Library Events and Programs

Write a poetry on your own pace and submit it to the teen librarian to get appreciated. 

Pick up an unicorn-themed scavenger hunt and see if you can find all the pictures hiding in the Children’s Center! Bring your completed scavenger hunt to the Children’s Librarian for a small prize. Sponsored by Friends of BML.

Join us for "Fighting For Our Rights: Protest, Provocation, and Action" an exploration of LGBTQIA2+ advocacy issues in Rochester's past and present. The program will consist of two panel discussions:

Dialogue 1:

Activism in Rochester’s History: The Topfree 7

Jenny Lloyd, Moderator

Ramona Santorelli, Panelist

Susan David, Panelist

Dialogue 2:

Activism in Rochester Today: A Call to Action

Brittan Hardgers, Moderator

Bess Watts, Panelist

Irene Sanchez, Panelist

Josie Byzek, Panelist

This is an in-person program that will be live streamed at: https://www.youtube.com/@RochesterPublicLibraryNY/streams

*Registration is open*

Saturday, April 5, 1:30-3:00 PM

For Adults

MCC History Professor Mark Sample will tell the fascinating story of one of America’s most famous female leaders elected to the House of Representatives in 1916. Rankin is the only woman in U.S. history to vote against both world wars.

Charlotte Branch Library's Produce Distribution.

Occurs on the First Saturday of every month until all food is distributed.

Volunteers are welcome to arrive beginning at 3 p.m. to help.

Produce Distribution takes place in our basement level meeting room.

Jennifer Cherelin is the Produce Distribution coordinator.  Please call the library with any further questions. 

Write a poetry on your own pace and submit it to the teen librarian to get appreciated. 

Pick up an unicorn-themed scavenger hunt and see if you can find all the pictures hiding in the Children’s Center! Bring your completed scavenger hunt to the Children’s Librarian for a small prize. Sponsored by Friends of BML.

Join Mr. Ray from The Local Sound Collaborative for a fun and festive music session! Bring your dancing feet and get ready to sing along.

Gather your trainer friends and stop by BML to meet other trainers, swap cards, and work on your card collection. Card trading is encouraged but not mandatory. Open to ages 6-12.

*Registration is open*

Sunday, April 6, 1:30-4:00 PM

For Grades 6-12

Whether you’re brand new to Dungeons & Dragons or a DM yourself, join our friends at Just Games Rochester for this one-off campaign! We’ll be playing “Snowstorm Travels,” taking place as the party is traveling in a snowstorm and comes across a roadside tavern. While taking shelter there, the inn is shortly attacked by undead, and the party has to defend the inn from the wandering skeletons.

*Registration is open*

Sunday, April 6, 2:00-3:30 PM

For Adults

Enjoy a lovely afternoon of chamber music performed by the Cosmopolitan Brass Quintet of the Eastman School of Music. The program will revolve around Steven Sacco's Brass Quintet. The many movements of the piece have themes that range in style, from distant and atmospheric, to a Broadway style, to mambo! Get to know Cosmopolitan Brass Quintet, their instrumentation, and Sacco's Quintet.

David Schuler guides you through some of Morocco’s cities, starting in Rabat, Morocco’s capital. From there, explore Roman ruins at Volubilis; Fes’ old town medinas; Aït Benhaddou; Marrakesh and its Koutoubia Mosque, Bahia Palace, and royal tombs; and Essaouira, the white and blue “windy city” on Morocco’s Atlantic coast.

Write a poetry on your own pace and submit it to the teen librarian to get appreciated. 

Pick up an unicorn-themed scavenger hunt and see if you can find all the pictures hiding in the Children’s Center! Bring your completed scavenger hunt to the Children’s Librarian for a small prize. Sponsored by Friends of BML.

Drop-in storytime featuring stories, songs, and activities for all ages with a caregiver.

Storytime for ages 0-2 years old with a caregiver, and may feature stories, songs, fingerplays, rhymes, or other activities.

Join us for Baby Storytime where we'll share our favorite rhymes, songs, and books, followed by a playtime with toys!  This program is designed for infants and toddlers age 0-24 months, but all ages are welcome. No registration.

Join us for All Ages Storytime where we will share our favorite books, rhymes, and songs! The theme will be repeated throughout the week. This program is designed for toddlers and preschoolers, but all ages are welcome! No registration.

Stories, songs, and fingerplays make up this fun program for children of all ages.

*Registration opens two weeks before the start of each series*

Mondays, January 20-April 7, 10:30-11:00 AM

Songs, stories, and fun for children aged 3-5 without a caregiver. No story time February 17.

Learn the ABCs through books, song and dance!

Join us for Baby Storytime where we'll share our favorite rhymes, songs, and books, followed by a playtime with toys!  This program is designed for infants and toddlers age 0-24 months, but all ages are welcome. No registration.

Free Computer Help with "Digital Literacy of Literacy Rochester." Tutors can help you with operating device, the use of desktop, laptop, tablet, or smartphones, uploading a document to a USB drive, learn basic computer skills, and connect to a wireless nedwork. Navigate the internet, create and use email, find and apply for jobs, and stay connected with friends and family. Use software, working with Microsoft Office or Google Docs, and creating a resume or cover letter. 

Stories, songs, and fingerplays make up this fun program for children of all ages.

