JEFFERSONVILLE – On Saturday afternoon, the Jeffersonville Township Public Library held a grand opening ceremony for its Know and Grow Play Garden on the second floor garden terrace.
Although the area itself and some of the features have been available to community members since May, this event marked its official opening. The garden is open to all, from dawn to dusk, during regular library hours.
The skies were overcast, but that didn’t stop the eager participants from going to the terrace and enjoying all the interactive garden has to offer. Library staff members donated Halloween costumes. They greeted the visitors and distributed sweets to the children. Halloween songs were playing in the background.
Local artist Donna Shaw owns a business called MiniMaples Studio, where she creates miniature crafts and dioramas. He partnered with the Arts Alliance of Southern Indiana to help people learn about literacy and the visual arts. Shaw said: “David Seckman had seen some of my work in the gallery, and he emailed me and asked if I would be interested in doing some practical displays for his new family terrace, so we got the board’s approval and got it. the ball rolling on the project.”
Shaw’s patio artwork included a gun ship, lily pads, and a tall flower with numbered pedals.
Some of the other arts include synthetic shrubs and flowers. There were also bricks painted as book covers and a “river of knowledge” containing rocks painted by students from all the local elementary schools.
A play area towards the end of the area included a small fairy garden. During the event, there were also games and a few games set up, including hula hoops, Cornhole, a giant LiteZilla wall, as well as a large Connect Four grid and large Jenga blocks. Inside the meeting room next to the art gallery, light refreshments were served.
Shortly after the terrace was alive with lively activity, Library Director David Seckman gave a short speech and recognized those who helped make the project possible, including the Bales Foundation.
“This project would not be possible without our generous sponsors. Donna did a great job getting some volunteers,” said Seckman. “There are five different maker spaces where children can create their own projects based on the history of knowledge, from cave paintings to online materials.”
The Know and Grow Play Garden is the newest of the vast amount of resources the Jeffersonville library has to offer community members.
