🎉 Ring in the New Year 🎉

Library Closings

The library will be closed Friday, December 31 & Saturday, January 1.

The library will be closed Monday, January 17th for Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

WPL Welcomes A New Director

The Board of Trustees of the Waterloo Public Library is pleased to announce that David Eckert has been named library director effective January 10, 2022.

David Eckert will be leaving his post as the director of the Craighead County Jonesboro Public Library to become the Waterloo Public Library’s twelfth director. Eckert has been working in the field of librarianship for close to twenty-five years. After completing the Library Science master’s program at Kent State University, he worked for three years as a music reference librarian at Samford University in Birmingham, AL before moving abroad to serve as a school librarian for a pre-k through 12th grade bilingual school in the Dominican Republic. Upon his return to the United States, Mr. Eckert started as a teen librarian in the Camden County Library System in New Jersey and rose to the position of head of youth services. In late 2007, Eckert moved to Jonesboro to take over the position of assistant library director at the Craighead County Jonesboro Public Library, a position he held until becoming the director in July 2013.

“The Trustees of the Waterloo Public Library hold strong to the belief that a great public library is at the center of a great community,” said Cindy Wells of the Library’s Board of Trustees. Speaking on behalf of the Trustees, Wells said, “We felt that David’s leadership experience and his passion for customer service and community outreach and engagement made him the unanimous choice to lead the Waterloo Public Library. With David at the helm, we are confident the library will continue to provide the resources and services Waterloo has grown to expect from its library while being responsive to our community’s needs and positioning ourselves as a vibrant and active community center.”

“I look forward to working with library staff to continue offering great services to the community,” said Eckert. “ My wife and I have visited Waterloo and the surrounding area twice now, and we are very excited to become a part of the community. Looking ahead, Waterloo is embarking on its 2030 Vision Plan, and one of my goals for the library is to be a big part of those efforts and activities.”

Mr. Eckert replaces Nick Rossman who left the library in June 2021.

Here's What's Happening

Wednesdays starting January 5

10:30 am | Meeting Room AB

WPL is testing the waters by offering a weekly in-person, socially distanced storytime. Join us Wednesdays in the meeting room for stories and grab a craft to-go! Toddlers, preschoolers, and their caregivers are welcome.

January 7 | 4 pm - 6 pm | Meeting Room B

The first game night of 2022! This tabletop event will be open to new gamers as well as seasoned veterans of the community. Bring your own games, or feel free to check out some our staff have brought along. We will also have our growing list of games for patrons to check out! Stop by and play some games with us!

January 11 | 6:00 pm | Virtual (Zoom)

The Waterloo Public Library together with the Waterloo Human Rights Commission and Hawkeye Community College invite you to discuss the new book, “The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story,” edited by Waterloo native and Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter and author Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times Magazine.

Registration required. Register here: tinyurl.com/ZoomBookDiscussion

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

January 22 |10:30 am - 12:00 pm | Meeting Room AB

Jamie Goble Brocco, author of "Christmas Snowflakes" will show you how to create dazzling, one-of-a-kind paper snowflakes! Bring the entire family to this fun, creative seasonal event. All materials will be provided. However, if you have a favorite pair of scissors, feel free to bring them. Registration Required. Register here.

Copies of Jamie's book will be available for purchase at the program for $20, cash only, please.

Virtual Storytimes Continue in 2022!

Tuesdays, January 4 - May 24 | 10:30 am

Another round of virtual storytimes will take place from January 4 - May 24, 2022!

View live, virtual storytimes from the comfort of home when you register for WPL's Virtual Storytime Club. Once registered, you'll receive an email with a link to view each week's live storytime and instructions to pick up the "take and make" craft that goes along with each reading.

Registration is required. To register visit: tinyurl.com/virtualwinterstorytimeclub

February 10 | 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm | Virtual

Finally, a book club for culinary-minded folks. Join us virtually for this special book club that will bring together cooks, bakers, chefs, and recipe & cookbook lovers to share and swap food ideas. Each month, a new cookbook with stories will be chosen and be the catalyst for experimentation in the kitchen and discussion. For February's meeting, we will be reading Meals, Music & Muse: Recipes from my African American Kitchen by Alexander Smalls.

Registration Required. Register here.

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Friends Preview Night Book Sale

February 10

5:00 pm - 7:00 pm

Library Basement

Public Sale

February 12

9:00 am - 2:00 pm

Library Basement

It's back! The Friends of the Waterloo Public Library $5-a-Bag Book Sale brings you the best deal in town. If you love books, this sale is for you!

We supply the bags; you fill them up!

Interested in attending the preview sale but not a member? No problem! Memberships will be sold at the door! Yearly memberships are $15. Seniors may purchase a membership for $10.

Benefits of becoming a Friend:

Exclusive access to Friends Preview Night book sales, special deals in the Friends Used Book Shop, opportunity to serve on Friends Board, annual Friends recognition event with prize drawings, and the satisfaction of knowing that your tax-deductible support enriches library programming and events.

All proceeds benefit library events and programming.