Hello LSC, we have more exciting news to share with you today!

Based on the FANTASTIC ideas and grant proposal created by Wells Village Librarian Gina Ellis, the Lake St. Catherine Association and the Wells Village Library were awarded an Education & Outreach grant for $20,360 by the Lake Champlain Basin Program (LCBP) for a series of initiatives and events in support of Libraries Love Lakes!

Libraries Love Lakes is an outreach project which pairs school and public libraries with lake scientists to provide collaborative programming emphasizing the importance of lakes in our everyday lives.

Last year, the inaugural Libraries Love Lakes event took place on July 3rd at the Wells Lakeside Park. Nine presenters offered opportunities for stewardship-based, hands-on, lake-related learning, and families were given lake-themed kits that included numerous books and activities. Boat tours were also provided to get attendees out on the lake to learn more about beautiful Lake St. Catherine. This effort also led to the creation of a new section in the Wells Village Library called "The Lake St. Catherine Collection."

This new Libraries Love Lakes project is entitled: "Libraries Love Lakes II: Conveying an Understanding of How Lake St. Catherine Fits to the Broader Watershed in order to Promote Inter/Intra-Community Collaboration and Sound Stewardship," and it is chock-full of fun and educational activities!

Libraries Love Lakes II includes:

• The creation of an interactive watershed model of Lake St. Catherine

• The creation of a Lake St. Catherine mascot through community participation

• Expanding "The Lake St. Catherine Collection" at the library

• Four seasonal themed, hands-on, fun & educational events for winter, spring summer & fall, which will include a larger summer event at the Lake St. Catherine State Park

Work on this project will begin in December, with the first event based on the winter theme taking place in February 2024.

We'll keep you up-to-date as this project progresses!