Message from the Director

Fulfil your resolutions with Norfolk Public Library

It’s with great pleasure that I get to share with you all that Norfolk Public Library’s resolution going into the new year is to continue creating a City of Learners! And one of the best ways to do that is to keep you all informed about the fun, free innovative programming you can find throughout this event guide and at a branch location near you.

NPL prides itself on offering programs for all ages and abilities. You can find Game On with Paddington Bear fun stations located at every branch for our youngest patrons during Children’s Book Week in May. Tweens and teens can hangout with friends, new and old, in events such as Speed Date with a Book at Richard A. Tucker Memorial Library, the March Madness NBA 2K tournament at Jordan-Newby and the Love You to Pizza’s Party at Van Wyck. Young adults can connect during book clubs such as the Silence is Golden and Mermaid City meetups at Little Creek and crafting sessions like Maker Mornings 101 at the Randi Marston Peterson Maker Studio. And we couldn’t leave out the senior crowd, who can enjoy the Online Safety for Seniors program at the Downtown Branch at Slover.

For our patrons with disabilities, the Mary D. Pretlow Anchor Branch is introducing Adaptive Fridays with unique, enriching programs, while the Adult Programs department is hosting Community Conversations: Disability vs. Social Constructs of Accessibility at the Downtown Branch at Slover in partnership with Old Dominion University for this year’s National Endowment for the Arts Big Read.  

We also have some special events scheduled during the upcoming months: Richard A. Tucker Day at his namesake Memorial Library and the Essence of Heart and Soul Festival at the Downtown Branch at Slover to commemorate Black History Month, a portrayal of Norfolk civil rights hero Evelyn T. Butts by the Arts for Learning’s Valerie Davis in honor of Women’s History Month and the Kenjutsu: Japanese Swordsmanship event at Barron F. Black to celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, just to name a few.

We hope you take some time to sit down, look through these pages, find a program that excites you (and register, if needed), and participate. It’s a great way to connect with all your friends and neighbors in our wonderful city!

Yours Truly,

Sonal Rastogi
Director of Libraries