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Great Give Back

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The Comsewogue Public Library hosted a food drive as part of the SCLS’s annual Great Give Back event. All those who donated food also got to adopt a pumpkin. The library hosted other activities and community service opportunity, though many were based online due to the pandemic. Photo by Kyle Barr

Though, like so many things, the Comsewogue Public Library’s participation in the annual Great Give Back couldn’t go on like normal, residents and patrons still came out to donate to the needy.

The Suffolk County Cooperative Library System’s annual Great Give Back Event asks partnered libraries to allow patrons a day of opportunities for service-oriented experiences. This year, the Comsewogue Public Library hosted a food drive with all non-perishable food and items going to Long Island Cares. Anybody who showed also got to pick out a small pumpkin spread out on the library’s lawn outside the main door.

Nicole Cortes, the Children’s and Teen Services Librarian/Children’s Program Coordinator said about 30 people came on Saturday and more on Sunday to drop off food. Each were given a pumpkin for their troubles. Those boxes are normally located in the library itself, and Cortes said they are regularly filled by their patrons.

“Sometimes we’ve done fall festivals, other years we’ve done volunteer fairs, this year it was a little bit trickier but we not only wanted to share ways for our patrons to give back, but also to give them something because it has been a hard year,” she said.

In addition to the food drive, the library presented ways for young people to claim community service hours virtually, whether it was sending encouragement and/or gratitude cards to Mather Hospital, becoming a pen pal to a resident of the Atria South Setauket senior living community in Centereach or even spending an hour to draw out a positive message to brighten somebody’s day using chalk.

The library also offered a list of local organizations adults could volunteer with, whether it is the Long Island State Veterans Home in Stony Brook or the Sweetbriar Nature Center.