Congratulations to this year’s Writing Contest winners! This year there were more than 50 entries in every category, and we welcomed creative non-fiction submissions for the first time ever. Judges, who included Patten Free Library Staff, the PFL Teen Library Council, and community members, were excited about the caliber of pieces submitted this year.
Pieces will be published on the Patten Free Library website on Wednesday, February 1.
First Place: Me by Franny DeGeer
Second Place: Peaks Island Vignette by Harper Nelson
First Place: Nightmare in Disguise by Rory Leeman
Second Place: The Excavator by Ivey Strickland
First Place: Writing to Remember by Zoë Brush
Second Place: A Perturbed Portrait by Grace Tetreault
First Place: The Snow on Her Lips by Aurora Guzzetti
Second Place: Anne’s Final Day by Naomi Fidler
First Place: Dear Jennifer by Jennifer Tinker
Second Place: The Forgotten Voice by Ellen A Endter
First Place TIE: Birds that Sing in the Dark by Arwyn Sherman
First Place TIE: The Hunt by James M. Wright
This year Tax-Aide will return to in-person, face-to-face tax preparation assistance in the Community Room on the second floor. No appointments are required or will be made. Tax-Aide volunteers are looking forward to assisting you with your 2022 tax returns and answering questions you may have.
Before your visit please fill out the Intake Questionnaire available at the front desk.
For more information call Local Coordinator Mary Louise Blanchard at 207-386-1048.
The Sagadahoc History and Genealogy Room announces the nineteenth annual Town History Series!
The Town History Series is a long-standing Patten Free Library tradition that brings together Patten Free Library’s member communities to learn about and celebrate each town’s local history. The town of Arrowsic, Bath Historical Society, Georgetown Historical Society, West Bath Historical Society, and Woolwich Historical Society each select a speaker to present on an aspect of their local history. All programs take place at 10:30 a.m. and will be presented in person, live on Zoom, and recorded and streamed on BCTV.
Click on the individual listing below to learn more and register online. Recordings will become available below and on the Town History Series playlist the week after they are live.
Sabino: An Historic Overview with Jay E. Paris Jr.
Oak Grove Cemetery: A History, with Stories with Joe Minott
Tide Mills of Georgetown with Harry Hopcroft
“Good Health, Good Morals, and Training:” Summer Camps in Woolwich with Allison Hepler
This year’s Town History Series is dedicated to Sheila Spear. Sheila volunteered for the History Room, indexing obituaries for our Memory database, and she was the first Town Administrator of Arrowsic until her retirement in 2022. At last year’s Town History Series, Sheila represented Arrowsic and presented Gift or Purchase? Relation to the Land, Arrowsic 1717. Sheila is greatly missed.
We are excited to be part of the 2023 Camden Conference! For the first time this year we are part of a collaborative programming partnership with Kennebunk Free Library, Patten Free Library, Scarborough Public Library, and Prince Memorial Library. This partnership allows us to offer even more great Camden Conference events throughout January and February. Click the link to each program below for more information and to register.
Gold and Global Politics with Mike Lynch
January 5 at 2 p.m.
Zoom
Immigration to America: 1800 – 1924 with John Sutherland
January 10 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom
21st Century Human Migration and Global Trade with Kathleen Sullivan
January 17 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom
Bilateral Trade: The Canadian Perspective with Rodger Cuzner, Consul General of Canada in Boston
January 23 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom
The Future of International Trade with Francesco Duina
January 24 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom
International Climate Policy & Trade with Peter Dugas
February 1 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom
The Race for the Final Frontier with John Doughty
February 8 at 5:30 p.m.
Zoom and in Person in the Community Room
January 11, 2023 at 6:30 p.m.
Zoom
Learn about Paris and some of its famous residents with Cheapo Snob series author Jayne Boisvert. Jayne will offer information on finding lodging and restaurants to suit just about anyone’s budget, (including a splurge or two), and discuss interesting attractions like the Palais Garnier and the Pantheon as well as the beautiful Château de Fontainebleau outside the city limits. In addition, we will examine the lives of a variety of French residents—from Brigitte Bardot and Coco Chanel to Victor Hugo and Erik Satie. Register below to enjoy this armchair tour of one of the greatest cities in the world. Presented on Zoom only.
Learn more about Jayne and the Cheapo Snob series here, and purchase her books at Gulf of Maine Books in Brunswick or on Amazon.
Register for This EventMonday from 3-5 p.m.
Community Room
Open to all ages and abilities- you don’t even have to be a knitter! Bring your supplies or use ours. Drop in every Monday for crafts and conversation.
Tuesday from 12-2:30 from November to May, in the lobby in the Children’s side entrance.
The Sharing Table is a table of free produce for all, generously provided by the Merrymeeting Gleaners. There is no income or residency requirement and it is 100% anonymous. The table is stocked with fresh produce as well as some prepared items, processed using any surplus gleaned food. Take what you need and leave the rest for your friends and neighbors.
For more information visit https://www.mchpp.org/project/merrymeeting-gleaners/.
1st prize and 2nd prizes will be named in each of six categories:
Grades 7-9: Short Fiction, Non-Fiction
Grades 10-12: Short Fiction, Non-Fiction
Adults: Short Fiction, Non-Fiction
Entries will be judged by a panel of library staff, trustees, local teachers, and Teen Library Council members. First ($100) and second prize ($50) gift certificates will be awarded in each category. Winners will be honored at a reception in January 2023; winning entries will be published on the Library website. The Writing Contest is made possible with support from the Friends of the Patten Free Library.
Entries accepted September 9 through December 3, 2022.
Guidelines:
• One submission limit per author per category; no co-authors.
• Teen entrants must be in grades 7-12, live in the library service area; or attend an R.S.U. 1 school, Chop Point School, Hyde School, or Chewonki Middle School.
• Adult entrants must be 18 years or older and live in the library service area (Arrowsic, Georgetown, Bath, West Bath, or Woolwich) or hold a valid Patten Free Library card. Library staff are not eligible for consideration.
• Previously published work will not be accepted.
• Entries may be up to 3000 words.
• Include a header on each page with title, category, and page number.
• Submissions will be judged blind. DO NOT include writer’s name anywhere on the submission itself.
• No “fan fiction,” please.
Submissions accepted via online submission form or in print.
Electronic submission:
Print submission:
Writing Contest c/o Patten Free Library
33 Summer Street
Bath, ME 04530
Questions? Call or email Hannah Lackoff (207-443-5141 x1021, hlackoff@patten.lib.me.us)
The contest is made possible with support from the Friends of the Patten Free Library.
Join Morgan Talty, author of the acclaimed short story collection Night of the Living Rez, as he reads from his book, talks about his work, and answers your questions. Registration required for this Zoom only event.
Let your voice be heard and help shape the future of Teen programming as we plan Library events, make friends, and enjoy our beautiful Teen Space. Grades 8-12. Meets the first Friday of every month, except in October when we will meet on the 2nd Friday. Have questions or need more info? Email Hannah.