Digital Literacy of Literacy Rochester presents a one-on-one guide for your technological needs. If you would like assistance with operating devices (desktop, laptop, smart phone), navigating the internet (creating an email, finding and applying for jobs, staying connected with friends and family) or using software (Microsoft Office, Google Docs, creating a résumé or cover letter), then stop on by!

Check for the Digital Literacy sign outside the library building on Mondays during the hours of 12pm-3pm for availability.

Anthony from Digital Literacy Rochester is here every Monday from 1-4pm to provide tech help to those who need it. Anthony can help with:

• Basic computer skills
• Using your smartphone or tablet
• Saving a document
• Navigating the Internet
• Applying for jobs
• Making an email address
• Using Microsoft Office and Google Docs

Questions? Call Literacy Rochester via (585) 473-3030.

Learn how to protect your computer, data, and finances from online bad actors. Presented by Daniel Jones. Registration required. Sponsored by Friends of BML.

Will we play a board game? Make a craft? Go on a scavenger hunt? Drop by after school to join the fun. For kids of all ages!

Stop in for a quick blood pressure check during our blood pressure clinic, in partnership with the Perinton Ambulance! Free and open to the public. First-come, first-served. No registration required.

Better Hearing = Better Living!

Stop in for a quick and free hearing check while you're at the library! An Express Hearing Check Kiosk helps individuals gain perspective on how well they are hearing.

HLAA-Rochester provides friendly Support to deal with the challenges of hearing loss, Education on how to cope when living with hearing aids and assistive devices, and Advocacy to create more hearing friendly environments. Also, Tips to Consider when buying Over-the-Counter hearing aids.

HLAA-Rochester, an all-volunteer 501C3 non-profit founded in 1983, offers all services free of charge. 

The folks that are interested in learning more about urban farming, making their own potting soil, growing seedlings, no-till methods, pruning, or high production in small spaces please attend this workshop.

Instructed by Melissa Kleehammer. Melissa has been a Certified Yoga Teacher since 2012 and infuses her classes with strength, balance, and mobility. Her focus is to share more ways for you to feel comfortable and confident in your body.

Registration Required.

Children will read with a teen Book Buddy and complete a special craft. Bring a book from home or choose from those provided. For children in grades K-3 and a caregiver. Teen volunteers will help build young readers’ skills. They will also provide crafting assistance. For teens in grades 9-12. Registration required.

Stop in for help with your resume!

Join through Zoom or in-person at Maplewood Community Library for an hour free Citizenship Class.  There are 16-weekly sessions that repeat continuously.  We review colonial history, US history, US government and civics, writing and Yes/No questions.  All English levels welcome.  Also special help is available if your test date is near.  Contact through email at NewAmericans@libraryweb.org   Show a scanned piece of mail with a local address in Monroe County, NY for the Zoom link.

Are you ready for spring? Join us in creating seed bombs that you can plant and see what grows. Open to ages 5-12. No registration required.

Join us for a poetry reading for National Poetry Month with OlaRose Ndubuisi, the 2024-2025 New York State Youth Poet Laureate and a senior at Mendon High School. Weighing just one pound at birth, she survived against all odds and by 13 was the published author of six books. OlaRose founded a non-profit at age 15, The Finding Scoliosis Kindly (FiSK) Project, which raises awareness of scoliosis, teaches how to positively manage the effects of scoliosis, and supports free scoliosis screenings in the U.S. and Nigeria.

For ages 16 and up.

Meets the 1st and 3rd Mondays of each month at 6pm.

Registration is required and begins two weeks before each session.

Join us as we kickoff 2025 with a new book club! Enchanted Pages is for adults who love fantastical realms, myth, magic, romance, and more!

This month we will read A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen: "Bound in an unwanted marriage, Freya spends her days gutting fish, but dreams of becoming a warrior. And of putting an axe in her boorish husband’s back. Freya’s dreams abruptly become reality when her husband betrays her to the region’s jarl, landing her in a fight to the death against his son, Bjorn. To survive, Freya is forced to reveal her deepest secret: She possesses a drop of a goddess’s blood, which makes her a shield maiden with magic capable of repelling any attack. It was foretold such a magic would unite the fractured nation of Skaland beneath the one who controls the shield maiden’s fate. Believing he’s destined to rule Skaland as king, the fanatical jarl binds Freya with a blood oath and orders Bjorn to protect her from their enemies. Desperate to prove her strength, Freya must train to fight and learn to control her magic, all while facing perilous tests set by the gods. The greatest test of all, however, may be resisting her forbidden attraction to Bjorn. If Freya succumbs to her lust for the charming and fierce warrior, she risks not only her own destiny but the fate of all the people she swore to protect." --Provided by the Publisher

Adult book clubs are open to ages 18+. Meetings: Various Monday evenings, every other month

Registration is OPTIONAL, but ENCOURAGED if you would like to be added to the email list to receive meeting reminders and other updates!

We will be discussing Hard Times by Charles Dickens. Books are available for checkout at the library.

The Children’s Room is full of fun on Monday nights! Wear your jammies, bring your stuffies, and enjoy an evening of stories, songs, and dancing with the whole family!

This program is designed for toddlers and preschoolers, but all ages are welcome! No registration.