Dr. Seuss’s Birthday Party
READING IS A GIFT you learn for life. It can be a solo or group activity that transports the reader and listener to another place, activates the imagination and opens the door for opportunity beyond the written page. Judy Esquibel, the Community Events Coordinator for the Town of Taos, said she and her team of volunteers are always looking for ways to promote reading for children in Taos in hopes of making it a lifetime habit.
On March 4 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Taos Public Library, 402 Camino de la Placita, a Town of Taos birthday celebration is planned for the beloved children’s book author and illustrator, Dr. Seuss.
This year, keeping it COVID safe, Esquibel and her volunteers have set up three stations with one way in and out at the library. Masked volunteers will be on hand to assist children with picking up a new animal-themed backpack filled with school supplies and other goodies. There will also be a station where Dr. Seuss birthday celebrants can pick up their choice of children’s book courtesy of the Taos Public Library, and at the last station, a very special birthday cookie to take home. Special guests will be on-site to get the birthday party started and mingle with the children, including: “The Cat in the Hat”, “Sam I Am”, and Thing 1 and Thing 2.
Esquibel said traditionally (preCOVID) her team would go to Headstart programs in the Taos area and read to the kids, in a costume from a character in Dr. Seuss’s books. The volunteers remind the children after the reading — to read every day.
Esquibel said her own family has a collection of Dr. Seuss books. “As the kids outgrow their clothes, they would be passed on to other families, but the Dr. Seuss’ book collection stays, maybe for the grandchildren.”
Theodor Seuss Geisel authored and illustrated 44 children’s books in his lifetime that have been translated into more than 15 languages, and sold over 200 million copies. He picked up the pen name Seuss as a student at Dartmouth College. The school banned him and a few of his classmates from participating in extracurricular activities after they were caught drinking gin during the Prohibition era. One banned activity was a school publication. Nevertheless,
Theodor continued to write under the pen name Seuss.
All-time favorites of the Dr. Seuss collection include: “Green Eggs and Ham,” “Oh, the Places You’ll Go,” “Fox in Socks,” and “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” National Education Association’s (NEA) Read Across America Day, which celebrates Dr. Seuss’s birthday and the joys of reading, expects over 45 million readers, both young and old, to pick up a book and read. Town of Taos Community Events and Taos Public Library are partnering for this special celebration and asking the community to join National Education Association and many of America’s leading literacy, youth, and civic groups in bringing a nation of readers together under one hat, the red and white stovepipe made famous by “The Cat in the Hat,” for a flurry of reading excitement.
The mask mandate has been lifted and as a result, masks are optional per individual discretion. Esquibel said in advance of the event, she would like to thank all the volunteers, sponsors and staff who host Dr. Seuss’s Birthday Party. And she thanks the community for participating and celebrating the life of this remarkable children’s book author and his impact on generations of readers.
This event is sponsored by the Town of Taos Community Events, Taos Public Library, and National Education Association’s (NEA) Read Across America. For more information, call Judy Esquibel at 575-751-2037 or contact her via email at jesquibel@taosgov.com.