Pictou-Antigonish Regional Library

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Our Senior's Café is now the Community Café! PARL is pleased to continue providing the same quality programming, including music, special guests and speakers, light refreshments, and an inclusive, welcoming space for our community.

Wednesday, June 7 from 2:00pm – 3:00pm at the Antigonish Library. Join our Community Cafe, formerly known as Seniors Cafe, as they host speakers who talk about a variety of topics! Today, Biologist Randy Lauff will give an illustrated talk on Owls! Snacks and light refreshments will be provided - to learn more or suggest a speaker please call 902-863-4276. All are welcome!

Wednesday, June 7 from 2:30pm – 3:30pm at the Westville Library. Join us for our monthly Community Cafe, as speakers come and talk about a variety of topics. Tea, coffee and light snacks will be provided. This month, Terry Megeney will join us from the Central Supplies Garden Centre to give us some handy hints and gardening tips of the trade. Tea, coffee and snacks will be provided – all are welcome! For program suggestions, please call (902) 396-5022 or (902) 755-6031.

Wednesday, June 21 from 1:30pm – 3:00pm at the Pictou Library. Vermi-Composting with Marla from Pictou County Solid Waste! A perfect chance to socialize and get dirty with Marla as she talks about worms and vermi-composting! Please bring 2 dark coloured containers and Marla will provide the worms! Bring a friend, tea, coffee and snacks will be provided! For more information about the program, please contact the Pictou Library, (902) 485-5021.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to speak Gaelic? A small group of people with interest in speaking Gaelic are planning a weekly get together every Thursday at 6:30pm to see if there are any others that would like to meet regularly to share their love of the language.

For more information, please call (902) 485-5021.

Free shows at public libraries across Nova Scotia, all summer long!

Friday, July 7th, 10:30AM @ Westville Library - African Dancer Abena Tuffour - Abena Tuffour is a solo and group dancer of traditional and modern West African Dances, who uses movement to create, engage & elevate! She is also a writer, poet, and 2016 recipient of the poetry prize from the Nova Writes Competition for Unpublished Manuscripts (through the Writer’s Federation of Nova Scotia). All are welcome! This demonstration is for all ages, to learn more contact the library by calling (902) 396-5022.

Wednesday, July 12th, 10:00AM @ Antigonish Library - Mi'kmaw storyteller Shalan Joudry - Shalan Joudry is a Storyteller, hand-drum singer and poet from the traditional district of Kespukwitk (southwest Nova Scotia). She uses her theatrical background to bring Mi’kmaw legends to a new generation of listeners, as well as recounting personally-crafted stories that follow the Mi’kmaw storyweaving custom. She lives and works in her community of Bear River First Nation.

Tuesday, August 1st, 6:30PM @ Trenton Park Amphitheatre - Circus Performer Mike Hirschbach - Hirschbach presents “Secrets of the Circus”, a performance and introduction to juggling, unicycling, balance work and more, with a Q & A afterwords. He has been a circus artist for 35 years, worked with Cirque du Soleil, and performed all over the world. He is the Artistic Director at Halifax Circus. Length: 55 minutes.

Wednesday, August 9th, 10:30AM @ Pictou Library - Gaelic & Acadian Multi-Instrumentalist Mary Beth Carty - Mary Beth Carty is a high-energy one-woman band who has toured all over the world with her captivating, interactive song and dance shows. She regularly visits schools across Nova Scotia, offering workshops, exploring traditional cultures through song, dance, and crafts.

Thursday, August 17th, 1:30PM @ New Glasgow Library - Singer and songwriter Jamie Junger - presents "Fishin' For Pickles", an original, whimsical and upbeat children’s album that kids love to sing along with and parents won’t want to toss. After 20 years in Vancouver, recording and touring with a number of notable Canadian rock bands, Jamie moved back home to Nova Scotia, he teaches music while continuing to record and perform.

Join us at the library. Beginners welcome!

• Wednesdays at 2:00pm at the Antigonish People's Place Library
• Thursdays at 3:00pm at the Pictou Library
• Fridays at 10:00am at the River John Library
• Fridays at 1:00pm at the Stellarton Library
• Every 2nd Saturday at 2:30pm at the New Glasgow Library
And For kids ages 7+
• the 1st Tuesday of the month at 6:30pm at the Stellarton Library
• the 4th Tuesday of the month at 4:00pm at the Westville Library

All welcome to join us for a Nordic Pole Walking Beginners Clinics:
May 16th, 2:00-3:30pm @ Antigonish Library
June 2nd, 2:00-3:30pm @ New Horizons 55+ Club, Pictou

All welcome to join us for a Nordic Pole Walking Leaders Course:

