Olympic Games Finale for Library Summer Reading Program

Pleasanton kids following the 2012 Olympics in London got a chance to try their hand at fun Olympic-themed games at the last Thursday and Friday.

About 450 kids visited the library for the summer games and the wrap-up of the annual summer reading program. Young readers were able to participate in 10 Olympic games, each manned by one of the 20 teen volunteers from the library's teen volunteer program.

Suman Tripathy, a sophmore at , said she has been volunteering for the library since last September.

"I really like working with kids," said Tripathy.

Foothill High School senior, Morgan Kavanagh, says she volunteers because she has always loved reading.

"I have been volunteering with the summer reading program since I was in sixth grade," she said. "I have always done the reading program. I wanted to contribute to the kids' experience."

The games ranged from gymnastics, weightlifting, and archery to the  "Pleasanton Pentathlon" and "star sailing."

Teresa Parham, the Teen Services Librarian, wrote:

"Through scheduled  brainstorming sessions we came up with some unique ideas [for the games]. Then when we started building with duct tape, recycled items and dollar store bargains. The teens get to utilize their creativity and make a wonderful experience for the younger ones.

It was educational for us too! We learned about the modern pentathlon events in order to make our obstacle course- a perennial favorite. And this year we enlisted some mother/daughter teams from the National Charity League.

All the teens know that their enthusiasm and spirit help the young kids have a blast. No entry fee. No prizes. No tricks. Just good clean fun- for everybody involved.  It’s a lot of hard work for a great reward."

Chloe Connolly, a junior at , helped at the games with her mom, Christine Connolly. Both are part of the National Charity League in Pleasanton. Connolly says their participation at the library happened though their volunteerism with the league, which is a mother-daughter group that volunteers in the community.

Did your child try the "Pleasanton Pentathlon" at the library? What was their favorite event?

If you know one of the teen volunteers, give them a shout out for their great work in the comments section of the article.