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Music Monday: Musician and Artist Sterling Witt
Melodic and aggressive, abrasive and pretty, political and universal, the music of Sterling Witt has many starting points. In addition to writing catchy, rocking and thought-provoking tunes, Witt is an accomplished painter whose visual work is as vibrant as his music. His art is currently on display at our Lackman location.
Clubs for Kids
Kids! Love the American Girl Books? Want to have some fun with <b>coding</b>? Whatever you're interested in, we've got a club for you!
Drop-In Programs for Kids
Summer is supposed to be about lazy days, but don't your days fill up quickly with all sorts of plans! We know Summer can get busy, which is why we have so many Drop-In programs for kids and families. Come anytime during the event, stay for however long you'd like, and get on with your Summer!
Table Top Games
Wednesday, May 2 6 - 7:45 pm, Antioch Library
Wednesday, June 6 6 - 7:45 pm, Antioch Library
Wednesday, July 11 2:30 - 4:30, Corinth Library
Wednesday, Aug 1 6 - 7:45 pm, Antioch Library
Star Wars Takeover
Friday, June 8 2:30 - 4:30 pm, Cedar Roe Library
Library Rocks! Geology Drop-In
Tuesday, June 12 10 am - 4 pm, Spring Hill Library
Thursday, June 28 10 am - 12 pm, Blue Valley Library
Wednesday, July 11 10 am - 12 pm, Gardner Library
Friday, July 13 10 am - 12 pm, Blue Valley Library
Duplos® and Dinos
Wednesday, June 13 10:30 am - 12 pm, De Soto Library
Tuesday, June 26 10 am - 4 pm, Spring Hill Library
Thursday, July 12 10 am - 12 pm, Antioch Library
Tuesday, Aug 14 10 - 11 am, Shawnee Library
Paws on Patrol
Wednesday, June 13 10 - 11:30 am, Central Resource Library
Forts and Flashlights
Thursday, June 14 10 am - 12 pm, Antioch Library
Wednesday, June 20 10 am - 12 pm, Gardner Library
Wednesday, June 27 10:30 am - 12 pm, De Soto Library
Wednesday, July 11 10 - 11:30 am, Central Resource Library
Tuesday, Aug 21 10 - 11am, Shawnee Library
Let's Lego®
Tuesday, June 19 10 am - 4 pm, Spring Hill Library
Wednesday, July 25 2:30 - 4:30 pm, Corinth
Snap Circuits and Stixplosions
Wednesday, July 11 1 - 3pm, Shawnee Library
Monday, July 23 10 am - 4 pm, Spring Hill Library
Weather Science Drop-In
Tuesday, July 17 10 am - 4 pm, Spring Hill Library
Duplos® and Dinos and Legos®
Wednesday, Jul 25 10 am - 12 pm, Gardner Library
Tinkering Tots
Tuesday, Aug 7 10 - 11 am, Shawnee Library
Thursday, Aug 16 9:30 - 11:30 am, Cedar Roe Library
Tracks and Treasures
Tuesday, Aug 14 9:30 - 11:30 am, Corinth Library
Made in Johnson County
It's another Throwback Thursday! The Hyer Boot Shop is a fascinating story! Read about how Olathe's Charles Hyer started a small cobbling shop in 1875 and turned it into a successful custom-designed cowboy boot shop and many other stories of early Johnson County industry.
Interesting local history can always be found at jocohistory.org or follow our hashtag on Twitter.
Friends and Foundation Confab
There’s a lot of new leadership in our organization, and they’re all getting to know each other. Julie Steiner, new president of the Friends board, recently coffee’ed with Anne Blessing, the new president of the Johnson County Library Foundation. They discussed strategic priorities for the Library and how their two groups can best coordinate to support Library programs and initiatives. Steiner also began productive conversations with Stephanie Stollsteimer, new director of the Foundation. They’re shown here at the February 2018 Friends Board meeting.
In the picture: Front: Julie Steiner, Friends President. Back: Anne Blessing, Foundation President, and Stephanie Stollsteimer, Foundation Director
Movies and Music Make a Summer!
Johnson County Library is rocking out on Fridays this summer with live performances, interactive programs and musicals in the Parks, collaborating with several community groups to present a summer series of family friendly movies and concerts.
Grab a blanket, pack a picnic and get your music on with some of the greatest musical films from your childhood on Friday evenings throughout the summer! Local Music live concerts kick off some showings. Movie starts at dusk but join us earlier in the evening for the music and fun.
The remaining shows for Summer 2018 are:
Sept. 14, Mary Poppins
Electric Park
Festivities start at 5:30 pm
Cornerstone Park
Festivities start at 6 pm
More details about each night in our calendar of events.
In the event of inclement weather, please check here for cancellation notices.
This Library series is presented in partnership with Downtown Overland Park, City of Lenexa Parks & Recreation and City of Gardner Parks & Recreation. Support for these fun-filled experiences comes from the Friends of the Library and their volunteer core.
Music Monday: ET named to Middle of the Map Lineup
While Emmaline Twist is technically a new band, each of its four members is in some way a veteran of Kansas City music. Their combined powers are on full display in Emmaline Twist, a sonic amalgam of so many right elements: shoegaze, post-punk and atmospheric dance rock, for starters. While the band began only a year ago, 2016 saw the release of two songs, "Vega" and "Moon Eyes", that will make anyone eager for a full-length. We are thrilled to share an interview with Emmaline Twist's baritone guitarist, Krysztof Nemeth.
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Summer Family Fun
Staycation? We have so many things for families to do this summer! Have fun with these local events and save yourself from hearing, "Are we there yet?"
- Tabletop Games
- Movies in the Park
- Local Music Live
- Exhibitions and Meet the Artist Events
- Water Safety
- Visit from Priscilla Howe
Family fun? Find it here!
Help Us Imagine the Future
The Library needs your help to better serve you and create the best Library experience possible for you and your family. What kind of library services do you want to see for yourself, your family, and your neighborhood? Help us imagine the future »
Multicolor Monticello
Monticello Library is the newest facility in the Johnson County Library family. Its striking silhouette and bold site placement have already made it a western Shawnee landmark. When visitors enter the building on opening day – Sunday, August 5, 2018 if you hadn’t heard – they’ll find a colorful interior as dynamic and engaging as the exterior.
The Monticello exterior features black brick, white-painted metal and dark grey concrete surfaces. These could almost be called austere excepting the vigorous angles of the library’s two stories and the elegant floor-to-ceiling windows of the north and east facades. The handsome external textures and shadowy tones offer a tease and surprising contrast to the bright interior visual adventure.
The building's interior surfaces and textures are inspired by natural forms and colors composed to subtly define different Library spaces. Brilliant ‘high test’ carpeting is installed on both levels, in complementary and contrasting color compositions. Some walls in the roomy Kids areas feature woven acoustical wallcoverings. This makes them especially durable for the many Kids programs we’ll be offering, and useful for the easy display of drawings and posters often seen in our branches.
The richly hued floors lend their palette to feature walls in public areas and meeting rooms throughout the building. These occasionally are framed by subtle wood and brushed laminate textures. Restrooms upstairs and down feature entries and interior walls of shiny, generously proportioned primary-colored tiles set in white or grey mortar. Their vivid grids boldly contrast the planes of walls, ceilings and windows across the Library.
We are eager to welcome you to the new Monticello Library when we open, so you can experience this rewarding aesthetic tour de force yourself!