Bellingham Public Library - Bellingham, WA

10/21/2026

It's National Friends of the Library Week and we're giving thanks to our incredible Friends' volunteers! You'll see them busy as bees at book sales and at community events, and we see them every day behind the scenes working hard to process all of the donated materials* from the community for the book sales and Nearly New shelves.

The Bellingham Public Library is grateful for the Friends and all the hard work they do to generate funding for library programs and services. Without their support we would not be able to accomplish all that we do.

Find the Friends of the Bellingham Public Library next at the Books and Brews Book Sale at Wander Brewing (1807 Dean Ave. across from Bellingham High School) on Saturday, December 5 from 12:00 - 7:00 pm. There will be a great selection of fiction, Northwest, history, cookbooks, children’s books and much more. Come say hi to the Friends and support the Bellingham Public Library!

*Please note: the Friends are not accepting donations currently due to the upcoming renovation of the Central Library.

10/15/2026

Calling all lovers of typewriters and tiny terrors! 🙀

At our October 21 Typewriters 101 session, local expert Jennifer will introduce “aged” carbon copy paper for a special micro‑horror writing challenge. Just 2–3 sentences… but plenty of chills.

Join us from 1:30–4:30 pm in the SkillShare Space at the Central Library. Enter… if you dare. 👻🎃👾

Stories in photos sourced from https://3sentencehorror.com/

10/14/2026

✅ Are you registered to vote and is your information current?
🙋🏽 Know someone who still needs to register? Bring them along!
🔜 The November 3 election is just around the corner. Every vote counts!

The League of Women Voters of Whatcom County will be at the Bellingham Central Library SkillShare Space on Saturday, October 17 from 2:00 – 4:00 pm to help community members register to vote.

10/11/2026

Bellingham Children's Librarian Ali Kubeny is week's Faces in the Crowd feature in Cascadia Daily News! Learn more about her and all she does for Bellingham Public Library and the City of Bellingham, Washington - Government

Living | Profiles | Faces in the Crowd Faces in the Crowd Ali Kubeny: Children’s librarian, curator, presenter CDN's weekly community profile Oct. 8, 2026 9:00 p.m. Bellingham Public Library children's librarian Ali Kubeny reads a few pages from the book "Toto." Kubeny guesses she's had a hand in ...

10/10/2026

🍕 Democracy, pizza, and community conversations — continuing Oct. 16 & 17 at your Library! 🍕

Our civic workshop series with the WA Secretary of State Office of Civic Engagement rolls on with two back‑to‑back sessions designed to help you understand how local government works and how our election systems shape community life. Bring your questions — we’ll bring the pizza!

🗣️ Local Civics: How Do Local Governments Work and How Can I Engage?
Friday, 10/16 • Central Library Lecture Room

This event will increase your knowledge of local government and offer ways to get involved. We'll hear from a panel of local City and County representatives, including:
• Liz Darrow, Chair, 2025 Whatcom County Charter Review Commission
• Deborra Garrett, former Whatcom County Superior Court Judge and Bellingham Public Library Board Trustee
• Miriam Karamoko, Executive Director, Whatcom Racial Equity Commission
• Kristina Martens, Special Projects Manager, Chuckanut Health Foundation and Cofounder, Whatcom Racial Equity Commission
• Hannah Stone, Bellingham City Council President, 1st Ward and Bellingham Public Library City Council Liaison

🗳️ Civil Discussion: Voting in Local Elections
Saturday, 10/17 • Central Library Lecture Room
Should Washington state allow local elections to use Ranked‑Choice Voting (RCV)? In this guided discussion, learn what RCV is, how it works, and how it could affect representation in local elections.

These events are free and open to all. Registration helps us plan how much pizza to order, but it's not required. Register and find all upcoming dates on our website: https://bellinghampubliclibrary.org/

10/02/2026

All locations of the Bellingham Public Library will be closed on Wednesday, October 7 for Staff Learning Day.

09/29/2026

Bellingham Central Library turns 75 years old today! It was originally dedicated on Sept. 29, 1951. We are excited to celebrate many years of service and to pamper the building with a much needed renovation in 2027!

09/28/2026

✨2026 Indigenous Peoples’ Day Celebration ✨

📅 Monday, October 12, 2026
🕠 Doors open: 5:30 pm (with dinner service)
🎤 Program: 6:00 - 8:00 pm
💃 Jam + dancing: 8:00 pm until late!
📍 Location: Lummi Nation School, 2334 Lummi View Dr, Bellingham

🌎 All are welcome! This family-friendly, intergenerational community event is offered free of charge for everyone in Whatcom County.

🍽️ Dinner, community, student speakers, music, and dancing — come celebrate with us!

This year’s theme is: Answering the Call of our Ancestors. This year our young people will be taking the stage and making meaning of this year’s theme. What is the calling from our previous generations and how do we answer their message?

This year's event will be joined by multiple Native Youth Councils from around Whatcom County. We will enjoy a community dinner catered by local caterer Seawolf Surf n Turf managed by local business owner Cesarita Ballew. Singing, dancing and jam out to follow the program! All drum groups are welcome to jam. Host drum group is the Lhaqtemish Singers.

This event is sponsored by the Community Consortium for Cultural Recognition.

AA/EO for questions, feedback, and accommodations please contact [email protected]

09/17/2026

The Friends of the Bellingham Public Library September Book Sale is coming soon! It will be a 3-day sale and will run Thursday, September 24 and Friday, September 25 from 10:00am - 6:00pm, and from 10:00am - 3:00pm on Saturday, September 26.

There will be books, films, music and more for all ages, and all proceeds benefit the Bellingham Public Library. Friday is half-price day and Saturday is $5/bag! Credit cards and cash payments will be accepted.

The Friends of the Bellingham Public Library are an all volunteer non-profit charitable organization established in Bellingham in 1952. The Friends, while separate from the Bellingham Public Library, exist to support the Library and literacy in our community. We're very grateful for their hard work and generosity.

See you at the September Book Sale!