Thursday, May 25th @ 7:00pm:  The Ridgefield Library and Lyme Connection welcome Ross Douthat to the Library to discuss his new book, The Deep Places: A Memoir of Illness and Discovery. Douthat, a New York Times opinion columnist and author, will discuss his battle with a devastating sickness, ultimately diagnosed as a chronic form of Lyme disease. In The Deep Places, Ross details the struggles faced by many Lyme patients as they seek a proper diagnosis and appropriate medical care—and explores the controversies that surround these insidious tick-borne diseases. During his journey, Douthat discovers the many pitfalls of modern medicine, as well as the strength and courage needed to reclaim his health

Books on the Common will have copies for purchase and signing.  Please register to attend.

Join us for an exciting schedule of in-person author talks in April. Talks are held in the Main Program room on the Library’s Lower Level and begin at 7:00pm.  For more information and to register, please click the dates below.

Tuesday, April 11thLeBron, Jeff Benedict

Wednesday, April 19thNext! The Power of Reinvention in Life and Work, Joanne Lipman

Thursday, April 20thThe Partnership: George Marshall, Henry Stimson and the Extraordinary Collaboration That Won World War II, Edward Farley Aldrich

Wednesday, April 26thAmerican Ramble: A Walk of Memory and Renewal, Neil King

Our partners, Books on the Common, will have copies of books available for sale and signing.

The Library is again hosting AARP Foundation Tax-Aide on Thursday mornings from 8am – 1pm through AprilAARP Foundation Tax-Aide provides in-person and virtual tax assistance to anyone, free of charge, with a focus on taxpayers who are over 50 and have low to moderate income. Tax-Aide volunteers are trained and IRS-certified every year to make sure they know about and understand the latest changes and additions to the tax code. Jon Elkow leads the AARP Foundation Tax-Aide program for Ridgefield. Contact Jon directly at (203) 438-4288 to book your appointment to have your 2022 tax returns prepared. Appointments are limited and fill up fast!

April 8th @ 9:00am to 5:00pm:   The Friends of the Ridgefield Library invite you to stop by the Friends Sorting Room on the Lower Level of the Library for their monthly Secret Stacks Book Sale, held on the second Saturday of the month.

The Friends of the Ridgefield Library accept book donations! Leave your donated books on the cart(s) outside the Friends Sorting Room on the lower level of the Library during regular open hours. (Please do not leave donations in the Library Lobby or anywhere outside the building.)

Save the Date for the Friends Big Book Sales in May!  

Children’s Sale:  May 5th – 7th
General Sale:  May 12th – 15th

We’re in the running! The Ridgefield Library is honored to be one of the charities in contention for Fairfield County Bank’s Charity of the Month for March. PLEASE VOTE and help us to receive a $1,000 donation from the bank. Anyone can vote daily by 1. heading to the Charity of the Month page on the Fairfield County Bank website to vote online, 2.  in person at one of the bank’s branch offices and drive-ups, and 3. by calling the bank’s Customer Care Center at (203) 431-7431. Thank you, Fairfield County Bank, for your support of local Fairfield County non-profits!

The Ridgefield Library Association is seeking applications from Ridgefield residents for membership on its Board of Directors. Self-nominations are encouraged. Three-year terms begin on July 1.

The Library Board is a working board, with up to 16 members who are responsible for the organization’s fiduciary oversight, strategic planning and policy-setting. Board members take an active role in helping the Library raise the nearly 30% of its annual operating budget that comes through fundraising, donations and gifts.

The Board seeks diverse, broad and balanced representation of people, skill sets and experience from the community. Examples of particular skills in demand for new members include, but are not limited to, development, finance, legal, marketing, technology and nonprofit governance. We encourage all interested parties to apply.

Completed applications must be received by March 31, 2023 for consideration. For more information on the roles and responsibilities of Library Board members, and to apply, please contact Library Director Brenda McKinley at [email protected]

Announcing the Walker Library of the History of Human Imagination Youth Tour Contest for students ages 10-18 who attend school in Ridgefield, CT!

About the Contest:

Thanks to the generosity of Jay and Eileen Walker as well as that of an anonymous local donor, the Ridgefield Library is thrilled to announce a contest to choose 5 winners who along with a friend of their choice, will experience an amazing tour of The Walker Library of the History of Human Imagination.

The Walker Library of the History of Human Imagination celebrates humanity’s intellectual and emotional adventure of discovery, learning, and creativity by showcasing thousands of rare books, artworks, maps and manuscripts as well as museum-quality artifacts both modern and ancient.

Walker Library Gallery

Entrants must choose an object from the ‘Walker Library Gallery’ that sparks their imagination. Using the object as a prompt for their imagination, students will create something unique in any medium.

Follow the above link to see more objects from the Library.

If you have any questions, please contact Meg Klein, Teen Librarian, at [email protected]

Bring your love of poetry to Ridgefield! Poet and educator Barb Jennes’ three-year tenure as the inaugural Ridgefield Poet Laureate will end in March 2023. Those wishing to learn more or to be considered for this Town-appointed position of Ridgefield Poet Laureate should click here for more information and application details. Do you know someone who would be perfect? Please encourage them to apply!

For further information email [email protected] or call 203-438-2282 ext. 120.

Ready to show your love for the Ridgefield Library? Thursday 2.23.23 is FCCF Giving Day:  Your online donation on 2.23.23 supports all that you love about the Ridgefield Library and ensures vital access for everyone in our community to exceptional programs, resources, collections and services.

February 18th @ 2:00pm:  H. Lloyd Weston is a former Ridgefield resident and an internationally known Jamaican-born artist whose work is in significant private collections in New York, Rome, Tokyo, London and Paris. Join us for this very special artist’s reception celebrating the artist and his work.

This exhibition — Color, Concept, Creativity — is on view in the Library’s Lower Level Gallery through March 29th. It represents a large body of Weston’s work from 1989 – 2019 which is influenced by Impressionism and Abstract Expressionism. Weston’s luminous paintings often have an affinity with nature. He is a strong colorist who conveys warmth and dynamism in his landscapes and abstract paintings. Weston’s objective is to make paintings with a sense of beauty and immediacy that intimately connect with the viewer.

Please register to attend the artist’s reception.

Pictured: Sunrise on Lake Lugano, 2016