Busy Month of Events for All Ages Planned at Lucedale Library

The Lucedale-George County Public Library lined up a full month of programs for residents of every age, from preschool story time to adult bingo nights, filling its calendar with events aimed squarely at the everyday needs of a small-town community — from back-to-school socials for teenagers to canning classes for adults who put up their own food every summer.

For the library’s youngest visitors, the weekly story time for preschool children continues each Tuesday at 10 a.m., a standing program that gives parents and caregivers a reliable morning outing and gives preschoolers an early, regular introduction to books, songs, and group time. Librarians in communities like Lucedale often describe the weekly story hour as the foundation of the library’s mission — the first touchpoint that turns toddlers into lifelong readers.

Older students had their own welcome to the school year: a back-to-school ice cream social for ages 12 to 17, giving middle and high schoolers a free, supervised place to catch up with classmates before the semester settled in. The August 25 session, however, was cancelled due to weather, a disappointment for the teenagers who had planned to attend. Library staff indicated the programming for young adults would continue on the calendar, with the goal-setting workshop later in the month offering students a second chance to visit.

From essential oils to canning

Adult programming got underway on Monday, August 29 at 5 p.m., when local essential oils representative Renata Hillman planned a beginner’s class in the library meeting room. The session covered the basics for newcomers curious about essential oils, with limited seating — a reminder that the library’s meeting room, while modest, is one of the few free gathering spaces in Lucedale available for this kind of instructional programming.

One of the month’s featured sessions arrived on Tuesday, September 6 at 10:30 a.m., when Liz Ates of the South MS Canners Association taught a DIY canning basics class. Ates, who has been canning for about 40 years, covered the safety and technique of putting up food at home — everything from vegetables to meat — followed by a question-and-answer period where attendees could get specific, practical answers from someone with four decades of hands-on experience.

The class speaks to a long tradition in south Mississippi, where home canning remains both a family skill and a practical way to preserve a garden’s summer bounty. Food-safety experts have long warned that canning low-acid vegetables and meats requires careful, tested technique to avoid botulism risk, making instruction from experienced canners genuinely valuable rather than merely social. For a rural county where gardening and food preservation are part of the culture, the session drew exactly the kind of audience libraries across the state have been working to reach with adult programming.

Bingo and beyond

Adult programming continued with bingo on September 13 and again on October 11, both at 2 p.m. The sessions offer free prizes and refreshments, provided by the Friends of the Library, and are open to attendees 18 and up. The twice-a-month bingo afternoons have become a social anchor for the library’s adult patrons — particularly retirees — combining light entertainment with a reason to get out of the house and see neighbors.

The Friends of the Library group, a volunteer support organization that raises money for programs and materials the library budget cannot always cover, funds the refreshments and prizes. Such groups are the financial backbone of programming like this at small libraries, where a modest book-sale budget can underwrite a full season of community events.

The month wrapped up with “Jump Start Your Journey” on Saturday, September 24 at 10 a.m., a goal-setting program led by family support specialist Regina McCarty for students roughly ages 12 to 17, with light refreshments. The workshop was designed to help young people think concretely about their goals for the school year and beyond — the kind of life-skills programming small-town libraries increasingly offer to fill gaps that schools and community centers cannot always cover.

For a county seat of a few thousand people tucked in the piney woods near the Mississippi-Alabama line, Lucedale’s library punches well above its weight as a community hub. The Lucedale-George County Public Library is located at 507 Oak Street in Lucedale, and its hours are generous for a small-town branch: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday. Details about any of the programs are available by calling the library at 601-947-2123.

The extended weekday hours matter for working families — a parent can stop in after a shift rather than racing against a 5 p.m. closing time — and the Saturday hours give students a place to study or use computers outside the school week. For residents without reliable home internet, the library’s connection and public terminals remain an essential link to job applications, school portals, and government services, a role that has only grown as more of daily life has moved online.

