Albany County library launches all-ages summer reading program June 6

A free summer reading challenge is about to give Albany County families a simple routine from June 6 through Aug. 16, with raffle prizes on the line and sign-up open to readers of every age.

Albany County Public Library’s 2026 program, Unearth A Story, is built as an all-ages incentive program rather than a children-only activity. Participants can stop by any branch on or after June 6 to sign up for the free program, then track reading goals through the summer for a chance at rewards, including large raffle prizes provided by Smile Doctors.

The program arrives just as school lets out and families start looking for low-cost ways to fill long summer days. In Albany County, that matters across the library system’s three locations: the main library in Laramie at 310 S. 8th St., the Rock River branch at 321 Avenue D, and the Centennial Valley branch at 27 2nd St. Each site serves a different part of the county, giving residents in the city and in smaller towns the same chance to take part without having to travel far.

The theme itself comes from the Collaborative Summer Library Program’s 2026 national summer reading theme. CSLP describes Unearth A Story as a concept meant to connect reading with discovery, local knowledge and broad appeal for children, teens, families and adults. That fits a county library system that has to serve a wide range of needs, from parents trying to keep children reading to adults looking for a summer goal of their own.

The reach is especially meaningful in Centennial, where the branch serves a very small community of roughly 300 residents. For a town that size, a countywide reading challenge can do more than hand out prizes. It gives families a shared activity, a place to go, and a reason to keep reading habits alive while school is out.

Albany County Public Library has used the same summer framework before. Its 2025 program, Color Our World, ran June 7 through Aug. 17 and also partnered with Smile Doctors. The 2024 program, Adventure Begins, ran June 8 through Aug. 16 and likewise included Smile Doctors and an all-ages reading challenge. That pattern shows the library has settled on a summer offering that is free, easy to join and broad enough to reach children, teens and adults across the county.