A Mesa Library and Las Cumbres Community Services collaboration provides a new Sensory Friendly Movement and Music program to children newborn to 6 years old and their caregivers at no cost. Courtesy/LAC

COUNTY News:

Through a collaboration between Mesa Public Library and Las Cumbres Community Services, a new Sensory Friendly Movement and Music program is being offered to children from newborns to 6 years of age and their caregivers at no cost.

The program is 9:30-10 a.m. on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month beginning March 9.

The program will be hosted at the new Las Cumbres Community Services location, at the old Montessori Playschool building, 1060 Nugget St.

Trained facilitators will use gentle movement, low lighting, natural vocals, limited props, and lots of personal space to create a welcoming and accepting program for neurodiverse children.

Program staff welcome feedback from families in order to offer the best program possible.

The partnership between Mesa Public Library and Las Cumbres grew from the Community Educator’s Network, a monthly meeting of community educator minds organized by Youth Services Librarian Melissa Mackey. Mackey understood that the library can be an overstimulating setting and saw an opportunity to bring the popular library program, Music and Movement, off-site to the Las Cumbres community.

“We’ve wanted this for a long time; patrons have expressed a need. Library staff are excited to partner with Las Cumbres to offer our most popular library program framed differently,” Mackey said.

Program dates are subject to change due to ongoing COVID-19 precautions, and anyone interested in attending should contact Mesa Public Library’s Youth Services Department for the most up-to-date information at 505.668.8257.