Category: Library News

ANNOUNCEMENT (January 16, 2026): We’re on a roll through January and we have another Cooking with Kids session coming Thursday, January 22, after school from 3:30 PM to 5:00 PM. Registration is now open for chefs 9-12 years of age with a signed permission slip and waiver on file. Class size is limited to 6 students for safety and instructional purposes. Don’t miss out on signing up your little chef now! Drop in at the circulation desk or call 785-336-2377.

REPORT (January 15, 2025): The Cooking with Kids crew came back with a spicy vengeance this week, but in the most delightful way possible! The crew, mostly new faces this session, took on Taco Soup and Cornbread, which are not only program favorites, but also local favorites as well. But this wasn’t just your usual Jiffy mix cornbread! Librarian, Deb Haverkamp, took the kids step-by-step through how to make thick fluffy cornbread from scratch with way less sugar and none of the preservatives! Thanks to all of our participants for joining us, and especially to our knowledgeable and dedicated facilitator, Deb!

REPORT (January 8, 2025): The Cooking with Kids crew kicked off the new year with a program classic. With more new names on the roster than returning champions and unseasonably warm weather cramping the soup-making style, our program facilitator opted for a cooking crew favorite with a burst of color and flavor by making fruit pizza! Thank you to all of our participants for joining us in this first session of the year, and special thanks to our very own Deb Haverkamp for making this the fun and educational experience this program is known for!

REPORT (December 11, 2025): Christmas came early for our Cooking with Kids crew! They made super cookies and learned the basics of candy making, including how time and temperature are responsible for making variations in the type of confection outcomes. Specifically, they learned the softball method of testing mixture density to determine the consistency of hardness and tackiness they wanted to achieve. Great job kids! And thank you Deb for another memorable and informative Cooking with Kids Session!

REPORT (November 20, 2025): Move over Mrs. Smith! Our Cooking with Kids Crew is taking over the rolling pin and doing pies from scratch – Petite Pumpkin Pies to be exact. Due to time limitations, Deb started them off with some pre-mixed and chilled dough for pie crusts, but the kids still got to roll out their dough and form it to their mini-pie pans. They whipped up the classic Libby’s can-label pumpkin pie filling and got their pies oven-ready. While those baked, the kids made their own dough for pie crusts to take home and chill in preparation for their own baking adventure! Great job with this seasonal classic, Kids! Special thanks to our very own Deb Haverkamp for planning and delivering yet another great installment of Cooking with Kids!

REPORT (October 30, 2025)
Sweet treats from scratch were on the menu for this pre-Halloween session. The Cooking Crew made oven-baked donuts with glazed frosting and sprinkles, and vanilla pudding. Did you know there are pans designed for baking donuts instead of frying them? Now you do, and so do the kids and a bunch of parents and staff who had never seen them before either! Tasty donut goodness and yummy, smooth vanilla pudding? Yes, please and thank you! Great job kids! And congratulations, Deb Haverkamp, on successfully testing a new recipe while wrangling a group of wired up boys and ghouls post-Halloween school parties!

REPORT (October 23, 2025)
Five kids. One Instructor. No printed instructions. This week’s cooking with kids emphasized listening skills, experimentation, and cooking by memory. On the menu was barbecue meatballs, macaroni and cheese from scratch, and pan fried onion rings, cauliflower, and fried green tomatoes. Whistle Stop can’t compare with these kids. They did a fantastic job, even if nobody was brave enough to try the cauliflower. Special thanks to this week’s participants and, of course, to Deb Haverkamp, for continuing to make this the fun and educational program that it is!

You asked for it, and we’re at it again!

Trivia Night at the Library will be Friday, January 16, 2026 with doors opening at 6:00 PM for teams to setup and competition starting at 6:30 PM.

Register your team of 4-6 players any time between now and the day of the event (sooner is better to ensure we have enough teams!). The $10 per player registration fee (payable at the door or ahead of time at the circulation desk) goes towards funding programs like this and other library activities.

Snacks and non-alcoholic drinks are not just permitted, but joyfully encouraged! Collaborate with your team for the optimal coverage of essential food groups (salty, sweet, crunchy, dippy, and fizzy).

To register your team or get more information call the circulation desk at 785-336-2377.

Thread Collective Continues in February with a New Day and Time!

The Thread Collective will meet on Thursday, February 12, 6:00 PM as the group weaves its way into a new schedule for 2026! Hopefully this earlier time and different day will work better for folks who had expressed interest before.

Thread Collective is a social /educational program designed with the purpose of bringing together community members who enjoy similar craft modalities. We encourage crocheters, knitters, cross-stitchers, embroiderers, and similar thread craft creators to join us and share tips, tricks, pointers, and patterns.

For more information, call the library at 785-336-2377 or stop by the circulation desk! Have ideas or requests on how this program might better serve you or someone you know who might be interested? Let us know!

