If today’s library is a gathering place as well as a place where information is accumulated and passed on to the public, then it should be of no surprise that C.H. Booth Library will host an open house unlike others in its long history. On Saturday, September 27, the public is invited to attend the chbMakers Open House, from noon to 4 pm, and experience the disbursement of information that comes not from books, but from the passions and expertise of other community members.

The four-hour open house will offer workshops, mainly on the first and second levels, in subjects that range from Scratch Coding for computers and soldering to arm knitting and modular electronics. Geared for all ages, visitors will have the opportunity for hands-on dabbling under the guidance of skilled hobbyists and experts.

The chbMakers is a response to the MakerSpace movement that has been sweeping schools, libraries, and other organizations for nearly a decade, bringing together “makers” from communities to share ideas.

“A MakerSpace movement is defined by the community it is in,” explained C.H. Booth Young Adult Librarian Kim Weber. “It offers ways for community members to share there passions with one another,” she emphasized.

Bringing creativity into the library space is not necessarily new, she said.

“We’ve been doing this forever, really, with our craft classes, computer classes, and so on. The chbMakers is just a way of rebranding it and bringing it all together,” Ms Weber said. An anonymous donation to the library has allowed the librarians to “rebrand” on a much larger scale than originally anticipated. The recent purchase of a 3D printer and a littleBits modular building kit are two items exciting not only younger patrons, but also the more mature C.H. Booth Library patron, Ms Weber said.

Having visited MakerSpace-like sites in libraries around the state, including Trumbull and Westport, the staff of C.H. Booth Library is excited to introduce the concept to Newtown, she said. In Westport, the hands-on sharing has been so popular that the library has actually created a centrally located space within the library and stocked it with things like 3D printers and even power tools.

Staff did discuss whether this movement was “gimmicky,” Ms Weber said. “We wondered, is this what a library should be doing? But as librarians, we are organizers of information, and [chbMakers] is a new way to share and provide information. It’s just done through people, instead of books,” she said, “and we love the intergenerational aspect of it.” How the chbMakers ultimately turns out is up to what the community wants, she stressed.

“When we reached out to local people to lead the September 27 workshops, everyone was so excited. I’ve been doing programming at the library for years, and I’ve never had this kind of response,” said Ms Weber.

Saturday’s Offerings

Visitors to the chbMakers Open House on Saturday will meet new Technical Service Librarian Kate Sheehan in the Python Coding sessions, and be walked through Scratch Coding by Young Adult Council (YAC) member Maya Welber .

Kerry McKinley of Newtown will lead the curious through the ins and outs of soldering, and artist Katie Stevenson will share her expertise in needle felting. Participants can try spinning or wet felting of yarn under the guidance of Sheep Shoppe owner Nancy Gould, or get up to their elbows in arm knitting with Linda Zemba Burhance and Audrey Locorotondo.

YAC member Nicole Palmieri will share her skills in buttonmaking, Jackson Harrington will teach origami, and Cole Harrington will lead sessions on creative use of duct tape.

What makes great digital photography? Sandy Schill, president of Flagpole Photographers, will share her photography skills, while Juliana Miraldi shares the best ways in which to photograph your favorite toys.

Find out what Makey Makey is, with YAC member Ian Wilson. Erik Holst Grubbe and David Corsi, of the Newtown High School 3D Club, electronics designer Julia Truchsess of Pragmatic Designs, Inc, and YAC student Ben Schmid-Tharnish will demonstrate the capabilities of the 3D printer.

Experiment with electricity with Valorie Delp, and learn as research scientist Bob Schroeder leads “playtime” with littleBits modular building blocks.

More hands-on building will be by Kristin Chiriatti of EverWonder Children’s Museum Experience, during the Building Structures workshops.

The chbMakers experience is about community, and on September 27, artist Paula Brinkman will lead participants in creating a 3D puzzle collage community mural, which will be presented to the residents of Nunnawauk Meadows upon completion.

A library open house would not be complete, though, without literature, and a selection of literary games will be on display in the café area near the main circulation desk.

“We are a community center and libraries are a means of people accessing things they might not be able to afford on their own,” Ms Weber said, much as once books were rare items and in the hands of only a few, prior to lending libraries. “The chbMakers Open House is a way for people to sample all that we offer, and many of the workshops [offered on September 27] will be ongoing,” she said. Signups for training of public use of the 3D printer will take place after the Open House.

The chbMakers Open House takes place Saturday, September 27, from noon to 4 pm, at C.H. Booth Library, 25 Main Street. It is appropriate for all ages. Most activities are free and are on a drop-in basis.

For those workshops requiring registration and/or a small fee, go to www.chboothlibrary.org and sign up under the What’s Happening link.