May 16th, 9:00am-12Noon @ Antigonish Town Hall June 2nd, 9:00am-12Noon @ Pictou Library Community Room

Nordic Pole Walking is an effective low-impact physical activity. Learn about the proven benefits for overall fitness, therapy, weight loss & rehabilitation through this excellent walking fitness regime with added health and fitness benefits. Bill and Esther VanGorder Nationally Certified Instructors from Nordic Walking Nova Scotia will guide you through the essentials while explaining why it will benefit you. Nordic Pole Walking "loaner" poles will be provided for those who do not own Nordic Pole Walking poles so you can try Canada’s fastest growing adult fitness activity. Or bring your own to learn how to properly use them for the best results. Nordic Pole Walking (NPW) is an excellent low-impact exercise that offers the highest benefits for health, wellness and fitness for adults of all ages.

Dress for the weather, we will be indoors and out. Wear good walking shoes.

To register for the Antigonish beginners clinic, please call the Antigonish Town & County Library (902-863-4276). To register for the Pictou beginners clinic, please call Pictou Parks & Recreation (902-485-4372) or email michelle.young@townofpictou.ca. Due to space limitations (class size of 30 participants), the Pictou beginners clinic will be held at the New Horizons 55+ Club located at 14 Kempt Street (along the harbour front, adjacent to the RCMP detachment) in Pictou.

To register for the free 3-hour leadership workshop, to teach participants how to instruct others in Nordic walking, please call Pictou Library (902-485-5021, or email pictou@nsngp.library.ns.ca (Class size is limited to 15 participants)

**These free clinics were made possible through a NS Heart & Stroke Walkabilities Grant.

About the Instructor: Bill VanGorder is a Certified Nordic Pole Walking Instructor, the President of Nordic Walking Nova Scotia and an experienced fitness instructor. Bill has a lengthy background in health and fitness including 28 years as a YMCA staff member, 15 years as CEO of the Lung Association of Nova Scotia and 7 years as a certified Nordic Pole Walking Instructor.

Burning questions about technology? Save them for us as we tackle topics ranging from how to use your new tablet, to taking the perfect photo with your smartphone or electronic device! Questions are welcome, as we learn more about how to use technology to our advantage. Join us

• February 15th - Rocket Languages
• March 15th - How to listen to music online
• April 19th - eBooks, audios, & eMagazines - oh my!

For more information please call 902 396-5022.

The Heart and Stroke Foundation is committed to creating healthy lives free of heart disease and stroke. Join them for a 'Heart to Heart' to share your stories and learn how the Heart and Stroke Foundation is creating survivors. Guest speakers will be Dr. Angie Kolen, St. Francis Xavier University and Claire MacLean, Heart & Stroke Foundation.

Light refreshments will be served, to register for the free session in advance please go to heart2heartinantigonish.eventbrite.ca

For more information please contact the library at (902) 863-4276.

In honor of African Heritage Month, all are welcome to join us at the library and experience "The Cal Best Project", a touring exhibit on display celebrating a local hero, James Calbert Best (the son of Carrie Best). The exhibit is on display courtesy of the Workers History Museum and the Public Service Alliance of Canada - Atlantic (PSAC).

About the Exhibit:

"The Cal Best Project" celebrates the life and legacy of this extraordinary activist with a travelling exhibition that includes a documentary (Simply the Best), multi-panel bilingual educational display, and panel discussion. From his early days as a reporter covering the controversial Viola Desmond case to his tenure as Canada’s first Black High Commissioner, Best’s efforts are brought to life through interviews, archival footage, and contemporary news accounts. A special focus on Best’s commitment to a more inclusive public service examines his efforts as co-founder and president of the Civil Service Association of Canada (the precursor to today’s Public Service Alliance of Canada) and highlights the debt that thousands of Canadian public servants owe him even today.

The WHM’s explorations into Cal Best’s life started small, using parts of a panel discussion with PSAC Founders to look at the life and career of Cal Best. We soon discovered that what we knew was only the tip of the iceberg. As Arthur Carkner, coordinator of the project, recalls, "We learned about his early struggles with racism, his Nova Scotia achievements, about his mother, Carrie Best. Best’s role in immigration, amateur sport, senior positions in various government departments ending in being Canada’s first Black High Commissioner (ambassador) gradually came to light, and we continue to learn more."

Cal Best’s story is one we should not forget. By bringing "The Cal Best Project" to audiences across the country, we can ensure that more Canadians learn about this remarkable figure in our shared history.

For more information, please visit - http://workershistorymuseum.ca/portfolio/cal-best/.

Join us for the film screening 'Simply the Best: Cal Best' as we celebrate African Heritage Month. All are welcome! Thur. February 25, 6:15pm at the River John Library.