The month’s schedule also illustrates the quiet strategy behind many small-library calendars: pair the reliable anchors — weekly story time, recurring bingo — with one-off special events that draw new visitors through the door. A resident who comes for the canning class may discover the mystery collection; a teenager who shows up for ice cream may come back for the goal-setting workshop. Each program functions as a doorway to the others.

Why small-library programming matters

Across Mississippi and the Gulf Coast region, public libraries have taken on an expanding role in communities where other civic institutions have thinned out. Rural counties like George — which stretches from the state line east of Mobile Bay’s hinterland down toward the Pascagoula River system — often lack recreation centers, senior activity centers, or affordable meeting rooms. The library provides all three under one roof, free of charge, which is why months like this one, with programming nearly every week, are seen by library supporters as the institution operating at full stride.

The diversity of the schedule is deliberate as well. Preschool story time builds early literacy; teen events give young people a safe third place away from home and school; instructional classes such as canning and essential oils bring in adults who might never check out a book; and bingo afternoons keep older residents socially connected. Taken together, the programs touch every age group in the county within a single month.

Library staff typically credit attendance at events like these with justifying the library’s budget requests to county and city officials — turnout is the simplest evidence that the investment pays off. For George County residents, the practical takeaway is straightforward: the programs are free, the building is at 507 Oak Street, the doors open at 9 a.m. on weekdays, and a phone call to 601-947-2123 will confirm times and seating for any session on the calendar. With limited seating for events such as the essential oils class, early registration or a quick call ahead is the reliable way to secure a spot.

Residents who missed a September event can also ask about what is coming next month — the library’s pattern of story time, bingo, and rotating classes is expected to continue, and the Friends of the Library’s support means new programs are added regularly. In Lucedale, the busiest community center in town happens to be the one with the bookshelves.

The library’s fall calendar also arrives at a natural moment for George County families. The back-to-school season is when routines are reset — new schedules, new teachers, new activity choices — and libraries across the region use that window to reintroduce themselves to students and parents who may not have visited since summer. The ice cream social and the goal-setting workshop bookend that transition, giving teenagers both a celebration and a chance to set intentions for the year ahead.

Parents of preschoolers, meanwhile, often discover the library through Tuesday story time and stay for the rest of the calendar. Early-childhood educators consistently note that regular group story sessions build the listening skills, vocabulary, and comfort with books that prepare children for kindergarten, and for families in a rural county without many structured toddler activities, a free weekly hour can be the only program of its kind nearby.

For the adults, the canning class in particular carried a seasonal logic: early September is peak preservation season across south Mississippi, when tomato vines, field peas, and late-summer produce are still coming out of local gardens. Learning safe technique from Liz Ates — with her four decades of experience and a question-and-answer period built into the session — meant attendees could bring their own problems and recipes to the table rather than sitting through a generic lecture.

Looking ahead

The library’s upcoming bingo dates on September 13 and October 11 give regulars fixed points on the fall calendar, and the Friends of the Library’s continued support means the free prizes and refreshments that make the afternoons popular will be there again. Residents interested in the October session have ample time to plan, though the library’s staff can confirm details by phone at 601-947-2123 during open hours.

Community members with program ideas are also generally welcome to share them with staff — small libraries often build their calendars directly from what patrons ask for, which is how offerings like the essential oils class and the canning demonstration find their way onto the schedule. A suggestion at the front desk, a call, or a conversation at bingo can shape what appears on the next month’s slate.

For now, the message to George County residents is simple: whatever the age, there is something on the calendar this month. Preschoolers have Tuesday mornings at 10, teenagers had a September 24 morning built around their futures, and adults have canning know-how, bingo prizes, and a meeting room full of neighbors. At 507 Oak Street, with doors open until 7 p.m. on weeknights, the Lucedale-George County Public Library is doing what the best small-town libraries do — making sure nobody in the community is more than a short drive from something worth attending.