'Saturday Splash' 2022 Announcement!

You likely already know Minnesota’s own Kate DiCamillo as one of the most read and best loved children’s authors of our time. But did you know that the two-time Newbery Medal winner is also a Friend of the Library? It’s true. DiCamillo’s relationship with and affinity for libraries began at an early age, when she participated in the summer reading program in Clermont, Florida. As she told Public Libraries in a recent interview: “I couldn’t believe I was getting prizes for doing exactly what I wanted to be doing – reading.” 

DiCamillo now uses her celebrity to champion the cause of libraries in a host of ways: serving as spokesperson for the nation’s largest administrator of summer reading programs (CSLP); collaborating with industry thought leaders like the American Library Association and Little Free Libraries; and speaking over the years at more public library venues than she can count.

MALF is thrilled to share that, in a continuation of that pattern, Kate DiCamillo has agreed to keynote and emcee SATURDAY SPLASH 2022! Mark your calendars now for the big day: Saturday, September 24.

What, you might be asking, is a “Saturday Splash”? In short, it is MALF’s annual mini-conference – a morning of content curated by, for and about Friends of the Library. Itinerary will include a splash of this, and a splash of that (thus the name); but as connective tissue, every program module will celebrate Friends work or offer learning opportunities to further that work.

Much like in recent years, when chart-topping authors William Kent Krueger (2020) and Lorna Landvik (2021) led Saturday Splash, highlights will include:

  ✓  Keynote Address + Author Q&A (ft. Kate DiCamillo)
  ✓  Evy Nordley Award Finalist Presentations (emceed by DiCamillo)
  ✓  Stand Up for Standout Friends Video Montage

Saturday Splash 2022 will take place on ZOOM. Attending is FREE, even if you are not a MALF member. However, you must register. Please be sure to do so no later than Wednesday, September 21.