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Join us at the Gateway Lodge for a delicious breakfast, and support the Mercer Library's Building Fund!

Saturday, May 26th

(That's Memorial Day weekend, for all you travelers)
7:30 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. 
$8 for adults, $5 for kids 12 and under. 

On the menu - homemade scrambled eggs, Texas-style French toast, homemade biscuits and gravy, sausage, bacon, hash browns, and toast. The food is delicious, the cause is good, and you don't have to cook. It's a win all around! 

Thanks to Wayne and all the staff at the Gateway Lodge for sponsoring our second annual fundraiser breakfast! 

For a map and more info about the Gateway, visit http://www.thegatewaylodge.com/  

An unexpected voting season is upon us in Wisconsin, due to the recall elections for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and several state Senate seats. The Government Accountability Board has a wealth of current recall information, including the recall candidates, challenges to recall candidates, and searchable recall petitions. 

Upcoming election dates include:

May 8th - Primary election for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and state Senators facing recall. Please note that there are challenges for both Republican and Democratic candidates in all of the elections. 

June 5th - Election day for Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and state Senators facing recall.  

You must be registered in order to vote in Wisconsin. You can register by mail; in your municipal clerk's office before 5 p.m. on the Friday before an election; or at the polling place on election day. For more information on registering to vote, to find your municipal clerk's office, or to check on your registration status, visit the Government Accountability Board's registration and voting website. 

Adding another wrinkle to this confusing election season is the fact that Senate recall elections will take place in the districts used for the last 10 years, while fall elections will use new redistricting maps. Use the link above to check your voter registration status and find out if you are in a Senate recall district this spring.

For even more on Wisconsin's elections, visit WisconsinVote.org, a service of Wisconsin Public Television. 

And on a lighter note, when you do go to vote in the 2 recall elections, be sure to bring a few bucks and pick up some sweets at the Friends of the Mercer Public Library bake sale from 8 a.m. until they sell out!

The Wisconsin DNR has announced a new program to encourage kids to read anywhere, including outdoors in your state parks! 

Each week in 2012, a book and a Wisconsin state park will be featured. Kids ages 5 to 9 are invited to read about the outdoors, and kids who read 20 or more books in 2012 can enter to win a Kindle Fire or one of 10 eReaders. 

Northern Wisconsin is full of state and national parks, forests and recreation areas. Within an easy drive of Mercer, you'll find the Copper Falls State Park, Northern Highland American Legion State Forest, Big Bay State Park, Flambeau River State Forest, portions of the North Country Trail, the Ice Age Trail, the Bearskin Trail, and many more. Take a look at the statewide map and list to plan your next outdoor adventure.

The "Read to Lead" program is an excellent way to introduce your kids to the many wonders of our state parks. Many parks will feature special activities during their featured weeks, and the books are available at select state parks or at your local library. View the reading list and entry form, or pick up a copy at the Mercer Library. 

For more information, visit the Wisconsin DNR at http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/parks/readtolead.html. 

We're nearly there! 

Thanks to the generosity of the Mercer community, the hard work of the Library's building committee and Friends of the Library, and the help of a Community Development Block Grant, we've nearly gotten to our goal of $422,000 for the library expansion! It's been an amazing 3 years, and we couldn't have done it without everyone's support. 

The receipt of a Community Development Block Grant means that we will begin construction on our project within the next 3 months. Stay tuned for more information on our progress.

We aren't completely finished with our fundraising, however. Although our original project goal of $350,000 should allow us to construct the planned library addition, we still need to finish and furnish it.  The Friends of the Library and the building committee will be working on several fundraising projects this year, so please continue to support us as we near our goal of an expanded library for the Mercer community. If you want to make a contribution to the project, visit our donation page.