Saturday, May 4 | 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Main Library | 96 S. Grant Ave.

Main Library will be transformed into the city streets of Jedha and will include a swoop bike, a TIE fighter cockpit, a droid depot, a Jawa kitchen and a new educational display featuring the famed blue milk organized by the Tatooine Dairy Farms. Guests will meet costumed characters from another galaxy with plenty of photo opportunities for all.

“We know that not everyone can afford to travel to the Disney Star Wars theme parks in Orlando, Florida or Anaheim, California,” says 501st Legion member Tom Betti. “Our goal here is to bring the joy of Star Wars to kids and adults throughout Ohio with this free public event so they can feel that special movie magic right here in Columbus!”

The 501st Legion is an international Star Wars costuming club with over 14,000 active members in 69 countries and six continents. The organization is represented in Ohio by the Ohio Garrison (over 200 members) and central Ohio is represented by Arch City Squad (over 40 local members). One of the missions of the 501st Legion is supporting local communities and nonprofits through appearances at children’s hospitals, libraries, schools and more.

The day’s schedule includes:

10 a.m.-4 p.m. | Explore Your Favorite Star Wars Locations (Reading Room)
Grab your camera! The 501st Legion have taken over the Reading Room with recreated sets and props from Star Wars. Explore the streets of Jedha, step into a TIE fighter cockpit and test out a swoop bike. There will also be crafts, activities and Star Wars BINGO! All ages.

11 a.m. | Star Wars Storytime (Children’s Area)
Join us for stories from a faraway galaxy and meet our special guests! Ages 0-6.

12-1 p.m. & 3-4 p.m. | Build Your Own Lightsaber (Meeting Room 2B)
Build your own lightsaber powered by Kyber crystals from the Caves of Ilum. All ages.

4-5 p.m. | Star Wars Trivia (Meeting Room 2A)
Put your Star Wars knowledge to the test for your chance to win a prize! All ages.

Click here for additional CML press announcements and media resources.

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• Hanif Abdurraqib, author of There’s Always This Year
• Porochista Khakpour, author of Tehrangeles
• Nick Petrie, author of the Peter Ash series
• Veronica Roth, author of When Among Crows
• Kennedy Ryan, author of This Could Be Us

The free two-day festival will take place in downtown Columbus at Main Library and Topiary Park on July 13-14. CML first held the festival in 2023 to commemorate the organization’s 150th birthday. Due to the success of the two-day event, which saw approximately 34,000 attendees, CML announced earlier this year that the festival would return again this summer.

In addition to the five headliners, the festival will feature more than 200 national and local authors from a variety of genres who will participate in panel discussions and sign books sold through the Official Festival Bookstore. Cover to Cover, The Book Loft, Gramercy Books and Prologue Bookshop will manage the book sales. 

Additionally, more than 100 independent creators, small press writers and self-published authors will exhibit under the Indie Author Alley tent. Local food and drinks, new and used books for sale, retail and nonprofit exhibitors featuring all things literary, will fill Topiary Park. Visit columbusbookfestival.org to learn more. 

Note: Headshots of featured authors and book covers are available upon request.

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The impressive 600-square-foot Huntington Holiday Train includes multiple miniature trains running on more than 280 feet of track surrounded by more than 50 pounds of snowflakes. The miniature buildings – which are all made from leaves, bark, seeds, pinecones, fungus and moss – are modeled after actual structures in Germany.

This marks the 31st year of the holiday attraction, which was built in 1992 by Applied Imagination founder Paul Busse. The train was originally displayed in the lobby of the historic Huntington building at Broad and High streets. In 2009, Huntington graciously loaned the train to CML. This year will be its 13th on display in Main Library’s atrium. (There was no train display in 2015 due to Main Library’s renovation, nor in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.)

Highlights include a 6-foot-tall cathedral, an 8-foot-tall castle and a waterfall that pumps 600 gallons of water an hour. Each building in the display took between one and three weeks to create. The castle and waterfall took more than three months to complete; it took more than 10 months to build the cathedral. The entire display takes two days to set up.

