The Franklin Square Public Library hosted a pinecone-painting take-and-make event for teens on Jan. 8, led by Teen Services Librarian Daphne Levy. Teen participants grabbed a craft kit, which included a pinecone, paint and glitter, and decorated their pinecone under the direction of Levy.
However, Levy said, the library hosts an array of teen events that allow teens to log community service hours, all while creating crafts and socializing with friends. Currently, the library is hosting a “Teens for Sick Teens” donation drive, where teens can donate new, unopened and unwrapped items to the Cohen Children’s Medical Center, which has multiple locations across Long Island.
According to Levy, a lot of teens in Franklin Square are required to log community service hours in order to graduate from high school. When she began assessing her library program list, she decided to pivot from regular teen programming and started hosting events specifically aimed toward helping teens achieve their community service goals.
Teen crafts are particularly common, she said, such as origami, ornament making, bookmark designing and gnome decorating. After crafts are complete, she continued, they are placed in a basket for the public to take home. She said she envisions the teen programming as an opportunity to share art and culture across the entire community. “I want it to be a passing down of arts from one generation to another,” she said.
However, many events at the library involve learning new skills, helping seniors, donating supplies and collaborating with local nonprofits, such as Howie’s Heart.
“I try to come up with different ways to get them involved and give back to the community,” Levy said. Many of the teens are too young to drive, but she said the library is a 15-minute walk from H. Frank Carey High School. The library has become a hub for teens in Franklin Square, she continued, and it is a safe place for them to hang out.
Levy credited Melinda Space, the library’s adult programmer, for her creative program ideas that utilize crafts and baking to draw large crowds to the library. According to Levy, Space’s “Melinda Makes” adult program series is almost always at capacity with participants, and many more interested participants end up spilling over to a wait list. Space’s events inspire Levy to create her teen programs, which she adapts for their community service needs.
Levy said she is always looking for new ideas to bring to the library’s programming, and she encouraged teens and adults to share their ideas for future programs with her. “If any teen or adult has a skill they’d like to donate, come to the Franklin Square Public Library and donate it,” she said.
This month, Levy said there are a few upcoming teen events that will be hosted by the library. On Saturday, Jan. 25, there will be “Valentine’s Magnets” program for teens, grades 6 through 12, where participants can paint mini magnetic canvasses. There will also be a “Lunar New Year Appreciation Day” celebration where teens can make origami snakes and lanterns.
Additional information about upcoming events, and an approved list of items to donate for the “Teens for Sick Teens” donation drive, are listed on the library’s website, FranklinSquarePL.org.