St. Louis County Library Celebrates 10 Years of Telescope Lending Program
St. Louis County Library (SLCL) is celebrating the 10-year anniversary of its telescope lending program with a series of Star Parties this fall. SLCL began circulating telescopes in October 2014 in partnership with the St. Louis Astronomical Society (SLAS). The program was an immediate success–to date telescopes have been checked out over 3,850 times. The SLCL collection began with 10 telescopes, and has expanded to 61 scopes due to popular demand. The telescope lending program has been adopted by several other St. Louis area libraries.
To celebrate the anniversary, SLCL and the St. Louis Astronomical Society are planning a series of Star Parties. The events will include free telescope training and the opportunity to view the night sky. Space-themed snacks including cosmic brownies, moon pies, Star Crunch and Milky Way will be provided.
St. Louis County Library Director & CEO, Kristen Sorth, said, “The Telescope Lending program opened the door for our patrons to explore and learn in new ways, and was the catalyst for our Library of Things collection. The program continues to expand horizons for our patrons and we’re excited to be celebrating 10 years.”
Don Ficken, a member of the St. Louis Astronomical Society and coordinator of the Library Telescope Program said, “St. Louis County Library was the first to adopt the library telescope program in St. Louis. Their visionary step helped St. Louis become the largest participating city in the world with over 200 telescopes and 100 binoculars available for checkout.”
Star Party Schedule:
- Wednesday, October 9, 6:30 p.m. | Samuel C. Sachs
- Thursday, October 10, 6:30 p.m. | Eureka Hills
- Thursday, November 7, 6:30 p.m. | Oak Bend
- Thursday, November 7, 6:30 p.m. | Prairie Commons
To sign up for one of the free Star Parties, please visit www.slcl.org/events.
Telescopes are part of SLCL’s Library of Things, a unique collection of non-traditional library materials including pickleball kits,wifi hotspots, musical instruments, portable projectors, fishing equipment, games, kits, puzzles and more - all available to check out for free with a library card.
Program sites are accessible. Upon two weeks’ notice, accommodations will be made for persons with disabilities. Contact St. Louis County Library by phone 314-994-3300 or visit www.slcl.org.