The Huntington Holiday Train will be on display Wednesday, Nov. 22 through Sunday, Jan. 7, 2024 during regular library hours – Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sunday from 1-5 p.m. The first hour of parking in the library garage is free.

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Sunday, Aug. 13 | 2 p.m.
Main Library | 96 S. Grant Ave. (Reading Room – Second Floor)

The event is free, but registration is required. Seating begins at 1:30 p.m. Parking in Main Library’s attached garage will be free.

To mark its 150th birthday in 2023, CML has temporarily renamed its Carnegie Author Series the Sesquicentennial Author Series. The lineup features engaging national authors for programs that are free and open to all.

The Sesquicentennial Author Series is sponsored by NBC4.

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• Ali Hazelwood, author of Love, Theoretically 
• Fonda Lee, author of Untethered Sky
• Prince Shakur, author of When They Tell You To Be Good
• Maggie Smith, author of You Could Make This Place Beautiful
• Matthew Quirk, author of The Night Agent

The free two-day festival represents the cornerstone of CML’s Sesquicentennial celebrations, commemorating its 150 years serving central Ohio. Click here to view the festival schedule.

In addition to the five headliners, the festival will feature more than 130 national and local authors from a variety of genres who will participate in panel discussions and sign books sold through the Official Festival Bookstore. The Book Loft, Gramercy Books and Prologue Bookshop will manage the book sales. Additionally, nearly 100 independent creators, small press writers and self-published authors will exhibit under the Indie Author Alley tent.

The festival will also feature:

• Local food and drink vendors
• Family-friendly programs and activities, including live farm animals
• Retail and nonprofit exhibitors featuring all things literary

Visit columbusbookfestival.org to learn more. 

The Friends of the Library will also hold their Big Book Sale during the festival, selling books and other library materials that are no longer suitable for CML’s collection. Children’s books start at $1. Proceeds support Columbus Metropolitan Library’s programs and services. Visit columbuslibrary.org/friends for more information.

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Additionally, that morning CML will cut the ribbon on its new Gahanna Branch with a brief dedication ceremony open to the public at 9 a.m. The event will be followed by a daylong CML birthday bash.

CML will continue celebrating its 150th birthday throughout the remainder of 2023 with:

• Sesquicentennial Author Series: Bridgerton author Julia Quinn will speak at Main Library on Sunday, March 5. Click here to learn more and see the lineup and schedule.
• Columbus Book Festival: The new festival will be held at Main Library and Topiary Park on July 15-16 and feature national and local authors, vendors and programs. Click here to learn more.
• Sesquicentennial Passport: The passport program enables customers of all ages to pick up a booklet at any CML location starting March 4 and complete activities around the city to earn stamps and prizes.
• Partner Days: Customers’ library cards give them extra savings throughout CML’s 150th birthday year. Click here to see free or discounted opportunities.

Click here to view a special video highlighting CML’s history on its sesquicentennial. Members of the media are welcome to utilize it for their needs.

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Most CML locations will also offer a Black History Month Discovery Quest, an activity that enables customers aged 7 and older to learn facts about Black Ohioans and events that shaped history.

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• Sunday, Feb. 19 | 2 p.m. Leonard Marcus, author of Maurice Sendak: a Celebration of the Artist and His Work *In partnership with the Columbus Museum of Art

• Sunday, March 5 | 2 p.m. Julia Quinn, author of the Bridgerton series

• Wednesday, April 26 | 7 p.m. Friends & Fiction – Four Bestselling Authors. Endless Stories.

• Sunday, Aug. 13 | 2 p.m. Donte Woods Spikes, author of So Long

• Sunday, Sept. 24 | 2 p.m. Silvia Moreno-Garcia, author of The Daughter of Doctor Moreau

• Sunday, Oct. 8 | 2 p.m. Saeed Jones, author of Alive at the End of the World

• Sunday, Dec. 10 | 2 p.m. Jason Mott, author of Hell of a Book

Each author talk will be held at Main Library, 96 S. Grant Ave.

