Sugar, spice and self-love. This past Valentine’s Day, Assistant Librarian Denise Hernandez and Business Office Assistant Sarah Boehm hosted a “self-love” bingo in the Tia Palermo Library. They hosted this event after school from 3:15-5:20 p.m. and students enjoyed themed treats and music.

The library hosts themed events throughout the year. This past holiday season, the library held a holiday gram party and, in the past, hosted a Valentine’s Day gram crafting party. Hernandez said the decision to host a self-love bingo game came from suggestions from the students. Eight middle school students attended the event.

“We were thinking about what would be fun for Valentine’s Day. Last year, we did Valentine’s Day grams, and [students] really like it when they get crafty, but other kids had mentioned, ‘I’d really like to play a game,'” Hernandez said. “We thought bingo would be really fun because we just got a book in called ‘Bingo Love;’ it’s a really cute graphic novel, and we realized we could do self-love bingo.”

Some of the bingo prompts included “take care of yourself today,” “drink a cup of water” and “eat something yummy.” Hernandez said the goal of this game was to “de-stigmatize” taking a break.

“The majority of our demographic after school is middle school. We want them to feel like these things are okay, [like] ‘I should be taking a break’ because it’s only going to get harder from here for them,” Hernandez said.

The event was open to all students; however, students were required to submit a Google Form reserving their spot in the library before Feb. 10. Students who signed up and attended the celebration received personal goodie bags. Eighth grader Penny Franklin attended the event and said she enjoyed the game and decorations.

“It was really fun. We got Starbursts if we got bingo and Ring Pops if we filled out the whole card, so it was really fun. I had some of my friends there too, so it was really enjoyable,” Franklin said. “I really like the librarians — Ms. Hernandez and Ms. Boehm — and I think all of the set-ups they have are really fun.”

The library hosts events like this once a month, and Hernandez said they are in the process of planning something in honor of Women’s History Month in March, as well as a study-hour for upper school students where they are allowed the bring snacks. Hernandez emphasized the importance of self-love and appreciation on this holiday.

“We looked up bingo on Canva, and we worked from there. We changed a lot of the stuff because, traditionally, with love bingo — it’s more geared toward relationships and romantic stuff. That’s obviously not what we’re trying to promote but more ‘love yourself,’ and take some time on Valentine’s Day to appreciate yourself,” Hernandez said. “Remember, you don’t need to celebrate with somebody else. You can celebrate with yourself.”

Franklin echoed Hernandez’s statement and spoke specifically to her experience as a girl and the expectation to have a romantic valentine.

“Especially as girls, there’s a lot of pressure to have a valentine, have somebody else love you,” Franklin said. “But, it’s also really important to love yourself and make sure that you value self-love.”