The Perry Public Library summer reading program is drawing to a close, and Children’s Librarian Suzanne Kestel is excited to host the kids program finale party outside.

The event will be held on Thursday, July 25th at Pattee Park. Kestel says they have the large shelter house reserved in case of inclement weather, so she’s happy to say it will be held in rain or shine. Attendees are asked to bring lawn chairs and blankets to sit on, and they will get to listen to Dallas County Conservation Outreach Coordinator Ken Keffer share stories on his experiences. Two kids will also win copies of one of his books. Other activities include bubbles, s’mores, and grand prize drawings.

Kestel points out that unlike years past, this year she has done away with incentive-based grand prizes. “I kind of quit doing the ‘who read the most books’ (awards), because there is a big difference between a little, thin book and a big ‘Harry Potter’ book. And I just thought, ‘You know what? That’s not fair.’ So this way everybody’s kind of equal, and I’m just glad to give them a pat on the back for reading and being involved in the summer reading program.”

The children’s summer reading finale is free to attend and no registration is required. Participants in the program don’t need to be present to win any of the grand prizes, though they will need to be there in order to win one of Keffer’s books. To learn more about the finales for each of the Perry Library’s summer reading programs, listen to yesterday and today’s Perry Fareway Let’s Talk Dallas County programs at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.