GILBERTSVILLE — The Gilbertsville Free Library, located at 17 Commercial Street, will host an open house on October 16 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event is being held in conjunction with The Great Give Back, an initiative in which many libraries throughout New York State participate each year.

For the event, the library wishes to show its appreciation of the community by offering its guests complimentary ice cream from Huff Ice Cream and Yogurt of Sidney and served up by Otsego County Dairy Princess Hannah Bonczkowski of Gilbertsville.

Assistance will also be offered in making “monster” bookmarks, applying the Japanese paper folding technique of origami. All materials will be provided and cut out in advance. Assistance will be available to facilitate making the bookmarks.

According to the library’s web page, its principal mission is to serve the community as a “popular materials library.” To fulfill this mission, Gilbertsville Free Library features high demand materials in a variety of formats for persons of all ages, emphasizing library service for children, for parents and children together, and large print materials.

The library’s secondary mission is to serve as a repository of and research center for local history, its website states.

The library serves both the Town of Butternuts and the Village of Gilbertsville, housing more than 8,000 books for a population upwards of 1,700.

Patrons can also take advantage of the resources offered by all libraries in the Four County Library System. These resources include language learning through “Transparent Language Online,” digital access to magazines through “Flipster,” and audio books through “Download Zone.”

Library hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 1 to 5 p.m.; Tuesday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; closed on Thursdays and Sundays. Information regarding Gilbertsville Free Library is available by calling 607-783-2832 or accessing its website at gilbertsvillefreelibrary.org.

-from the Gilbertsville Free Library