By JESSALYN KIRCHHOFF
Tiger Media Network
Hays Public Library is offering the World Language Club, held on the third Saturday of each month. The HPL’s World Language Club offers a variety of opportunities, including special guest presentations, practicing new languages, and a variety of tasty treats.
Jessica Shields, a public services librarian at HPL and the organizer of the World Language Club, provides a brief summary of the club’s activities.
“The World Language Club meets monthly to explore languages of the world,” Shields said. “Each month we have a presenter who tells us about their journey with languages, followed by a mini-language lesson, and practice.”
According to Shields, almost all meetings will have a guest speaker who presents over that month’s selected language.
“The presentations contain the presenters’ language journey and then finish up with a mini-lesson in the selected language,” she said.
Shields said the World Language Club all started at Highs Hays School with Codi Fenwick.
“She [Codi] reached out to the library in the Fall of 2022 to extend the Hays High World Language Club into the Hays community,” Shields said. “The idea came from wanting to showcase the diversity of Hays as well as introduce new cultures through languages and the themed snacks. The rest is history and the library has been hosting the club ever since.”
Shields said she wants to thank Fenwick and to everyone who has provided presentations for the club saying these events are enormously important to the community to connect, grow, and inspire. Events such as this one promote learning and understanding.
“I would love to get a special thank you to Codi Fenwick and all the presenters who have graciously donated their time and efforts for our program,” she said.
Shields welcomes everyone to join in on the monthly meetings and emphasizes the club has no requirements as well as a mix of age ranges of people that participate in the club.
November’s World Language Club meeting is scheduled to take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday in the Hays Public Library Schmidt Gallery. November’s meeting will be highlighting French and the HPL will provide some French cookies.
Next month’s meeting is scheduled to take place at 11 a.m. on Saturday, December 16 in the Hays Public Library Schmidt Gallery. For December, the HPL will be presenting German and there will be a classic German holiday food item.
More information on the Hays Public Library can be found at https://hayslibrary.org/ and their complete calendar of events can be found here https://hayslibrary.evanced.info/signup/Calendar.