Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

 The Calhoun County Library would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

New Community Mah Jongg Program

            The Calhoun County Library is introducing a new program and would like to invite each of you to come play this trending game with us!

Mah Jongg originated in China and is a tile-based game that combines luck, skill, and strategy. Similar to rummy, it involves acquiring and discarding tiles to create a complete hand. Playing the game has cognitive benefits like improving executive function, enhancing overall cognitive function, and improving memory and focus. After many requests to start a Mah Jongg program here at the library, we’ve decided to get on board and join the trend. So, here it is! We will be holding Community Mah Jongg on the first Tuesday of every month. Guided play, where we teach you how to play the game, will begin at 4 PM. Open play will then be from 5 PM - 6:30 PM.

Make sure to join us for our very first Community Mah Jongg on Tuesday, January 6, 2026! We would love to play this new popular game with you and have some good old-fashioned fun together!

Library Christmas Decorations

Come visit the Calhoun County Library and enjoy all of the Christmas decorations! It's not too late to take last-minute pictures in front of our pretty tree!

Holly Jolly Calhoun County Christmas

            St. Matthews was bustling with Christmas spirit last week as Santa came to the library and elves were hiding at the museum!

            On Thursday, December 4, 2025, at 4 PM, the Calhoun County Library came together with the Calhoun County Museum to have the best Christmas event possible! Starting at 4 PM, Santa came to the library to see all the boys and girls from the county. We’re not sure where he parked his sleigh, but we heard his sleigh bells before he made his grand entrance. Santa came jingling around the corner and greeted everyone; he then began visiting with each and every little one and took pictures with everyone. After they took pictures, kids enjoyed making custom ornaments and other crafts. Then everyone got a special gingerbread cookie and hot chocolate with whipped cream, sprinkles, and peppermint. We went all out!

            After visiting with Santa, it was time to go to the museum for more fun to continue over there! Pesky little elves made their way into the exhibits and we needed help trying to find them all. The museum also took up all of the letters to Santa in case you forgot to give them to Santa when you took pictures. To make sure that every person was able to make it to both locations, we had a reindeer shuttle going every 15 minutes to drop off and pick up.

            Porkchop Productions performed Holly Saves Christmas at 5:30 PM and 7 PM at the Calhoun County Museum. In the play, Santa Claus came down with a cold and couldn’t deliver gifts so Christmas was canceled! Oh no! Little Elf Holly couldn’t let that happen so she did everything in her power to make sure we could still have Christmas! We won’t give too much away, but we wanted to let you know that Porkchop Productions gave us a chance to reflect on the fact that Christmas isn’t just about presents. It is about spending time with people you love and making wishes come true!

            This whole Calhoun County Christmas event was free to attend and we are so glad that we had tons of people have fun with us to celebrate the upcoming holidays. If you took pictures with Santa and are placing them on social media, please tag us! We would love to see them!

New Library Employee Welcoming

            The Calhoun County Library has hired two new employees to join the team and we would like to introduce you to them.

            Madelyn Robinson is our newest full-time Patron Services employee. After retiring as the Assistant Town Administrator with the Town of Summerville and traveling for a couple of years, she and her husband, Ed, are relocating to St. Matthews where he grew up. She became involved with the Calhoun County Library's Book Club and decided to apply for one of the open positions as being a part of the library was another opportunity to serve the public. Plus, where else would a bookworm like to work?! She is currently reading The Midnight Library by Matt Haig; The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown; It Happened One Summer by Tessa Bailey; and, Mistletoe and Magic by Helene Sula. She also enjoys photography and traveling.

            Madison Jackson is our newest part-time Patron Services employee. She received her Bachelor’s of Arts in Political Science at South Carolina State University. She volunteers at different organizations in Calhoun County. She even volunteered at the library quite a few times in the past. She is currently reading The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and her favorite book series is Junie B. Jones. Her hobbies include exercising, traveling, and watching crime mysteries. She also works part-time as a Substitute Teacher.

            Come stop by the library and say hello to these two new employees. We are so excited and lucky to have them join the team to make the library the best place it can be so we can serve you!