By MOLLY DAVIDSON / Staff Writer

NORTH SHELBY—Do you have plans for Star Wars Day? The North Shelby Library does. Star Wars fans of all ages are invited to stop by the library on May 4 for an afternoon of festivities and to watch “Star Wars: A New Hope.”

“May 4 is Star Wars Day nationwide, and we’re tapping into that,” librarian Kate Etheredge said. “We’re doing crafts, watching a little bit of the movie and eating popcorn.”

The Star Wars Day celebration is just one of many fun and interesting events sponsored by the North Shelby Library’s teen department. Throughout the year, the department hosts a variety of programs for all interests, from anime nights to 3-D printing workshops.

“We try to hit everybody, if there’s something out there that a kid likes to do, we try to add it,” Etheredge explained.

Every month throughout the year, the North Shelby Library holds an anime night; teens can stop by, watch anime and meet other anime enthusiasts.

“They can come in costume, we have snacks, we’ll do crafts if they want to, and they have the opportunity to hang out and watch anime with their friends,” Etheredge said.

The library also holds three open gaming nights each month, with all types of board games and video games.

Right now, the teen department is gearing up for a busy summer.

“June and July are our busiest months of the year,” Etheredge said. “For the teens, I’ll do a program every week.”

This summer, teens can look forward to a Doctor Who night, a Wii tournament and a super fan battle, “where kids battle to see who is the biggest super fan,” Etheredge said.

From June 8-12 the library will hold a computer animation program, open to sixth through 12th grade students. Due to limited space, interested individuals must apply for the program by June 1.

“It’s a weeklong workshop where we have a professional artist who comes out and teaches kids how to do 3-D animation,” Etheredge said. “It’s a lot of fun and the kids learn a lot.”
Kids can also explore 3-D printing in new workshop coming this summer.

“We teach them how to get something ready for 3-D printing, and then we’ll go to the UPS store so they can see the results,” Etheredge said.

For more information about teen programs and events at the North Shelby Library, check out the library’s website, Northshelbylibrary.org.