Search Stories
This Week at the Library
This week at the Library, you can join us at:
Library OnDemand – Available anytime you like.
Your doorway into live and archived programs. Arts & Culture, Career & Finance, Community Matters, Writers and more!
Online Bilingual Storytime / Hora de cuentos bilingües en línea – Monday, March 14, 10-10:30 a.m.
The whole family will enjoy this flexible Storytime. Hearing stories is a great way to spend time with your kids and help them foster a love of reading. Stories, songs, fingerplays and movement activities foster pre-reading skills. Fun for the whole family.
Toda la familia disfrutará de esta especial hora de cuentos bilingües. Escucha historias con tus hijos y ayúdales a cultivar el amor por la lectura. Al contar cuentos, interpretar canciones, hacer juegos con los dedos y realizar actividades de movimiento fomentamos las habilidades previas a la lectura. ¡Diversión para toda la familia!
One-on-One Genealogy Help via Zoom – Tuesday, March 15, 9 a.m.-1 p.m.
Basic Genealogy and DNA one-on-one help sessions are now being held online via Zoom specific to your questions and research. Visit the Johnson County Genealogical Society at www.jcgsks.org to schedule an appointment. A volunteer will email a personal Zoom meeting link to you prior to the scheduled date.
Maintain Your Ride – Thursday, March 17, Noon-1:30 p.m.
DIY bike maintenance made simple! Get your hands dirty and learn to keep your bike in tip-top shape with this FREE virtual class from Johnson County Library and BikeWalkKC. Our instructors will teach you how to keep your bike in good working order with a few basic tools and some practical know-how.
Facebook Live Book Party – Thursday, March 17, 7-7:30 p.m.
Facebook Live Book Parties are live events where a library staff members will booktalk a short list of titles around a certain genre or theme and staff will interact with patrons in real time.
Kanopy: Conflict in Ukraine
In an effort to understand the significance of the invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops and the chain of events that preceded it, Kanopy has carefully curated a collection of documentary and narrative films focused specifically on this country and region. Gain a better understanding of the history and current events of the region with more than 20 films available to stream on demand through the Library's subscription.
Interactive Learning Unit Ready to Thrill Kids at Central
One of the featured activity areas in Central Resource Library's new Kids area is a Burgeon pre-literacy learning space, graciously funded by the Regnier Family Foundation, John W. & Effie E. Speas Memorial Trust, and Johnson County Library Foundation.
These interactive units are designed by educators and librarians to develop the same essential pre-literacy skills as the Library’s signature program, 6 by 6: Ready to Read. The units are colorful and child-sized which draws children to them and introduces the concept of letters as a 3-dimensional game or puzzle. More like a playground to children, Burgeon units are effective teaching tools. You'll see unique Burgeon units at other Library locations as well!
Special thanks to the funders and our Early Literacy Team!
Women's History Month 2022
History is our past retold from written, visual and spoken sources. Those speeches, writings, films, photographs and oral histories communicate so much! History is essentially storytelling meant to shed light on individual and group experience. It records facts, opinions and attitudes. And, it notes change over time. March is Women's History Month and we invite you to join Johnson County Library in commemorating and celebrating the vital role of women in American, and specifically Johnson County, history.
How we celebrate:
- Time travel through Women's History at JoCoHistory. You will find photographs, newspaper articles, oral histories and other artifacts that share the experiences of women in Johnson County over the course of its history
- Explore our Women's Fiction recommendations
- Listen to female Local Musicians
- Read works from local women authors on our JoCoWrites Blog
- Delve into our Women's Studies Archive and Women: Transnational Networks resources, both available in our History and Biography collection
Friends Donation Events Are Back!
The Friends of Johnson County Library have resumed their popular donation drop-off events. Bring your gently used books, DVDs, CDs and more.
Saturdays
9 - 11 a.m.
Friends Headquarters: 8279 Melrose Drive, Lenexa, KS 66214
Events may be canceled for inclement weather. You can also call 913.492.4791 for more information or to arrange a donation time outside of the drop-off events.
Can't miss local and regional business information!
What is the premier source for news and articles on local and regional business? Kansas City Business Journal of course!
