The annual Used Jigsaw Puzzle Sale from the Friends of the Library is happening a little earlier than usual this year, but members of the charitable group are hoping that means there will be more interest.
The puzzle sale will take place on Aug. 29 and will be set up in the Reading Room on the main floor of the Moose Jaw Public Library from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.
A few things about the sale will be different this year, including COVID precautions limiting the number of people able to be in the room at a time and a few less familiar faces running the sale.
“There’s only going to be a couple of Friends participating in the sale this year, because a number of our members are in the group [of people] who might be at risk [for COVID-19],” said Carolyn Graham, treasurer for the Friends of the Library and also acting assistant head librarian at MJPL.
All visitors are also being asked to respect the physical distance recommendations and to wear a mask when visiting the sale this year, which the Friends of the Library will be able to provide for those without a mask.
Otherwise, the sale itself will be the same as any other year — full of interesting jigsaw puzzles perfect for filling the time, especially this year.
“We know that people are spending a lot of time on jigsaw puzzles while they’ve been in lockdown, so we thought maybe we could make the puzzle sale available earlier this year,” said Graham. “And we thought maybe offering it at a different time of the year might bring different people out.”
Puzzles will be priced at $2 per puzzle, and $5 for a set of puzzles. Friends of the Library will be collecting all of the proceeds from the sale, which will be put towards the many programs and support the group has been offering the MJPL since it's inception in 1990.
The group usually hosts three used book sales and the puzzle sale each year to fundraise, but COVID-19 has put a hold on their efforts indefinitely. Normally, the group would host a used book sale in September and October, the puzzle sale in November and another used book sale in April, but the pandemic has cancelled all other sales but this one.
“We really haven’t raised any revenue this year, because we shut down at the beginning of March and that was it,” said Graham. “We may have another sale if we get enough donations and if demand is there, but it is going to depend on what’s going on in the community and how safe it is for people to be out and attending events like that.”
The Friends of the Library are also still accepting donations of puzzles and books, which can be dropped off at the MJPL using the loading dock, in order to minimize personal contact.
