Humanities events

Humanities: Honoring Connections, Broadening Horizons

Our humanities program brings nationally recognized authors and world-class scholars to the library community through events that focus on music, art, local history, religion, literature, and culture.

Programs are often developed in partnership with our many local arts and humanities organizations, nonprofits, and institutions.

Humanities programming is funded by the Durham Library Foundation.

Durham Library Foundation: Better libraries, stronger communities. 25th Anniversary.

Upcoming Events

U.S. Army Band Brass Quintet Returns!

Friday, August 15, 2025 • 10:30am - 11:30am

Southwest Regional Library (3605 Shannon Rd) (Southwest Meeting Room)

The amazing members of the 208th Brass Quintet return to Southwest Regional Library. Please join us for another memorable morning concert. ALL AGES WELCOME!

Ages: Intergenerational

Volunteering in Ukraine

Saturday, August 30, 2025 • 4:00pm - 5:30pm

South Regional Library (4505 S. Alston Ave) (South Meeting Room)

Why would someone volunteer in a country at war like Ukraine? How would you get there? What would you do once you arrived? What if you found that the experience meant so much to you that you went back again and again? On August 30th, Philip Semanchuk...

Ages: Adult, Emerging Adult: 18-24 Year Olds, Senior Citizen

Registration required

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Play time. Bestselling authors at your fingertips; just hit play! Covers of "Solito" by Javier Zamora, "The Poet X" by Elizabeth Acevedo, "Yellowface" by R. F. Kuang, "Maybe You Should Talk To Someone" by Lori Gottlieb, "Everything I Learned about Racism I Learned in School" by Tiffany Jewell, and "Mother-Daughter Murder Night" by Nina Simon.

online resources: online resources backup:

Get in touch!

Humanities Coordinator Celeste Holtzmann.

Celeste

Email: choltzmann@dconc.gov

Celeste is a North Carolina native from the small town of Ridgeway. A winding road of customer service jobs and volunteer opportunities fed her passion for serving community and the various members of it. A graduate of UNC Asheville (BA) focusing in the art of printmaking and from NCCU (MLS) focusing in public libraries, she is thrilled to now take on the role of Humanities Coordinator for the exceptional community of the Durham County Library system. If you could only know one thing about her, she'd want you to know that she wants to HEAR FROM YOU! The humanities and libraries share the common thread of community and sharing voices, so please share yours! There may not be enough days in the year to do it all, but your ideas, interests, and suggestions matter!

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Pronouns: she/her