This digital portal provides news and articles on local and regional business, including:
- Full site access to stories online, including premium subscriber content
- Exact digital replicas of the weekly business journals
- Digital Book of Lists, containing the names and contact information of hundreds of ranked companies
All you need is a Library card number and PIN/password.
Meet the Authors: B.J. and Henry Hollars
Library events help tell the Story of Your Life
How do we conjure our long-forgotten stories? And how can we recall those details from the past that we thought had vanished? There’s a technique for that. On Saturday, March 26, author B.J. Hollars will provide a series of generative writing prompts that will be sure to spur your memory, bring your past to the present and help you write your life’s story.
The virtual workshop, presented by the Library’s Local Writers group, is one of a three-part program series featuring Hollars, an award-winning author of several books and English professor at the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. His most recent book “Go West Young Man: A Father and Son Rediscover America on the Oregon Trail” is the story of an eye-opening 2,500-mile road trip with his six-year-old son, Henry.
Make Every Mile a Memory: A Reading and Presentation with B.J. and Henry Hollars on “Go West Young Man.”
Tuesday, March 22, 6:30 p.m.Travel Writing for Dummies: On Rattlesnakes, Wagon Ruts and Making the World Feel Like Home
Wednesday, March 23, 6:30 p.m.The Story of Your Life: Writing Your Forgotten Past Workshop
Saturday, March 26, 9 a.m.
Looking for more events along these lines? The Library loves writers just as much as readers! To support writers at every stage, from a casual hobby to a life’s calling, Johnson County Library has developed a suite of programs, resources and opportunities to develop your craft and grow your portfolio. If you are a writer, we want to meet you, read your work and celebrate you in the community. There is even a writing contest with a $200 honorarium!
Visit For Writers for more information about the Library’s writing programming and go to Events to register for upcoming events and workshops, including the B.J. Hollars events.
This Week at the Library
This week at the Library, you can join us at:
Library OnDemand – Available anytime you like.
Your doorway into live and archived programs. Arts & Culture, Career & Finance, Community Matters, Writers and more!
Caregiver Workshop: Power of Play in Process Art with the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art – Tuesday, March 8, 7-8 p.m.
Whether it's finding activities to keep them busy or understanding what's going on inside their heads, being a caregiver of young children can be challenging. Each month's caregiver workshop explores a different topic to support and enrich relationships between kids age birth to 6 and their caregivers.
The Past is Prologue: The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In – Thursday, March 10, 7-8 p.m.
In July 1958, Black students gathered at downtown Wichita’s Dockum Drugstore to stage a peaceful protest against the unequal practice of segregation. Tired of being denied access to the city’s movie theaters and restaurants, students took action and turned their attention to the lunch counter at the popular drugstore. What happened during the three-week sit-in? What caused it to end? And why was its importance recognized by so few at the time? This presentation discusses the details of the sit-in, explores how these protests helped transform the struggle for racial equality in America, and considers contemporary non-violent protests.
Legislative Coffee Series – Saturday, March 12, 10-11 a.m.
Discover what's percolating in the Kansas Legislature. Representatives and Senators with constituents in Johnson County will discuss the new legislative session, followed by Q&A. You bring the questions!
- Senator Ethan Corson, District 7
- Representative Stephanie Clayton, District 19
- Representative Lindsay Vaughn, District 22
- Representative Heather Meyer, District 29
- Representative Brandon Woodard, District 30
The Past is Prologue: The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In
Join us for The Past is Prologue: The Dockum Drugstore Sit-In:
Thursday, March 10, 7 p.m.
Register »
The Past is Prologue is a bimonthly program that highlights topics often left out, glossed over, or misrepresented in our history books. For our March program, Prisca Barnes will present on the The Dockum Drugstore Sit-in on Thursday, March 10 at 7pm. In July 1958, Black students gathered at downtown Wichita’s Dockum Drugstore to stage a peaceful protest against the unequal practice of segregation. Tired of being denied access to the city’s movie theaters and restaurants, students took action and turned their attention to the lunch counter at the popular drugstore. What happened during the three-week sit-in? What caused it to end? And why was its importance recognized by so few at the time? This presentation discusses the details of the sit-in, explores how these protests helped transform the struggle for racial equality in America, and considers contemporary non-violent protests.