you want, from painting and sculpting to mixed media and collages, and everything in between. At the end of the night, we display our bad art and vote for our favorites. A trophy is awarded to the worst creation!
Community Connections Story Time
Facebook Live
Community Connections Story Time highlights the people and organizations that create a safe, welcoming environment for residents of our community. We’ve featured a variety of community readers who share their important work with children and families and read an uplifting or educational story to inspire, teach and entertain. Our goal is to connect our youngest patrons with the important people, professions, and organizations that comprise a safe, thriving community.
Readers have included a Richland firefighter, a Richland police officer, an emergency room doctor at Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center, the director of the Humane Society of Cambria County, and an art educator from the Community Arts Center of Cambria County. We’re taking a break for the summer, but we plan to bring you more Community Connections Story Time events on our Facebook page this fall
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Build Your Own Story Time
YouTube
Build Your Own Storytime with Mr. D allows families to create their own playlists with our favorite songs from Pre-School P.A.L.S. at Highland Community Library.
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Story Time with Mr. D
Facebook Live
Enjoy stories with Mr. D from the comfort of your living room! You can check out Story Time with Mr. D on our Facebook page or on YouTube.
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Baby Time with Miss Vickie
YouTube
Watch Baby Time with Miss Vickie any time!
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Game Night for Grownups (online)
Zoom
Tuesdays
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Join us for Jackbox Games on Zoom every Tuesday night, hosted by Highland Community Library! Jackbox makes irreverent and extremely fun online party games to play with friends. The games range from trivia (Trivia Murder Party) to drawing (Bidiots – no drawing skills needed!) to word games (Dictionarium) and much more! Each game allows a maximum number of players (usually 5-10) but anyone can join the audience and play along, even if they aren’t able to win. To play, you need Internet access, a computer or tablet with a mic, and an additional phone/tablet with a web browser (PLEASE NOTE: You need one device to see the game and another device to participate in the game.)
HCL Quaran-Teens
Mondays and Wednesdays
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
HCL Quaran-Teens meet online on Monday and Wednesday nights from 6-8 pm to continue the library’s ongoing teen programs, play games, and spend time connecting with each other in a time of physical separation.
We’ve decided on Discord as our primary means of online communication and programming, in part because it allows for conversation and asynchrony for busy teens (and busy library staff!). We’re using a library-run server that is monitored by both library staff and teen volunteers. In this server, we will be holding our regular teen library programs, as well as providing space for open discussion, continuing our regular game nights, and more
Teens aged 13-19 are eligible to participate. All teens under 18 MUST have parent or guardian consent to participate in the Discord and should fill out the form below to request access. By filling out this form, teens are confirming parent or guardian consent to use all aspects of our Discord. Teens are required to read and confirm the server rules before receiving access to all server channels. In alignment with our in-person teen programming and to ensure the safety of our participants, no adults outside of library staff and facilitators will be permitted to use the server.
You can find the form here: https://forms.gle/xotv7h3T1McyDSU6