All author talks are free and open to all. CML will share registration details in the weeks leading up to each program on its Special Events page.
 
The Sesquicentennial Author Series is sponsored by NBC4.

Note: Headshots of each author are available upon request.

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The impressive 600-square-foot Huntington Holiday Train (see photo) includes multiple miniature trains running on more than 280 feet of track surrounded by more than 50 pounds of snowflakes. The miniature buildings – which are all made from leaves, bark, seeds, pinecones, fungus and moss – are modeled after actual structures in Germany.

This marks the 30th year of the holiday attraction, which was built in 1992 by Applied Imagination founder Paul Busse. The train was originally displayed in the lobby of the historic Huntington building at Broad and High streets. In 2009, Huntington graciously loaned the train to CML. This year will be its twelfth on display in Main Library’s atrium. (There was no train display in 2015 due to Main Library’s renovation, nor in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.)

Highlights include a 6-foot-tall cathedral, an 8-foot-tall castle and a waterfall that pumps 600 gallons of water an hour. Each building in the display took between one and three weeks to create. The castle and waterfall took more than three months to complete; it took more than 10 months to build the cathedral. The entire display takes two days to set up.

The Huntington Holiday Train will be on display Monday, Nov. 21 through Sunday, Jan. 8, 2023 during regular library hours – Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m.-9 p.m., Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. and Sunday from 1-5 p.m. The first hour of parking in the library garage is free.

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COLUMBUS—The Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation (CMLF) has announced Ann and Ron Pizzuti as the 2022 recipients of the Julian Sinclair Smith Award, whose namesake was the founder of Sinclair Broadcast Group and had a passion for reading, education and lifelong learning. Each year, CMLF presents the award to honor inspiring individuals living or working in and around Franklin County with a passion for lifelong learning. The award will be presented at CMLF’s 30th annual Celebration of Learning fundraising event on Friday, Nov. 4 at Main Library.

Longtime central Ohio real estate developers, the Pizzutis are well known for transforming public spaces and for working to make art accessible to all. In 2015, they transformed a 100-year-old building in the Short North Arts District into the public Pizzuti Collection. The space has been part of the Columbus Museum of Art since 2018. Ron and Ann are also lifelong learners, serving in leadership positions at several schools and universities. Both avid readers, Ann has belonged to the same book club for 37 years and read more than 370 books.

Roger Sugarman will be honored with the Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation Award, which recognizes an individual volunteer or volunteers who have had a sustained impact and demonstrated a commitment, passion and dedication to the library and/or its Foundation.

Roger Sugarman joined the Columbus Metropolitan Library (CML) Board of Trustees in 2007, serving on and chairing multiple committees and serving as Board President for an unprecedented four years. Additionally, Sugarman was a member of the CMLF Board from 2011 until 2017 and served as Co-Chair of the “Great Libraries CREATE” campaign. Under his leadership, CML renovated and rebuilt 13 branch locations and transformed its Main Library.

Reflecting on more than a decade of service, Sugarman says, “CML is a community treasure that positively impacts countless lives in central Ohio each and every day. Whether inspiring reading, sharing resources or helping build a foundation for a successful future, the library is at the center of helping us all reach our potential. Now, perhaps more than ever before, the library needs and deserves our support so that its books and the diversity of thought it engenders can truly be Open To All.”

Celebration of Learning, CMLF’s annual fundraiser, will be held at Main Library on Friday, Nov. 4 and feature Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian Jon Meacham. The 2022 honorary chairs are Veronica Meinhard and Kristina M. Johnson, Ph.D. and event co-chairs are Alex and Renée Shumate. Event proceeds support the library’s greatest needs and highest priorities.

Visit CMLF’s Celebration of Learning webpage for more information and to register.

Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization that provides financial support for the library’s greatest needs and long-range goals through generous private donations, ensuring the library’s collections, programs and services will be available for generations of learners to come.

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