WinterGreen

Let's chase away the winter blues and welcome the greens of spring!

Mead Public Library and our community partners will celebrate the start of spring by hosting a day of free, hands-on, green-themed activities, presentations, and vendor booths during our 9th annual WinterGreen event on March 21, 10 am-4 pm.

WinterGreen activities will include family yoga, Tai Chi, gardening, beekeeping, fermentation, fidget keyring making, a plant exchange, the Mead Seed Library, animal ambassadors from J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue, an interactive Badger Talks presentation by Scott Williams of the Wisconsin Energy Institute, and more! (See our full schedule below.) 

WinterGreen is sponsored by MilliporeSigma, the University of Wisconsin—Madison Badger Talks, the Friends of Mead Library, and the Mead Public Library Foundation. 

WinterGreen
March 21, 2026
10:00 am-4:00 pm

FIRST FLOOR

9:30 am-4:30 pm | Main
Information Booth
 

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue Booth 
(between Creature Feature programs)

Rescue, Rehab, Rehome: J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue, founded in February 2020, is a compassionate organization dedicated to addressing the issue of unwanted exotic pets. Recognizing the potential harm of releasing such animals into the wild, the organization strives to provide responsible alternatives. Committed to the welfare of aquatic creatures, J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue focuses on finding suitable homes for surrendered pets. Through their efforts, they aim to not only ensure the well-being of individual animals but also contribute to broader conservation initiatives by preventing the introduction of non-native species into natural ecosystems. With a mission rooted in education and responsible pet ownership, J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue plays a vital role in fostering a harmonious coexistence between humans and aquatic life.

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main 
Lakeland University Environment and Consumption

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Lakeland University STEM Outreach

   
10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main 
WinterGreen Selfie Photo Booth

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Sheboygan County Food Bank Drive

Spring is the perfect time to clean out your pantry and share your excess with a neighbor in need! We will be collecting non-perishable foods for the Sheboygan County Food Bank during WinterGreen. 
Current Most Needed Items: canned soup, canned tuna/chicken, canned fruit, pasta, pasta sauce, and personal care items.

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Friends’ Bookstore
2nd-Chance Books for Sale
(donation box payments of cash and check accepted)

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Friends’ Bookstore
Potted Plant Exchange
Bring in a potted plant to be rehomed/take one home. 
 

11:15 am-12:15 pm | Rocca
Creature Feature with J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue

J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue offers an engaging hour-long presentation featuring live animals, including an intriguing assortment of snakes, lizards, insects, spiders, hedgehogs, birds, and more. The session includes a dynamic Q&A session, allowing participants to delve deeper into the world of these fascinating creatures. If time permits, attendees have the unique opportunity to get up close and personal with the animals, enhancing their interactive experience.

1:15 pm-2:15 pm | Rocca
Creature Feature with J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue

J&R Aquatic Animal Rescue offers an engaging hour-long presentation featuring live animals, including an intriguing assortment of snakes, lizards, insects, spiders, hedgehogs, birds, and more. The session includes a dynamic Q&A session, allowing participants to delve deeper into the world of these fascinating creatures. If time permits, attendees have the unique opportunity to get up close and personal with the animals, enhancing their interactive experience.

SECOND FLOOR

10:00 am-11:00 am | Quiet Study Room
Yoga Basics for Adults and Teens with Megan Nasgovitz

10:00 am-12:00 pm | Imaginarium
Fidget Keyrings with Mead Library

10:00 am-12:00 pm | Imaginarium 
Found Poetry Collages with Mead Library

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Native Plant Seeds with the Friends of North Point

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Griefkeepers’ Crafting Society
(meeting at Mead Library and WordHaven BookHouse—stop by the booth for details)

The Griefkeepers' Crafting Society is all about socialization and bringing community together, everyone included, to do our crafts and talk about the grief we have in our daily lives. It's not a grief session, it's a crafting of words, while working on our individual hand-held art form. We never know what the crafting society will end up discussing, but we know it's a safe, non-judgemental place to utilize our imagination and to weave together our wounds and words into a comforting blanket for everyone. 

Dorothy McElroy is a Grief Support Specialist and Coach, A End of Life Coach and Doula, and a  Peer support specialist. dorothy is head coach at The Dancing Arrow Club, grief therapy through archery and President of Worldwide Dragon Shooting Day Inc.

Dorothy enjoys reading, hiking, playing and listening to music, working on writing her own book, and making all kinds of art. She has bad thumbs though, so when it comes to yarn maybe someone can teach her how to crochet or knit. Many have tried and failed. 

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Paper Daisy Chains with Mead Library

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Sheboygan County Master Gardener Association
 

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Mead Seed Library

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Mead Plant Cutting Exchange
Bring in plant trimmings from your houseplants to share/adopt a plant cutting to grow at home.

