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Zelienople library looking to ‘make some new friends’ with photo contest

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Anyone who can snap a photo is invited to enter a new contest at the Zelienople Area Public Library.

Michelle Gibbs, a volunteer with Friends of the Zelienople Area Public Library, is coordinating the Shutterbug Showdown, a photo contest that will see prizes for the winners and the opportunity for the public to vote.

Gibbs said photography enthusiasts can submit a photo mounted on a foam board until April 12.

Those in Zelienople, Harmony, Jackson Township and Lancaster Township can enter photos, which will be displayed at the library from April 26 to May 8.

Library cardholders from those areas can get four free tickets to vote on photos, then tickets will cost $1 for four.

A People’s Choice winner from the votes and a Judge’s Choice winner will be named in four categories: youth, teen, adult and senior.

The entry fee to submit a photo for consideration is $10.

The celebrity judges for the contest are local professional photographers Bill Penberthy and Elliot Cramer, and Rick Dayton from WTAE in Pittsburgh.

“Our plan is to take that entry fee and divide it among the first-place winners in each category,” Gibbs said. “Second- and third-place winners will get a swag bag containing donations by local businesses.”

Funds for the library will be raised through the tickets sold to cardholders who vote on the photos, she said.

Gibbs said the impetus for the Shutterbug Showdown was that so many residents of the four municipalities covered by the library do not visit or use the institution in any way.

She hopes the contest gets people into the library on South High Street, either by entering a photo, coming to view the photos, or voting on an entry.

Gibbs wonders if those who do not visit the library are unaware that it offers streaming movies, a variety of magazines, computers connected to the internet, an ancestry.com subscription where residents can look up their forebears, and a host of programs for children and adults.

“For a small town, we have a lot of resources,” she said, “and the staff will go above and beyond for those looking for information.”

Details on the contest are available at the library’s website, zelienoplelibrary.org, by clicking on “Shutterbug Showdown Photo Contest.”

Gibbs, a self-described “lifelong library geek,” invites everyone to enter the contest, or come to the library to check out a book.

“If you don’t have a library card, it’s free, so come get one,” she said. “We’re hoping to make some new friends with this.”

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