Bands for Books, a party to raise funds for the Friends of Wiscasset Library, will again be held this year on Labor Day, Sept. 5. Enjoy live music and dancing, hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, raffle, and a silent auction in a stunning setting.

While all of the Friends fundraising goes to projects to benefit the Library, one longstanding and regular donation made by the Friends is to the Children’s Summer Reading program. Serving children from birth through high school, the Summer Reading Club, and Summer Reading Camp have one goal – to foster a love for books and reading among the area’s children.

This year, with a theme of Oceans of Possibilities, there are a record number of participants, totaling over 200 children! The Reading Camp reads aloud to kids, while the Reading Club offers incentive rewards for each book that the children read and report on. After reading eight books, and receiving eight prizes, they then are issued raffle tickets for each additional book they read. At the end of the program, there will be drawings for the many raffle prizes, which are geared from the youngest through the high school readers. Most of these prizes are generous donations from local businesses and community groups. The Summer Reading programs also offer several excellent speakers geared to family members of all ages, presented this year by Marine Mammals of Maine and the Chewonki Foundation.

The Friends are proud to be sponsors of this wonderful program each year, and share the Library’s belief that the Children’s Room is the most important room in the Library. Wiscasset’s Library does an outstanding job of encouraging children to enjoy reading at every age level, expanding their world, giving them tools for the future, and providing the most rewarding pastime they will enjoy for the rest of their lives.

Please join us on Labor Day for our annual Bands for Books, from 5 to 7 p.m., at Seafield Farm in Wiscasset. Tickets are now available at the Library.