Friends of the Malden Public Library Newsletter

June 2025

Author

Friends of The Malden Public Library Newsletter
June 16, 2025

Image description: The logo of the Friends of the Malden Public library, featuring a gargoyle sitting on top of books, superimposed on an image of the Malden Public Library. The text underneath the logo reads “Newsletter”.

Greetings Friends! Spring has sprung and our schedule is heating up for the summer!

Our June meeting has been rescheduled to Wednesday, June 18, 7 - 8 p.m. at the Malden Public Library. We hope to see you there. Please note that, aside from this month, meetings are the first Tuesday of every month.

Aside from that you can catch us at some of the following events:

  • June 19 (Thursday), 11 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

    Malden Juneteenth Freedom Celebration at Salemwood School Fieldhouse (529 Salem St. Malden).

  • June 21 (Saturday), 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
    Family Garden Day at Malden Community Garden (67 Bryant St. Malden along the bike path). We will not be tabling here, but it will be a fun, educational, and free event for all!

  • June 22 (Sunday), 12 - 4 p.m.

    Pride in the Park at Devir Park (182 Emerald St. Malden).

  • June 26 (Thursday), 1 - 2:30 p.m.
    Summer Reading Program Kick-off at the Malden Public Library lawn. We will be giving away children’s books and there will be free ice cream from Dairy Delight. You can pre-register for the Summer Reading Program at bit.ly/BeanstackMPL.

    Image description: The graphic reads “Malden Juneteenth Freedom Celebration, Thursday, June 19, 2025, Salemwood School Fieldhouse 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM“. The graphic also says “All are welcome! 11 AM flag raising, artist performances, arts for all ages, teen workshop, vendors, community orgs, free community lunch - soulful cuisine, Neighborhood Kitchen & The Island”. For more info you can go to https://facebook.com/share/18sXLZcLXR/. This text is also translated into Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Arabic and Chinese. There is the Juneteenth flag at the top left corner and three raised fists in red, yellow, and green at the top right corner. At the bottom of the graphic are the logos for the City of Malden, Mass Cultural Council, Eastern Bank, and NAACP Mystic Valley Area Branch.

Image description: The text reads, “Family Gardening Day, Malden Community Garden, 67 Bryant St Malden, along the bike path, June 21st 2025, 10am-1pm, Ask a Master Gardener! Free soil pH testing (bring ½ cup of dry soil), Make an ECO Brick, Be a Farmer!, FRESH PRODUCE GIVEAWAY, Create a garden bracelet, Rabbit and Cavy Petting Stop, Pain a sunflower, GARDEN SCAVENGER HUNT, Plant for your PET, Earn a Deputy Tree Warden Badge, Learn about the MAGIC of Marigolds, Build a Bug Hotel, Make a ROOT head friend, FUN GAMES WITH PRIZES, Sweet and Savory Snack STOP, Help plant a cutting flower garden, Plant a MAMMOTH Sunflower, Enjoy live Banjo music! and more! Free, Educational, and FREE for ALL!“. The background is blue with yellow and green pennant streamers, purple flowers and butterflies, and a yellow watering can decals.

Image description: The graphic reads, “Pride in the Park, Sunday June 22nd, 12-4 pm, Devir Park, Malden, Speakers & Educators, Performances, Local Orgs, Artists and Vendors, Language Access: ASL & Spanish”. There is an image of a rainbow with hands of different skin tones holding rainbow flags. The top left corner has the Malden Pride Coalition logo, and the right side of the graphic has the logos of the City of Malden, Nonprofit Organization for Philanthropic Initiatives, and Mass Cultural Council.

Image description: The graphic is in the shape of a ticket. The text in the body of the graphic reads, “Summer Reading Kick Off & Ice Cream Social Featuring Dairy Delight! Thursday June 26th, 1-2:30 pm”. The text on the side of the graphic reads, “Pre-Register on Beanstack to start your summer reading faster, bit.ly/BeanstackMPL, Need help registering or recording your minutes? We can help! We can sign you up, show you how or just record your minutes. It’s as easy as checking out a book!” The corner of the graphic says “Level Up,” and in the center is the Malden Public Library and librarian, Cait Quinn, in a videogame-themed art style.

Spring Updates

On March 30th, we partnered with the Malden Pride Coalition to host the Queer Book Swap at Cafe Reynard. Folks either brought in a book to swap with the Malden Pride Coalition’s collection, bought a book from us to swap, or just bought books from us to keep. We love expanding our connections and deepening our relationships with other community organizations in Malden.

Image description: Folks from both the Friends of the Malden Public Library and Malden Pride Coalition standing and smiling around the pop-up table full of books.

Image description: People looking at books at the Malden Pride Coalition’s book swap table. 

On April 4th and April 5th, we had our Spring book sale in the Friends’ book room at the Malden Public Library. We had displays that featured books for Library Week, spring reads, and a variety of books with blue covers. During the public book sale, we partnered with the Malden Fire Department.

Image description: A person with a gray hoodie that says “Malden Fire” on the back looking at a bookcase full of books.

Image description: Book sale patrons looking through books and playinh in the Children’s section.

Image description: Book sale patrons looking through the aisles of books and book displays.

May 9th was our Annual Wine Tasting Gala fundraiser in the historic Converse Memorial Building and Art Galleries, which raised over $10,000. We had an amazing turn out! Friends and beyond showed up to support the library while tasting wines and mocktails from Kappy’s Fine Wine and Spirits Rte. 1 Malden as well as light bites and snacks from our finest local establishments.

The theme was Frank Stella and those in attendance, including folks from the Stella family, dressed to impress! We want to thank everyone who bought tickets, donated to the silent auction, and made purchases in support of the library.

Image description: Friends of Malden Public Library President, Mary Ellen O’Meara with Wine Tasting Gala attendees.

Image description: Wine Tasting Gala attendees chatting in the Converse Art Gallery.

Image description: A table covered by a white tablecloth with nine of the Silent Auction baskets. Each basket is filled with gift cards.

Image description: A group picture of Friends and librarians of the Malden Public Library

On May 17th, we tabled at Maplewood Fest.

Image description: Malden Mayor, Gary Christenson with Friends, Karen Phillips and Sheila Taymore, at the table with book displayed and in crates.

We hope to catch you at our upcoming events. Thank you for being a Friend!