This message is a departure from our usual communications to you, our valued patrons and supporters. On April 1st, the Ohio House of Representatives released its proposed state budget. In it, they recommend eliminating the Public Library Fund, a fund protected by law and responsible for the majority of Ohio’s public library funding. Ohio’s public libraries have had a partnership with the state to deliver services at the local level for almost 100 years. (cont on page 6) Movie of the Month: The SubstanceStarring: Demi Moore as ElisabethMargaret Qualley as Sue and Dennis Quaid as Harvey Directed by: Coralie Fargeat Reviewed by Alex Huizar The Substance is the first horror film to have been nominated for Best Picture in years and for good reason. The Substance is not only a horror film, but it is listed as a “body horror” a sub-genre from the horror genre, so if that is not exactly your forte, I would NOT recommend this movie since it can be pretty skin crawling at times. The story tells of an actress (Moore) whose fame is being faded by old age and is fired by her producer (Quaid) because of it. After a car crash she is sent to the hospital and is told by her nurse of a black market drug called “the substance” which promises a “younger, more beautiful and perfect” version of herself. After she orders and receives this new “miracle drug” she injects herself with the substance and the younger, more beautiful version of herself emerges from her back (Qualley) and she becomes the newest sensation. The two must switch consciousness every seven days, no exceptions, so the new body doesn’t deteriorate. The story is intriguing, and the characters are very complex. As the film goes along the special effects of the bodies becomes more gross and disturbing. The only gripe I have with this film are “the rules” that the movie sets up between the two bodies. Some of the rules make sense while others do not and it creates plot holes within the film. This film also brings back the start of Demi Moore’s comeback whom, in my opinion, should’ve won Best Actress at the Oscars, but that is a story for another time. If you enjoy a good horror/thriller I think you will enjoy this film but only if you’re not squeamish. I give The Substance 4/5 stars. Call your local library to reserve your copy. APRIL 2025
APRIL 2025 NEW BOOKS By Robin Vail We’ve got a wide assortment of new books heading our way at the Oak Harbor Public Library this Spring. Among the new Fiction books are The Book Club for Troublesome Women by Marie Bostwick; Count my Lies by Sophie Stava; Griffin Sisters Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner; Shadow of the Solstice by Ann Hillerman and Into the Gray Zone by Brad Taylor. In new Non-fiction we are awaiting Ageless Brain by Dale Bradesen and Everything is Tuberculosis: history and persistence of the world’s deadliest infection by John Green. Also interesting is The Fifteen: murder, retribution & the forgotten story of Nazi POWs in America. I’m That Girl by two-time Olympic champion Jordan Chiles sounds interesting as does The Ride by Kostya Kennedy about the ride of Paul Revere in April of 1775. For kids we’ve got Ant Party by Ross Montgomery and Cats in Construction Hats by Sudpta Burdian-Qualley. For younger readers we’ll have Lost and Found by Kate DiCamillo, the story of unlikely friends Orris the Rat and Timble the Owl. Here’s hoping for warmer weather that sticks around. Happy reading everyone! 2
APRIL 2025 SNAPSHOTS 3
APRIL 2025 PROGRAMS By Jennifer Wilkins 4 4th Tuesday Book Club will meet Tues. April 22nd at 5:30pm . We will be discussing The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride. Coffee & a Book will meet Wed. April 9th at 11am. We will be discussing Things I Wish I Told My Mother by Susan Patterson and Susan DiLallo. Wicked Wednesdays Book Club will meet Wed. April 16th at 5:30pm. We will be discussing The Perfect Father: The True Story of Chris Watts by John Glatt. For Adults and Families Celebrate National Library week with us as we have our Annual Book Sale. This year it will be held April 7 through April 11. The Ottawa Co. Health Department will be here every Monday at 10:30 and every Friday at 1:30 for Bingocize, ending April 14th. This program is for seniors and combines the game of bingo, health education, and physical activity. To register, please call Melanie at 419-734-6800. Pressed Flower craft with Mary will be held April 14th at 2pm. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED The Friends of the Library Present : Wistinghausens’s Q & A April 23rd at 5:30. Wistinghausen’s Florist will be here to answer all of your spring/summer planting questions. There will also be a drawing for a Wistinghausen gift certificate. The presentation will be held upstairs. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. 