Youngsters Putter Around Library For A Good Cause

by Steve Yablonski | January 16, 2012 7:41 pm

OSWEGO, NY – From duffers to the more experienced, Oswego’s newest ‘golf course’ proved to be as delightful as it was challenging on Monday.

More than 100 turned out within the first two hours to test themselves against the long fairways, tricky dog-legs and some of the most unforgiving hazards ever created for a golf course.

It didn’t matter that there was a foot of snow on the ground and the mid-January sunshine could hardly budge the temperature much above zero. The 18-hole course was designed and laid out within the Oswego Public Library – on every floor.

The library was closed for regular activities.

However, it hosted a mini golf event on Martin Luther King’s Day to sponsor the Children’s Room.

The cost was $5 per person, $20 cap for a family, and with a library card, it was only $3 per person.

The children in the area have the day off from school and the library is usually closed for the holiday, explained Karen Swartz, one of the event coordinators.

The library was open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for families to come and play 18 holes of miniature golf in the library.

Just 90 minutes into the program, the number of golfers in the library had swollen to 100.

By the end of the afternoon, the total had reached 320.

“My mom’s library in Cape Cod does this fundraiser every year,” Swartz said.

She discussed the idea with Carol Ferlito, the library’s director, and they decided it would be a great family event that also benefited the library.

It took nearly six hours to set up the course with its many twists and turns, and even some ramps going down several flights of stairs.

Main sponsors of the program are Oswego Classroom Teachers Association and Constellation Energy Nuclear Group. The floor sponsors were Wal-Mart, Stewart’s, the Oswego Elks Lodge and Price Chopper.

Also, more than 20 hole sponsors, including Burke’s Home Center, Burritt Motors, Canale’s Restaurant, Dain-Cullinan Funeral Home, George Krul (Stoney Meadow Farm), Nelson Funeral Home, the Oswego Lions Club and library staff and board of trustees among several others helped the library conduct the event.

The Friends of the Library held a bake sale in the community room where refreshments were sold. It was conveniently located right at the final hole.

Katie Price and her brother, Jacob, were among the very first to grab a putter and hit the links.

Jacob putted like a pro – scoring par on the first few holes.

Meanwhile, Katie took a more conservative approach; at times using her putter like a broom to maneuver the golf ball where she wanted it to be.

“This is fun!” exclaimed another youngster as he sank a 10-foot put upstairs in the Children’s’ Room.

It was home to the toughest hole on the course. Around the first turn and about three-quarters of the way to the hole, golfers had to send their balls up and around a loop to get to the hole. If they hit it too soft, the ball would roll back to them. Sometimes, if they hit it too hard, they had to go and retrieve the ball and start over after it banged off the obstacle and rolled around the room.

It was like a Par 20 hole – if you were lucky.

“This is a great event for families,” said Deb Smith as she and her husband, Rick, played through. “It gives the kids something to do on a cold winter day and also benefits the library.”

Source URL: https://oswegocountytoday.com/news/oswego/youngsters-putter-around-library-for-a-good-cause/

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