DINUBA – As students around the Valley begin the next school semester, the Dinuba Branch Library is offering a means of getting away and taking a moment to look up.
Those with a library card can check out free stargazing kits, filled with just about everything one could need to explore the solar system. To give users an even better experience, the library has also been pairing these kits with California State Library Park Passes, which give patrons free entry to a wide range of state parks for up to three weeks at a time.
“I think it’s definitely pretty cool, because it kind of gives people a chance to get out of the city that maybe they’re used to being in, and seeing more of our state,” said Amie Little, a library assistant at the Dinuba branch. “It’s got so much to offer.”
Little estimates that the stargazing kits have been around for around a year-and-a-half, but have only recently begun to gain popularity thanks to social media posts and word of mouth. The kits come loaded with a portable stool, compass, flashlight, field guides for the constellations and the night sky and, of course, a telescope.
To check one out, all a library visitor needs to do is ask about the kits at the front desk, and then they can be checked out just like a book.
Jonathan Waltmire, history room supervisor and public information officer for the Tulare County Library, explained that there are four kits available for checkout from the four main Tulare County branches in Dinuba, Exeter, Lindsay and Pixley. To meet rising popularity, the kits are passed around throughout the county and can be checked out or put on hold from any of the four branches.
Waltmire also noted that the park passes are a nice add-on because they allow users to get away from the light pollution of cities, and gain an even clearer view of the night sky. The California State Library Parks Pass allows vehicle entry to over 200 parks spanning every corner of the state, with a map of every participating park on the California State Parks website.
One important note that Waltmire and Little aim to remind people of is the fact that the pass is for state parks — not national parks — so locations like Sequoia National Park and Yosemite National Park are not included.
These stargazing kits are just one of many free goodies and services that local libraries offer, and while Little is happy to see that the demand for the kits is growing, she urges visitors to look into some of these wider offerings.
“I think the community is starting to gain awareness through word of mouth, and our social media, but just tell your friends and family ‘Hey, I got this at the library, go see what that’s about,’” Little said.
