NY Public Library Offers A Robust Assortment of Programs For Seniors Through Fall
| 18 Jul 2023 | 02:49
The main branch of the NY Public Library at Fifth Ave. and E. 42nd St. Photo: Beau Matic
The New York Public Library—long a bastion of information, ideas, and education—is offering a robust assortment of programming for senior citizens through the fall.
“We think a lot about serving seniors who are our core adult audience,” said Erica Parker, the Library’s Senior Manager for Adult Programming.
Parker explained that the Library can function as “the social connection point that helps seniors become more embedded in their communities”.
“We often hear seniors say that they felt more connected after attending a regularly scheduled book discussion group, film screening, or author talk,” she added.
With 40 branches in Manhattan, the programs that the NYPL offers often reflect the diversity of the city it calls home.
“The joy and special quality of our programs is that they’re built on community response and rooted in the conversations that are happening every day,” Parker said.
Below you can find some of our favorite programs set to take place at library branches across Manhattan.
Advance registration is recommended. https://www.nypl.org/events/calendar
Religion and Literature in Dialogue: a Five Session Course
o 1 – 2:30 PM on Aug. 1, 8, 15, 22, and 29
o Held at the Jefferson Market Library, 3rd Floor Mae West Room, 425 6th Ave between 10th and Christopher Sts.
o Taught by NYU assistant adjunct professor Ernie Rubinstein, this class will examine five themes of perennial interest to Christianity and Judaism—love, death, evil, suffering, and forgiveness—that have also intrigued poets, novelists, essayists, and short-story writers using excerpts from the Bible, liturgy, and theology in comparison with writing from Homer, John Donne, Emily Dickinson, Mary Gordon, and many more.
o Register here (recommended)
Films are Back!
o 2 – 4 PM on Aug. Thursdays
o Held at the 96th St. Library at 112 E 96th St. between Park and Lexington Aves.
o Old Hollywood classics on August afternoons:
§ Aug. 3: “Captain Blood” (1935)
§ Aug. 10: “The Sea Hawk” (1940)
§ Aug. 17: “Captain Horatio Hornblower” (1950)
§ Aug. 24: “Mutiny on the Bounty” (1935)
§ Aug. 31: “Moby Dick” (1956)
Word Game Wednesdays
o 6:30 to 7:30 PM on Aug. 2, 9, 16, 23, and 30
o Held at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, First Floor Corner Space, at 455 5th Ave between E 39th and 40th Sts.
o Come to play a variety of word-based games including Scrabble, Bananagrams, Boggle, and Scattergories.
o Register here (required)
A Story in 100 Words
o 4 – 5 PM on Aug. 3, 17, and 31
o Held at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, Room 304, at 455 5th Ave between E 39th and 40th Sts.
o Participants will read short flash-fiction works and practice writing stories in just 100 words – nothing more, nothing less. Writing materials will be provided.
o Register here for Aug. 3 and here for Aug. 17 and 31
Genealogy Hour at Seward Park Library
o 2 – 3 PM on Aug. 11 and 25, Sept. 8 and 22, Oct. 13 and 27, and Nov. 17
o Held at Seward Park Library, 192 E Broadway between Clinton and Essex Sts.
o Come for help researching your family tree and use databases such as AncestryLibrary and FamilySearch to help find records of your ancestors. Feel free to bring documents/family records to assist with your search.
Live Trivia Hour
o 4:30 – 5:30 PM on Aug. 14, Sept. 25, Oct. 16, and and Nov. 13
o Held at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, First Floor Corner Space, at 455 5th Ave between E 39th and 40th Sts.
o Come for trivia on a variety of topics:
§ Aug. 14: 50 Years of Hip-Hop Edition – register here
§ Sept. 25: Seinfeld Edition Vol. 2 – register here
§ Oct. 16: NY Comic Con Edition – register here
§ Nov. 13: Pop Culture Edition – register here
The Week that Changed American Politics: The 1948 Democratic Convention and the Rise of Civil Rights
o 7 – 7 PM on Sept. 19
o Held at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Library, Seventh Floor Event Center, at 455 5th Ave between E 39th and 40th Sts.
o Come for a stimulating conversation between Samuel G. Freedman (award-winning author, columnist, and professor at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism) and Julian E. Zelizer (Malcolm Stevenson Forbes, Class of 1941 Professor of History and Public Affairs at Princeton University, CNN Political Analyst, and NPR Contributor) on Freedman’s recent publication, Into the Bright Sunshine: Young Hubert Humphrey and the Fight for Civil Rights. Learn about the moment in which Democrats were forced to choose whether or not they would embrace the cause of civil rights. The outcome of that turbulent week—which recently marked its 75th anniversary—can still be felt in American politics today.
o Register here (required)
Monday Night Movies
o 6 – 8 PM on August Mondays
o Held at the Jefferson Market Library, 1st Floor, 425 6th Ave between 10th and Christopher Sts.
o Revisit the classics on summer nights:
§ Aug. 7: “Garden of the Finzi-Continis” (1970)
§ Aug. 14: “The Roman Spring of Mrs. Stone” (1961)
§ Aug. 21: “La Sirène du Mississipi” (1969)
§ Aug. 28: “Pillow Talk” (1959)
Adult Board and Card Game Hour
o 11 AM – 12 PM on Aug. 4, 11, 18, and 25
o Held at the Riverside Library, 127 Amsterdam Ave. between W 65th and 66th Sts.
o Welcomes all bridge, mahjong, and tabletop game players. (Bring your own supplies!)
After Hours Poetry Reading
o 6:30 – 7:30 PM on Aug. 4
o Held at the Hudson Park Library at 66 Leroy St. between 7th Ave. S and Hudson St.
o Hear readings from local and semi-local poets Jenna Cardinale, Sarah Haeckel and Jade Schapiro.
Poetry Night: Reading & Open Mic
o 6 – 7:15 PM on Aug. 8
o Held at the Hudson Park Library at 66 Leroy St. between 7th Ave. S and Hudson St.
o Hear contemporary work by featured writers Emily Lee Luan, George Witte, and Andrew Rivera and stay for an open mic afterwards to share your own work or hear from others. Doors and the sign up sheet for the open mic will open at 5:45.