We continue our partnership with the Nemaha County Food Pantry in January as we turn our monthly highlight to soups. Whether it’s soup from a can or a starter mix to simmer and serve, your contribution can make a difference! Drop off your donations of soups, soup mix, or any other non-expired and unopened food items here at the library during our regular business hours: M-Th 9:00 AM – 7:00 PM, Fri 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM, Sat 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM. Don’t want to hassle with going to the store or guessing which brand or size to get? We collect cash donations to deliver to the Food Pantry also!

This is a service we offer the community. The Food Pantry is staffed by volunteers and is open one day a week. Rather than having to remember what day and hours they are open, you can drop your donations by the library and we will deliver them for you! We highlight different items to donate each month as a way of offering some direction and to promote awareness. When everything is needed on a regular basis, it can be helpful to have some guidance.

If you have large donations it is best to deliver them directly to the food pantry. We can help facilitate a drop off time if needed. Call us during regular business hours at 785-336-2377.

Some Important Points to Note:

* The Food Pantry is closed the second Wednesday of every month.

* Paper goods and personal hygiene products are also always needed!

* Opened and outdated products are NOT accepted at the Pantry.

Each Family receives the following items Once a Month.

• 1 breakfast item
• 4 cans of vegetables
• 1 can of beans
• 1 package of rice
• 1 pasta and sauce
• 1 jar of peanut butter
• 1 box of crackers
• 2 cans of fruit
• 1 can of tuna or chicken
• 2 cans of soup
• 1 dessert
• 1 pound of meat.

While we highlight different donation items each month here at the library, the following items are ALWAYS NEEDED:

• Paper products [toilet paper, paper towels, Kleenex]
• personal products [feminine hygiene, sanitary wipes, etc.]
• boxed cereals
• oatmeal
• pancake mix and pancake syrup
• canned vegetables
• rice
• pasta and pasta sauce
• peanut butter
• boxed crackers
• canned fruit
• canned tuna
• canned chicken
• boxed tuna and chicken helper
• canned soups
• jello and pudding mixes
• cookies
• cake mixes and frosting
• pie mix
• and more!
• They also accept laundry detergent, dish soap, shampoo, and bath soap.

January Brings a Chance to Reflect with Library D&D!

Dungeons and Dragons is an interactive storytelling game in which a group of players collaborate with a lead storyteller (referred to as the Game or Dungeon Master) to navigate and explore the world, people, creatures, and scenarios that they encounter during the game. The story and action are supplemented with dice rolls to provide a sense of luck and variance commonly found in table top and board games.

Library D&D returns in January with a new adventure, but something seems oddly familiar. Call 785-336-2377 or drop in at the desk to register and get more information.

We’re playing Level 5 Characters for this event. Returning players, please update your character sheets accordingly and check your character inventories! If you’re a new player or bringing a new character, please be sure to get your character portrait to Chad before your game day! Thanks!

Our numbers are growing and we’re looking at potentially expanding our program to a third session on the Saturday afternoon following the Friday Adult game! But to do this, we need to know who is available to join us! If you’ve been waiting in the wings for a new opportunity to open up, know someone who might be curious, or are freshly interested in joining us, call 785-336-2377 or e-mail Chad at cjones@senecafreelibrary.org. We’ve been having a ton of fun in our current groups and we look forward to meeting you or getting together with you again more regularly!

LIBRARY D&D in January 2026

“ONE-SHOT” GAME (TEEN)	Wednesday, January 21	3:30 P – 6:30 P
“ONE-SHOT” GAME (ADULT)	Friday, January 23	5:00 P – 8:00 P
Pending – “ONE-SHOT” GAME (Team 3)	Saturday, January 4	1:00 P – 4:00 P

PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS:

In December:
One-Shot Game (Teen/Adult): A game experience with a clear start and end to a short storyline designed to be completed in a single gaming session (usually 2-3 hours). Premade characters will be available to choose from or characters made in our Character Building 101 session may be used. This program had enough interest to divide into Teen and Adult groups as indicated in the schedule. Dice will be available to borrow, or you may bring your own! (Just be sure to have a full 7 piece polyhedral set: d20, d12, d%, d10, D8, D6, D4, available through Amazon, select dice vendors, or your favorite gaming and hobby stores!)

Available Programs for Future Events:
Basic Intro to D&D: This program is designed for beginning players or those who have been away from the table for a while and just want a refresher course. Find out what Dungeons and Dragons is (and what it isn’t), how it’s played, and what you need to join or start your own game. Simplified premade characters will be provided to participate in a quick play demonstration. (Due to scheduling constraints, this will be a mixed Teens and Adults Group.)

