Marshall Patterson, Tecumseh Dyer, Addison Biesemeyer and Courtney Drabenstott (not pictured) were the top readers in the children’s Summer Reading Program at North Webster Community Public Library.

NORTH WEBSTER — Games, prizes, hotdogs and fun filled the North Webster Community Center Gym during the Grand Finale Picnic, which marked the end of the Summer Reading Program at North Webster Community Public Library. All summer reading participants and their families were invited to a free hotdog picnic in celebration of a successful summer of reading.

A record number 419 children and teens were registered for the Summer Reading Program, reading a total of 6,035 hours. Since studies reveal that youth who read throughout the summer are better prepared to start school in the fall, these kids will have a jump start when Wawasee schools begin next week.

The top readers in the children’s division were Addison Biesemeyer who read 90 hours, followed by Courtney Drabenstott, Tecumseh Dyer and Marshall Patterson who logged 75 hours each. In the teen division, Geneva Hochstetler logged 180 hours as the top reader, followed by Sydney McKinzie with 130 hours, Sophie Gernand with 125 hours, Keturah Ellenberger with 105 hours and Geoffrey Hochstetler with 100 hours.

Children who read 30 or more hours were eligible to enter six different prize drawings. Winners of those drawings were Ella Conley, Lazaro Webster, Crosby Fisk, Odysseus Olsen, Peyton Bartels and Addison Biesemeyer. Winners of the three teen drawings were Geneva Hochstetler, Cole Steinacker and Geoffrey Hochstetler.

In the Adult Services Department, participants can win the battle of the bulge by dancing for exercise when Let’s Move starts up again at 6 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 16. Meeting every Thursday evening, this dancing-for-fitness class uses a variety of dance videos to achieve a good workout while having fun. The fall session runs until Nov. 15. It’s free and open to adults of all fitness levels.

Openings are still available for the Elkhart field trip on Friday, Aug. 17. Leaving the library at 9 a.m. and traveling by carpool, the group will visit Birds Gotta Fly vintage store, the National New York Central Railroad Museum, and Linton’s Enchanted Gardens, plus a stop for lunch. To join the field trip, interested patrons can sign up in advance at the circulation desk and are asked to bring along $6 for the museum admission fee and money for lunch and shopping.