Becca Zeglovitch, Next Chapter Society Council Chair
From nationally recognized names like Jeni’s and Kendra Scott, to local favorites like East Nashville Beer Works and Serendipity, to new businesses like Duckbill Bookshop, Shook About Books, and Birdie’s Tattoo (just to name a few!), we had an amazing lineup for this year’s Check Out Nashville. From June 14-20, our community of library lovers came together to shop and dine all across the city. I personally loved starting the week with our first event, a pop up yoga class led by Ryan Meyer, who usually teaches at Climb West, hosted at the Global Education Center. Ryan even brought a library book with him that he had just checked out from Richland Park, proving that he’s no fake fan.
I’ve driven past this center hundreds of times but had never been inside, and I was very impressed by their lovely space. I’ll definitely be keeping my eye on their calendar of events. That’s one thing I love about this campaign – it really encourages us to get out into our neighborhoods and see new things, all while supporting our beloved library system!
At every stop I made throughout the week, I heard wonderful stories about how much the library means to our community from business owners and customers alike. When I was picking up my baker’s dozen at Crieve Hall Bagel and thanking them for their support, they said, “Of course! It’s the least we can do.” When I was tabling outside of Gift Horse, I got to hear from numerous families about their favorite library branches and services. Did you know that you can borrow up to 100 books at a time?! I’m still learning fun facts about our library system!
Our week culminated in a closing event at Goodfellas Pizzeria, which included live music, pizza, and a cocktail competition. Five bartenders from around our city created custom cocktails using Uncharted Bourbon by The Ingram Distillery, all of which were themed around a book of their choice. All guests in attendance got to try each cocktail and vote for their favorite, and they also received a Nashville Public Library goodie bag with information about the various ways that NPLF and NCS positively impact our city. This event was a great opportunity for us to spread library awareness while also mingling with other NCS members. All in all, it was an amazing evening full of friendship, community, and toasting another successful year of Check Out Nashville!
The cherry on top is, of course, all of the money that we raised for the Nashville Public Library Foundation. I’d like to send a HUGE thank you to all of the businesses who partnered with us this year, and to all of you supporters who showed out over the week. We couldn’t have done this without you!
A special thank you to our sponsors: Novel Eyecare, Hi, Finch, Music City Residential Specialists, Bethany Harbin State Farm, Lightning 100, and Nashville Scene. Additionally, thank you to our entire list of partners: Duckbill Bookshop, Nashville Sounds, Serendipity, East Nashville Beer Works, Literary Flour, Inglewood Lounge, Flour Your Dreams, Crieve Hall Bagel Co., Jeni’s Ice Cream, Nelson’s Green Brier Distillery, Eat Bubbles, Shook About Books, Kendra Scott, Todd Snyder, Birdie’s Tattoo, Gift Horse, Killjoy, Gladly Gather, Goodfellas Pizzeria, and The Ingram Distillery.
Did you miss Check Out Nashville week? You have another chance to support NPL by shopping at The Bookshop on July 12!