NorthEast-Millerton Library grant allows Story Time Jam to continue, virtually

By CAROL KNEELAND

Special to The Millerton News

MILLERTON — Despite its closure due to COVID-19, children were still involved in all things musical through the NorthEast-Millerton Library’s virtual Story Time Jam, thanks to a $1,277 grant administered by Arts Mid-Hudson. 

According to Youth Services Coordinator Kristin McClune, the funding is approximately 20% of the library’s children’s budget. It was originally designated for in-person music sessions with the Music Cellar’s Jonathan Grusauskas, known professionally as Jonny G, but those were converted to online programs when the global pandemic forced the library’s closure.

McClune said the program, in its seventh year, is a popular attraction as the youngsters “love to sing and dance and listen to stories,” especially those such as “The Wheels on the Bus” and “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star,” which can be put to music.

Patrons should check the library’s calendar, newsletters and Facebook page to see when concerts will be scheduled (they have been taking place on Tuesday and Saturday mornings, from 11 a.m. to noon) and  when they will again be held at the 75 Main St. building or if they should continue to be accessed online through the Library’s Facebook page. 

When the sessions are held at the library, children have the opportunity to play instruments such as guitars, drums, tambourines and maracas. While they continue to be virtual, a web search of “instruments for children to make at home,” can give homebound families information on how to get creative and be musically involved at the same time.

According to a recent release from Arts Mid-Hudson, whose “initiatives have engaged and promoted the arts benefiting our artists, arts organizations and communities” since 1964, the grant “was made possible with funds from the Decentralization Program, a re-grant program of the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature and administered by Arts Mid-Hudson.” 

For more information on library programs for both children and adults, go to www.nemillertonlibrary.org or call 518-789-3340. The library is located at 75 Main St.