60 Plus Clinic is Wednesday April 9th from 9:30 to 11:30 with the Ottawa County Health Department. Call 419-734-6800 for an appointment. The Ottawa Co. Genealogical Society will hold their meeting April 15th at 5:30pm. Tai Chi every Tuesday at 10am Pinochle every Friday at 1pm Watercolor Group meets every Wednesday 12:30 to 4. Bring your own supplies Needle Crafts meets every other Thursday 9:30 to noon. Bring your own supplies. Computer Classes are every Tuesday at 10:30 and Friday at 2 pm. REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. Did you know you can have the Oak Harbor Public Library deliver books or DVDs right to your home if you are homebound? Call 419-898-7001 for more information. Join the Friends of the Library! Be part of the exciting things that are happening at the library! The next meeting will be April 9th at 12pm. For Kids Storytime: every Wednesday at 11:30 After School April 7-11: coding critters April 14-18: bead week April 21-25: build a Rapunzel tower April 28– May 2: decorate a bottle More for the kids Wildlife Refuge Drop-in: April 8th 2:30–5pm. Join Basia from the National Wildlife Refuge as she brings in pelts and skins from different animals (held in the children’s section of the library) 1st Annual Easter Egg Hunt: April 14th at 5:30 (held in the children’s section of the library)
APRIL 2025 LAST WORDS By Kathy Huffman 5 The other day a patron asked for directions and was surprised when I responded with; let’s see if we can find it on the map. The days of using a physical paper map in search of that perfect route have come and gone. Replaced with apps like Google Maps or Waze that will get you to your destination, most of the time, with no questions asked. In our mad dash to find convenience lost is the history of the roads we travel. Did you know that Locust Street was not named on the original 1835 Hartford town map. In an 1867 letter the street was referred to as the Fremont & Locust Point Turnpike. Later the road was called the Locust Point Fremont Road. It is speculated that the name was shortened to Locust Street by the residents of Oak Harbor who thought the name was too long. Into the late 1950’s, Osage Orange planks were still being uncovered on the street during road work that required excavation. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, Osage Orange planks were placed on the inbound lane of Locust street to handle the farm wagons loaded with grain and fruit while the outbound lane remained dirt. Mill Street began its existence as a simple 16 ½ foot wide alley primarily used to access the many lumber mills along the Portage River. In 1918 the Village had bought the property and widened the alley into a proper street. In the mid 1800’s, many businesses and stores built their buildings as close to the Portage River as possible. This street became known as Water Street. However, from 1870 to the 1890’s, the newspapers referred to this street as Front Street. That was due to the fact the storefronts were located on the Water Street side and the owners would sweep the street in front of their businesses every Monday morning. The street was covered with wood clippings until 1890’s when it was bricked. Then in the 1950’s it was finally paved. Church Street was aptly named since at one time three active churches called this street home. Methodist, Lutheran, & Catholic. As early as 1874 a thick wooden plank sidewalk ran the length of Church street from downtown to the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern Railroad station (LS&MS). In 1898 the dirt street was bricked. All towns have a Main Street and Oak Harbor is no exception. However, it is interesting to note that our Main Street is not actually the main street of town but located a block over. The street is also comprised mostly of residential lots and not businesses with the Library being the exception. Although, when the library moved to its current location it moved into a two-story residential dwelling. One cannot overlook those roads named after the Village’s namesake. In March of 1863, the Village changed its name from Hartford to Oak Harbor in recognition of the large timber which was shipped from this small harbor town. The Village named a few of its streets after its stoic residents. Maple, Oak, and Walnut Streets. Before there were passable roads through the Great Black Swamp, there were trails used by the Native Americans that called this land home long before the first settlers arrived. The Village named Erie and Ottawa Streets after these local tribes. The Village does have two streets named after U.S. Presidents. Washington and Jefferson Streets. Did you know that part of Washington Street between Toussaint and Benton Streets remained a dirt road until the 1970s. I leave you with this. History tells us that there is a story behind everything, including the roads we travel.
