COLRAIN — Residents enjoyed cornhole on the lawn and free shaved ice provided by the trustees during Griswold Memorial Library’s first summer social on Wednesday.

The social was called in honor of the end of the summer reading program. More than 100 people participated, logging the hours during which they read this summer.

“I am proud to see people coming into and using the library,” said Griswold Memorial Library Director Chelsea Jordan-Makely. “It doesn’t even have to be about books.”

At the social, children who participated in the summer reading program picked up their prizes: a $5 gift card to Pine Hill Orchards, Mo’s Fudge Factor, Hager’s Farm Market or Catamount Country Store. One lucky adult participant won a gift basket filled with locally made goodies.

While similar events have been held in the past, Jordan-Makely said the library trustees heard that residents wanted more opportunities to connect, so they opened the summer reading celebration up to the broader community. In the past year, library circulation, visits and participation in programs have all risen tremendously as the library increases its outreach.

“We try to meet people out in the community, build relationships and have fun,” Jordan-Makely said. “We want to disrupt what people think a library is and is not.”

The summer reading program was not quantity-based; instead, it encouraged families to log reading hours while incentivizing good literacy habits. The goal is to reduce the “summer slump,” or the educational setbacks children experience each summer while they aren’t in school.

“We want to make it as easy as possible to do this,” Jordan-Makely said. “Every household had its own rules around the reading log.”

Along with the prizes, the band Jazz for Two played live music and the Colrain Seniority Dancers performed. Nice. Snack Parlor, an organic shaved ice shop based in Turners Falls, served free snacks to attendees of all ages.

Story walk launch party

The fun will continue on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Pine Hill Orchards. There, Griswold Memorial Library will host its third annual story walk launch party. Through a story walk, pages of a book are printed on large signs along a walkway. Rather than read the book in its traditional form, readers walk through it.

This year’s story is “Arlo Rolled” by local author Susan Pearson. Families can walk among the apple trees while reading the story of Arlo the pea, who leaves his pod in search of his purpose in life. The party will also include crafts and puppetry with Tom Knight at noon.

Bella Levavi can be reached at 413-930-4579 or blevavi@recorder.com.