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Public Conference Room #2
Meditative Coloring & Doodling with Mead Library
 

11:00 am-1:00 pm | Main 
Egg Carton Starter Gardens with Mead Library
 

11:15 am-12:00 pm | Quiet Study Room
Guided Relaxation with Marci Zink

In this 45-minute class, you will be guided to a deeply relaxed place that leaves you refreshingly calm, grounded, and energized. The focus is on restoring the body and mind to their naturally peaceful, happy state. Bring a towel, blanket, or yoga mat if you want to do this lying down. Chairs will also be available if you prefer to sit.

1:00 pm-2:00 pm | Quiet Study Room
Tai Chi with Jon Doll and Jane Lang

This gentle form of exercise can help maintain strength, flexibility, and balance. Tai chi is often described as "meditation in motion," but it might well be called "medication in motion." 

1:00 pm-3:00 pm | Imaginarium
Found Poetry Collages with Mead Library

1:00 pm-3:00 pm | Imaginarium 
Fruit Fly Trap Making with Mead Library

THIRD FLOOR

10:00 am-11:00 am | The Loft
Mindful Movement: Yoga Basics for Families with Jackie Kotyza

10:00 am-11:30 am | Maas Teen Learning Center
Fermentation with Amanda Strojinc of Hopefully Homesteading

Join Amanda of Hopefully Homesteading to learn about the funk of fermentation.  From condiments like sauerkraut and kimchi to breads like sourdough, fermented foods offer a host of benefits and are simple to make. Come learn the science and basics of fermentation along with a few quick recipes. 

10:00 am-1:00 pm | Main
Friendship Bracelets with Art & Good Company


10:00 am-4:00 pm | Maas Teen Learning Center
Hopefully Homesteading with Amanda Strojink

Amanda Strojink was born and raised in Sheboygan. She is a registered nurse by trade, but has a passion for canning and home food preservation. She is a proud educator who teaches a wide variety of subjects relating to homesteading and prepping with a sustainability focus. This includes canning and home food preservation, beekeeping, backyard chicken flock husbandry, seed saving and starting, garden planning, fermentation, and some kitchen skills like bread and pasta making, to name a few.  

Amanda's classes can be found in various settings like demonstration kitchens, libraries, technical colleges, local recreation departments and private homes. She enjoys sharing her knowledge with others in a relaxed and interactive setting.

Amanda also has a line of small batch, handcrafted foods and non-food items for sale at local Farmer’s Markets and her road stand under her brand, Hopefully Homesteading.  Additionally, she has a few offerings that she makes and labels for Stefano’s SloFood Market.

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Maas Teen Learning Center
Through the Looking Glass Botanicals with Mel Miller

Through The Looking Glass Botanicals focuses on education about the amazing plants that are grown on our beautiful planet. We invite you to explore a world where nature’s wisdom meets mindful creation, offering you a path to a more natural and vibrant way of living.

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Bird Search Bingo with Mead Library
Stop by the 3rd-floor staff desk for a Bingo card and search the floor for birds. 
Show the librarian at the desk your card and collect a prize for your first Bingo.

 
10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
Forest Friends & Pollinators Masks with Mead Library

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Main
The Smells of Spring with Bookworm Gardens

10:00 am-4:00 pm | Children's Activity Room
Nature Crowns with Above & Beyond Children's Museum

11:00 am-3:00 pm | Story Garden
Flora & Fauna Temporary Tattoos with Mead Library

11:00 am-3:00 pm | Story Garden
Imagination Playground with Mead Library

1:00 pm-2:15 pm | The Loft
Badger Talk: Climate at your Fingertips – An Interactive Solutions Workshop with Scott Williams

How can we collectively limit global warming to well below 2 degrees Celsius? In this talk, audience members will identify real climate solutions and test their impacts on global temperature using an interactive, cutting-edge computer simulation. Together we’ll create a potential future using evidence-based modeling and engaging conversations.

As the Education Manager for the Wisconsin Energy Institute, Scott Williams administers the Energy Analysis and Policy graduate certificate and the undergraduate Certificate in Engineering for Energy Sustainability and teaches courses in these programs. He also supports WEI's public education and outreach programming as well as extracurricular student activities related to energy education and career connections. Williams obtained a Master of Public Affairs degree in May 2010 from the La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and completed the Energy Analysis and Policy Certificate as part of his graduate program. He holds a B.A. in Journalism and History from UW–Madison, and previously worked as a morning news producer at NBC15 in Madison.

2:15 pm-3:45 pm | Maas Teen Learning Center
Beekeeping with Amanda Strojinc of Hopefully Homesteading

Have you ever been interested in the hobby of beekeeping, or just want to learn about the life cycle of a honeybee and its hive? Join Amanda Strojinc of Hopefully Homesteading as we go through one year in the life cycle of a honeybee and its hive, explore modern beekeeping practices, and learn about native Wisconsin bee species.