The Oakland Public Library's End of Summer Celebration this year was bigger than ever! Over 550 families rolled through to enjoy STEM activities at the Bay Area Discovery Museum's Try-It-Truck, to eat hamburgers and hotdogs freshly grilled up by Local 55 Firefighters and served by their youth interns, and to pick up their summer reading prizes. All completely for free!
Hosted at the Dimond Branch in the Dimond district of east Oakland, the party was held on Saturday, August 1, 2026, the last day to log summer reading in order to win your prize. Other activities included, science lessons with UC Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science, a magic show, storytime, hot meal distribution from Community Kitchen, and book and snack giveaway from Eat. Learn. Play.
OPL's annual summer party is the culmination of Oakland's summer reading program, and is a positive beginning to the Back-To-School season, which can sometimes be a nervous transition for both parents and children. We help ease that transition with free resources, literacy support, and by reassuring families that there is a network of support for them in Oakland.
The highlight of the party was a surprise visit by Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee and the generous donation by AT&T of 100 laptops to pair with the backpacks OPL planned to giveaway at the event. Together, 50 backpacks and 50 laptops were distributed to families with school-aged children to support their learning needs going into the new school year.
The other 50 laptops will be given away at another Oakland Public Library event to be determined.
Nothing can overstate the importance of a child's education. Literacy, including digital literacy, is a fundamental part of that picture. The City of Oakland, the Oakland Public Library, Eat. Learn. Play., and all of our partners help to make up this network of support, making a real difference in the lives of Oakland children and their families.
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