By: Dean Vaglia | C&G Newspapers | Published January 23, 2026
CLINTON TOWNSHIP — Those who regularly scour the Clinton-Macomb Public Library’s events schedule might notice that the library’s 1-2-3 program is missing. But the curious at heart have nothing to fear.
“Get to Know Your Neighbor” is the CMPL’s new “big issue” initiative, delving into the stories and subjects that pop up around holidays, events and other observances of note.
“It is to highlight different events, holidays and traditions that our community might be a part of by providing reading resources, some programs and maybe some materials to help flesh out these lesser known events and holidays that people might want to know more information about,” CMPL Associate Director Jamie Morris said.
For those who see similarities between “Get to Know Your Neighbor” and the CMPL’s old 1-2-3 program, there’s a good reason for that.
“We don’t think of it as a replacement of 1-2-3 as much as we think of it as an evolution,” said Amy Young, head of adult services at the CMPL. “In the 1-2-3 program, we chose very specific topics that we focused on for the first four months of the year and then we moved onto the next year and the next topic. We think ‘Get to Know Your Neighbor’ provides us a way to be more broad in the topics we’re exposing the community to.”
Under the “Neighbor” model, multiple subjects will be covered over the course of a month. In January, the subjects included Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and Braille Literacy Month, with the following months through April set to cover Black History Month, Ramadan/Eid al-Fitr, Lunar New Year, Women’s History Month, Holi, International Transgender Day of Visibility, Deaf History Month, Arab American Heritage Month, Autism Acceptance Month, Passover and Earth Day.
Core to the “Neighbor” program are booklists, which for January focus on recommending books to CMPL patrons focusing on characters and people who are blind and about the braille writing system, as well as books centered around Martin Luther King Jr., the Civil Rights Movement and community service. Relevant items other than books in the CMPL’s collections, such as braille printers, are also highlighted during “Get to Know Your Neighbor.”
Eventgoers are also in luck. Tied to “Get to Know Your Neighbor,” the CMPL hosted a screening and discussion of “In Remembrance of Martin” on Jan. 16 at the Main Library in Clinton Township and a Martin Luther King Jr. craft day for kids on Jan. 17 at the North Branch in Macomb Township.
With the program only starting in January 2026, there has not been enough feedback for CMPL staff to truly gauge the community’s response to the new program. But they have high expectations based on early events and interactions with library patrons.
“It’s just been delightful to see people stop at the display (in the Main Library) and look at the materials and take the materials … We are promoting these (materials) all over the place,” Young said. “We have far more extensive lists on the website of materials people can look at or look for. Anyone is always welcome to come up to a librarian and ask for a suggestion on any topic they desire.”
Those looking for more information about “Get to Know Your Neighbor,” go to cmpl.org/gtkyn_home. To provide feedback and recommend future topics for “Get to Know Your Neighbor,” contact the adult services popular materials desk at info@cmpl.org or call (586) 226-5050.