Character Building 101: This is a basic introduction to character building using the D&D 2024 rules set. We will cover Ability Scores and the three primary methods of generating them, Skills and Proficiencies and how to use them, Classes, Species (formerly Races), and, most importantly, how to go from a character idea to a game-ready character sheet. This session will end in participants having a pen-and-paper 1st level character sheet that will be usable in future library events and most standard D&D groups. (Due to scheduling constraints, this will be a mixed Teens and Adults Group.)

Campaign Play (Teen/Adult Groups): A game style that follows the same group of player characters as they adventure through an on-going story (or multiple story arcs) across multiple play sessions. This game style is less ideal for those just getting started or who are eager to try a variety of character types or classes. Due to scheduling constraints, a campaign is likely to be limited to occurring once a month and will most likely take the place of the One-Shot games for the duration of the campaign.

DM Boot Camp: The dice are calling and you’ve gathered your allies, but somebody has to actually run the game! Will you answer the call to run it all? Let us help you get your footing as we go over the basics of what goes on behind the DM Screen, offer tips on how to build encounters, and suggest some “DM Does and Don’ts” that might make your games a little bit smoother and hopefully a lot more fun for you and your players. (Due to scheduling constraints, this will be a mixed Teens and Adults Group.)

Thank you for your interest in Library D&D! If you have any questions about the program or are interested in participating, feel free to contact us at 785-336-2377 or email us at librarian@senecafreelibrary.org. You can also visit with us directly at the circulation desk during regular operating hours!

Dee Lizzol to Read on Morning of Christmas Eve! (Wed, Dec 24)

Freshly added to our Christmas schedule, on the morning of Christmas Eve (Wednesday the 24th) our very own Dee Lizzol will be doing two short pop up reading sessions at 10:30 AM and 11:00 AM.

Join us for “Dee Reads: Christmas Classics and Personal Favorites,” an all ages mini-event and our gift of cheer and joy to you. Drop in for one or both of the reading times, sure to entertain and brighten your spirits.

Art and Baking Collide in this Contest of Culinary Champions!

EVENT REPORT
Our Big Bookish Bake-Off has concluded and our entries did not disappoint! Special thanks to ye few but mighty who participated!

Elementary Winner Tessa Heideman did “The Secret Garden Gate” in chocolate cake, pretzel sticks, and fondant.

Teen Winner Hallie Heideman portrayed Hydra Heads from “Percy Jackson” using Rice Crispy Treats, colored cake for the ocean, and fondant.

Adult Winner Kristen Heideman presented “Little House in the Big Woods” using spice cake, pretzel sticks, and fondant.

An Honorable Mention award goes to “Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein” submitted by Chad Jones, a real monster mash of a cake with 7 unique layers, 3 different frosting types and no reason for the combination of flavors to work as well together as they did.

Special thanks to our community guest judges, Serena Huerter, Michaela Hermesch, and Kylee Bergstrom, who shared their creative and culinary expertise! We had a blast working with our judges and learned a lot of really cool baking and frosting/decorating tips along the way!

Director Kate says to plan for Season 2 of Big Bookish Bake-Off airing in September 2026 right here at Seneca Free Library!

ORIGINAL POST
On Thursday, October 2, 2025 the Seneca Free Library will be hosting its first ever Big Bookish Bake-Off – a creative cooking contest with a “Novel” theme.

Contestants in three age categories are encouraged to come up with a fun, clever, creative, or down right punny presentation inspired by or taken from your favorite book or book character.

Judging guidelines will be based on:
1. Overall Appearance and Theme Representation – How does it look overall and does it provide a clear connection to the literary reference being depicted? Is it particularly clever, humorous, or well-depicted?

2. Level of Difficulty in Overall Construction – How much time, effort, and technique appears to have been applied to the project? Was it well thought out or look thrown together for the sake of doing it?

3. Taste – Is it actually edible? Does it have a good flavor and texture? Does it look appealing to eat? Does something in the flavors or ingredients stand out as clearly connected to the theme or style of the book?

The Rules
1. One entry per person in any of the three age categories: elementary, high school, or adult.

2. 95% of the entry must be edible. A tray and other elements may be used for presentation purposes.

3. Entry must have literary reference inspired by a book, author, characters, poems, etc. Entry may look like a book, depict a scene from a book or a book character, involve a title or a pun based on a title, or be a recipe mentioned in a book (this includes recipes taken from cozy mysteries and similar books). Recipes taken directly from an actual cookbook, even those inspired by a book or series, do not qualify – which is to say, the cookbook itself does not qualify as a valid book to reference back to as your literary inspiration.

4. This is a “bake-off,” so the majority of the entry must be baked!

5. Each entry will be given a title card.

Entries must be in the library by 12 noon, Thursday, October 2, 2025

Be creative with your ingredients, designs, and decorations. The more innovative and original, the better!

For more information, feel free to drop by the circulation desk or call 785-336-2377.