New library addition will provide expanded programming, creative, and study spaces to meet growing community demand. Beginning in July, construction will begin on a nearly 3,300-square-foot addition to the Helen Warner Branch. The project will enhance the branch’s ability to serve patrons by providing a...

By Matt Willis Director, Willard Library  Who really controls your inner world? Seems like a silly question. Doesn’t everyone get to be in charge of their own mental landscape? My mind, my choice? Many writers and podcast hosts have been calling out the “attention economy”...

There is a special kind of magic in discovering a film that stays with you long after the credits roll. At Willard Library, we’ve always believed that stories—whether they are bound in a book or projected on a screen—have the power to connect our community...

Willard Library’s Reading is Everything campaign is a community-wide initiative designed to spark excitement around reading for all ages and abilities. Reading goes beyond words on a page; it shapes how we learn, communicate, problem-solve, and navigate the world, making it an essential skill for...

History enthusiasts are invited to the library on Wednesday, June 17, at 6 p.m. in the Downtown Library Lower Level for a presentation by author Emily Sneff on her new book, When the Declaration of Independence Was News. Published in conjunction with the 250th anniversary...

Jolene Weiner-Vatter, Assistant Public Defender for Calhoun County will explore one of the cornerstones of American law: due process, on Wednesday, April 22 at 6 p.m. in the Willard Library downtown programming room, 7 W. Van Buren St.  Weiner-Vatter will review the origins and history...

Willard Library is excited to announce the launch of a new Plant Propagation Station, a community-driven initiative designed to inspire an interest in gardening, cultivate green spaces, and share knowledge. Located at the downtown location on the main floor, the Propagation Station operates on a...

Willard Library is pleased to announce the 2026 Battle Creek Reads title, West With Giraffes by Lynda Rutledge. The author will speak at Binder Park Zoo on Thursday, May 7 at 6 p.m. West With Giraffes is a charming historical fiction novel, inspired by true...

Now showing: your next favorite documentary! Learn more each week with an interesting and entertaining documentary film. January 7: Episode One of Ken Burns’ Documentary, “Benjamin Franklin”Explores the revolutionary life of one of the 18th century’s most consequential figures, whose work and words unlocked the...

Willard Library will host a traveling exhibit honoring Henrietta Lacks, the “Mother of Modern Medicine” on Wednesday, Nov. 12 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the downtown location programming room, 7 W. Van Buren St.  Lacks’ great nephew (and Kalamazoo native) Jermaine Jackson will...