Orcas Island Public Library

05/28/2026

Orcas Island Historical Museums invites you to a story-sharing event for LGBTQ+ islanders from 6-8pm on May 28th at the Public Library. During this casual after-hours event, mingle for an evening of community and collaboration over a shared meal hosted with partners Orcas Island Library and Orcas Island Pride.

Learn more about our Orcas Voices Oral History program, which is dedicated to amplifying and preserving local stories of joy, hardship, and life on our magical island. Get crafty to press your own button or make a bookmark. Get recommendations for more LGBTQ+ books and story-sharing resources through the library. Get engaged with upcoming events for Orcas Pride, June 12-14.

05/20/2026

Please help us with a chance to earn an extra $1,000 today.

Today is Ben Franklin Day** in the GiveOrcas campaign, and $100 gifts can help our library program qualify for BONUS FUNDING from OICF.

We are raising support for one of the most quietly powerful programs in our community: English classes for Spanish speakers and Spanish classes for English speakers. Our pilot session of these classes was successful, and we have a waitlist of over 140 people. We also learned that these classes do far more than teach vocabulary. They create confidence, friendship, opportunity, and understanding between neighbors who might not otherwise cross paths.


At a time when so much national rhetoric seeks to divide and dehumanize Latino communities, this program feels especially meaningful. Here on Orcas, we have the chance to build something different—a community where people make the effort to speak to one another, learn from one another, and create a deeper sense of belonging for everyone.

HOW YOU CAN HELP TODAY:

• Share our GiveOrcas post on social media
• Forward this email to a few friends or neighbors
• Make a $100 gift to help us compete for bonus funding**

**GIVEORCAS Ben Franklin Day
The nonprofits with the most $100+ donors tomorrow win bonus funding from OICF: $1,000 for 1st, $500 for 2nd, $250 for 3rd.

Click here to donate or visit www.GiveOrcas.org.


Thank you for supporting a stronger, more connected island community — one conversation at a time.

With gratitude,

Ingrid Mattson
Library Director

05/17/2026

Help us build stronger community bonds and embrace programs that model compassion, inclusivity, and neighborly connection. We are raising funds through for community-building free English and Spanish classes at the library. We have a waitlist of 140 people, more than two-thirds wanting to learn Spanish to connect with our Spanish-speaking islanders.

Give to our GIVEORCAS project at:
https://oicf.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/grant?grant_id=42045

05/17/2026

Today!! Looks like a gorgeous day to work in the garden. Would love to see you at the library’s. Even just 15 minutes helps. High schoolers - get those community service hours! 🙂🌿🙏🏼🪏

05/14/2026

Orcas Island Public Library will host a special evening with award-winning film and television director Ken Kwapis tonight, Thursday, May 14, at 6:00 p.m. The program will feature a Q&A-style conversation about Kwapis’s career in film and television, his work adapting books for the screen, and his book, What I Really Want To Do Is Direct.

Kwapis, who lives part-time on Orcas Island, has directed eleven feature films, including ‘A Walk in the Woods’, based on Bill Bryson’s acclaimed comedic memoir; ‘He’s Just Not That Into You ‘, inspired by the New York Times bestselling advice book; and ‘The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants’, adapted from the beloved young adult novel. His other films include the rescue adventure ‘Big Miracle’, the romantic comedies ‘License to Wed’ and ‘He Said, She Said’—co-directed with his wife, author Marisa Silver—and his feature debut, ‘Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird’, starring Jim Henson’s Muppets. Kwapis’ first documentary, ‘We Are The Shaggs’, about the provocative 1960s girl group, had its world premiere at the 2026 SXSW Festival.

For television, Kwapis helped launch nine series, including the groundbreaking HBO comedy ‘The Larry Sanders Show’, Fox’s Emmy Award-winning ‘The Bernie Mac Show’, and NBC’s ‘The Office’. Kwapis directed both the pilot and the series finale of ‘The Office’, as well as many memorable episodes, and earned an Emmy nomination for directing the episode “Gay Witch Hunt.”
Kwapis also received an Emmy nomination for his work as a producer-director on Fox’s ‘Malcolm in the Middle’, and recently directed the four-episode revival of the series. His additional television credits include ‘Freaks and Geeks’, ‘One Mississippi’, ‘Santa Clarita Diet’, ‘Outsourced’, ‘Happyish’, and ‘Space Force’.

Darvill’s Bookstore will be on hand selling copies of Kwapis’s book, What I Really Want To Do Is Direct.

05/12/2026

Visit the library booth and all the other great non profits at the event at today from 4-6pm. Thank you

05/12/2026

Orcas Island Public Library will host a special evening with award-winning film and television director Ken Kwapis on Thursday, May 14, at 6:00 p.m. The program will feature a Q&A-style conversation about Kwapis’s career in film and television, his work adapting books for the screen, and his book, What I Really Want To Do Is Direct.

Kwapis, who lives part-time on Orcas Island, has directed eleven feature films, including 'A Walk in the Woods', based on Bill Bryson’s acclaimed comedic memoir; 'He’s Just Not That Into You ', inspired by the New York Times bestselling advice book; and 'The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants', adapted from the beloved young adult novel. His other films include the rescue adventure 'Big Miracle', the romantic comedies 'License to Wed' and 'He Said, She Said'—co-directed with his wife, author Marisa Silver—and his feature debut, 'Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird', starring Jim Henson’s Muppets. Kwapis' first documentary, 'We Are The Shaggs', about the provocative 1960s girl group, had its world premiere at the 2026 SXSW Festival.

For television, Kwapis helped launch nine series, including the groundbreaking HBO comedy 'The Larry Sanders Show', Fox’s Emmy Award-winning 'The Bernie Mac Show', and NBC’s 'The Office'. Kwapis directed both the pilot and the series finale of 'The Office', as well as many memorable episodes, and earned an Emmy nomination for directing the episode “Gay Witch Hunt.”

Kwapis also received an Emmy nomination for his work as a producer-director on Fox’s 'Malcolm in the Middle', and recently directed the four-episode revival of the series. His additional television credits include 'Freaks and Geeks', 'One Mississippi', 'Santa Clarita Diet', 'Outsourced', 'Happyish', and 'Space Force'.

Darvill's Bookstore will be on hand selling copies of Kwapis’s book, What I Really Want To Do Is Direct.

This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact the Orcas Island Public Library.

05/09/2026

Meet Rachel of The Sweet Shop Art Exhibit at 4pm (Saturday) today, make Mom a free candy treat bag, and join a mini scavenger hunt for these little beautiful books made by Rachel Brumer.

05/03/2026

May News From Your Library - WITH AN AMENDED EVENT DATE! -

I tend to read mysteries; real life is serious enough. I prefer lighter fare in my literary life. (Not to mention how happy I am I even have time for a literary life!) But there comes a time when I feel I've read all the mysteries in the library. Though I don't always like change, I've realized try...

05/03/2026

May News From Your Library -

I tend to read mysteries; real life is serious enough. I prefer lighter fare in my literary life. (Not to mention how happy I am I even have time for a literary life!) But there comes a time when I feel I've read all the mysteries in the library. Though I don't always like change, I've realized try...