Barely familiar with walking, 15-month-old Harrison Gueseol tried his hand at miniature golf Saturday morning, mostly chasing golf balls his parents smacked at a handmade course inside the Matteson Public Library.
The 18-hole putt-putt course became a pleasant diversion for the Gueseol family as freezing temperatures hit the south suburban area.
“I’ve never heard of something like this at a library,” said Mark Gueseol, 33, of Flossmoor. His wife, Kristin Gueseol, also golfed a round.
The miniature golf event wasa fundraising event put on by library staff, who want to buy more computers, projectors and other electronic equipment for the facility at 801 School Ave. Patrons were charged $5 each to take on themed holes, which included one called “Death and Taxes” on the back nine and pictures of superheroes on the front nine. Participants also had a chance to win a gift card from Pepe’s Mexican Restaurant.
“All the staff [decorated] different [holes],” said Jeanne Mueller, the library’s business manager for the library who also was in charge of the fundraising committee. “They decorated the holes. So, it’s really a big staff getting involved.””
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This was the third year the library put together a golf course fundraiser, she said. A golf outing last year was held during the summer reading program. It raised $700.
Every donation helps the library purchase more electronics for adult and child education, Mueller said.
In September, the library put together it’s first 5K run along Old Plank Road Trail as another fundraising effort
Mueller said about 50 people ran last year’s 5K.
The next 5k run is scheduled for October. Library staff are hoping to double the number of adult and child runners this year, she said.
A Night at the the Cotton Club, a jazz music night hosted by the library, might eventually be turned into another fundraiser, she said.
The events come as Matteson’s library has undergone recent renovations. The building’s new wing opened in January 2015, while renovations to the basement and older parts of the library were completed last spring. Nick Swedberg is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.