The Northwest Branch of the Jefferson County Library will hold a fall festival open house this weekend.
Branch manager Jennifer Mathes said the event will begin at 1 p.m. Saturday and wrap up at 3 p.m. at the library, 5680 Hwy. PP, in High Ridge. Festivities will include crafts, live music, storytelling and more.
“This is the first time we’re doing the open house in the fall,” Mathes said. “Previously, we would do it in December, but I think it was tricky for people to make time for it. We’re trying to open it to more people this year.”
Mathes said the library is partnering with The Magic House to provide a “tiny pumpkin chuckin’” activity for children, who will get to “shoot the pumpkin across the library.”
“That should be fun,” she said.
The library will showcase its Library of Things, a catalog that includes games, household objects and tools that can be checked out with a library card just like books, Mathes said.
“We have ax-throwing, cornhole and Skee-Ball – those are all things people are going to be able to check out after the event and take home,” she said.
Other Library of Things items include specialty cake pans, fishing poles, karaoke machines and fondue pots. For a full list, visit jeffcolib.org/services/library-of-things.
The Big River Trio, which plays folk-rock music, will play.
“They’ll be providing a musical backdrop for the entire day,” she said. “They’re very lively, but also know how to play to their surroundings.”
A fireside story time for children will be held at 2 p.m., featuring the library’s mascot, Oliver the Otter.
Ginger Brickey, head of the library’s Genealogy and Local History Department, will tell spooky local history stories in the Della Lang Room.
In the lobby, Friends of the Library members will offer free snacks and a book sale.
To learn more about the fall festival, visit jeffcolib.org/events or call the Northwest branch at 636-677-8186.
No registration is required for the event.
“We’re excited to open the doors to the community and allow people to see what the library has to offer,” Mathes said. “We’re here for them, so we would love for them to come back to us.”