In a time of social isolation, Latah County librarians want to remind their patrons it’s important to take care of themselves. 

Bloody Valentine: An Anti-Valentine’s Day event will be hosted 10 a.m. Friday on Latah County Library’s Facebook page.

The library is hosting this event to show its patrons they can have an enjoyable Valentine’s Day even if they are spending it alone.

Youth services manager Stacie Echanove and adult services manager Bailey Gillreath-Brown said they have a shared joy for reading scary stories and collaborated to plan an event in which they could share an experience with fellow scary story lovers. 

“We thought, what better time than Valentine’s to take time to celebrate ourselves,” Echanove said. “We are also targeting a new audience so this is very exciting for us,” Echanove said.

In conjunction with the event, Gillreath-Brown said the library created self-care kits for their patrons who wish to pamper themselves during this season. 

“For our patrons who might not have a valentine or are happily choosing to be alone, we created self-care kits,” Echanove said. “We want everyone to know that even though they might be alone, they still deserve to be celebrated.” 

The self-care kits will include items like sheet masks, bath bombs and art supplies. Gillreath-Brown said the kits will be available in limited quantities. 

If attendees are interested in receiving a self-care kit, they can take advantage of the Latah County Library’s curbside services and pick one up after the event is hosted. 

Echanove said that the library eagerly looks forward to hosting the event and showing its patrons that self-care is a valuable form of love. 

“We want to show people that there are so many things to love about themselves,” Echanove said. “We want to show them that they don’t need love from someone else to be a worthwhile person.”