APRIL 2025 OAK HARBOR PUBLIC LIBRARY * 147 W. MAIN ST * OAK HARBOR OH 43449 * 419-898-7001 OAKHARBORPUBLICLIBRARY.ORG * ohpl@seolibraries.org (con’t from page 1). This proposal wants to remove the protection of law and make library funding a lumpsum dollar amount in the State’s overall budget, making it much easier for legislators to cut funding for libraries in the future. If this proposal passes, it means $100 million LESS for Ohio public Libraries over the next two years and NO GUARANTEE OF FUNDING after 2027. The unprecedented elimination of the Public Library Fund comes at a time when libraries across the state already saw a $27 million shortfall in state funding in 2024. Ohio’s libraries are currently funded at the same level we were in the year 2000 with no adjustment for inflation. Since then, our community has grown while the cost of library resources and services has increased, and we have evolved to serve our patrons. HOW DOES THIS IMPACT YOU? 51% of our budget comes from the State’s Public Library Fund and the other 49% from the levy to support not just operations, but the programs and services our community relies on. This includes: • Digital Collections • Hotspots • Early Literacy Programs • Local History • Homebound & Outreach Services • and so much more... Eliminating the Public Library Fund and replacing it with the same level of funding libraries received 25 years ago is a threat to all library programs, resources and services. HOW CAN YOU HELP? Contact your state representative and Speaker Matt Huffman TODAY. Tell them to restore the Public Library Fund to the amount designated in the Governor’s proposed budget and share how important the library is to you and your family and how a cut to libraries would impact you. You can reach your representatives at the information below. Speaker Matt Huffman (614) 4666344 or rep78@ohiohouse.gov Representative: D.J. Swearingen (614) 644-6011 or rep89@ohiohouse.gov 6 Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Programs with an R, please register online or by calling 419898-7001 1 Tai Chi 10 R Computer Class 10:30 History Museum 1-5 2 Storytime 11:30 Watercolor 12:30 3 History Museum 10-2 & 5-7 4 Pinochle 1 R Bingocize 1:30 R Computer Class 2 5 6 Programs in Green are for children/teens 7 Book Sale R Bingocize 10:30 Coding Critters 3 8 Book Sale Tai Chi 10 R Computer Class 10:30 Coding Critters 3 Wildlife Refuge drop-in 2:30 History Museum 1-5 9 Book Sale 60 Plus Clinic 9:30 Coffee & Book 11 Storytime 11:30 Friends mtg 12 Watercolor 12:30 Coding Critters 3 10 Book Sale Needlecrafts 9:30 Coding Critters 3 History Museum 10-2 & 5-7 11 Book Sale Pinochle 1 R Bingocize 1:30 R Computer Class 2 Coding Critters 3 12 13 Programs in Blue are for adults 14 R Bingocize 10:30 R Pressed Flower Craft 2 Bead Week 3 Easter Egg Hunt 5:30 (in children’s section) 15 Tai Chi 10 R Computer Class 10:30 Bead Week 3 History Museum 1-5 OCOGS 5:30 16 Storytime 11:30 Watercolor 12:30 Bead Week 3 Wicked Wed Book club 5:30 17 Bead Week 3 History Museum 10-2 & 5-7 18 Pinochle 1 R Computer Class 2 Bead Week 3 19 20 For the Bingocize class, register with Melanie at the Ottawa Co Health Dept. 419-734-6000 21 Rapunzel Tower 3 22 Tai Chi 10 R Computer Class 10:30 Rapunzel Tower 3 History Museum 1-5 4th Tuesday Book club 5:30 23 Storytime 11:30 Watercolor 12:30 Rapunzel Tower 3 R Wistinghausen Q & A 5:30 (upstairs) 24 Needlecrafts 9:30 Rapunzel Tower 3 History Museum 10-2 & 5-7 25 Pinochle 1 R Computer Class 2 Rapunzel Tower 3 26 CLOSED for carpet cleaning 27 28 Decorate a bottle 3 29 Tai Chi 10 R Computer Class 10:30 Decorate a bottle 3 History Museum 1-5 30 Storytime 11:30 Watercolor 12:30 Decorate a bottle 3 April 2025
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