Star Readers Walk the Red Carpet at Nazareth Memorial Library

Here at the , we rolled out the red carpet for our star readers on Aug. 8. Literally!

Children during the summer months were invited to a “reading stars” party at the library where they could walk a real red carpet, donated by our friends at . About 200 kids reached that goal -- the line of readers stretched from the library all the way down the sidewalk to Center Street.

After their name was called, each child received a certificate and had a chance to walk the red carpet to the flash of cameras and the applause of their friends and families. Seeing all those smiling faces was definitely the highlight of the summer!

After the red carpet festivities, Allentown-area rock band OZMIUM*76 set up for an outdoor concert at the library. They performed hard-rocking versions of children’s songs such as “Wheels on the Bus” and “I’m A Little Teapot,” complete with electric guitar solos. All the kids (and a lot of the parents) had a great time singing along, dancing, and celebrating a successful summer!

There were lots of raffles and give-aways as well, including a fabulous grand prize of a Kindle Fire (thanks to a grant from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation). Congratulations to the winners and everyone who participated!

The total number of books read by children in the summer reading program at your library was over 19,000 -- an increase of more than 20 percent from last year. These kids worked hard all summer long and it was great to see them being celebrated for the stars that they are.

Great work!