Nessa's Small Steps Child Care LLC of Albrightsville has partnered with Jim Thorpe's Dimmick Memorial Library to create a new program for preschool-aged children. The partnership begins with an appearance by library director Mariann Kmetz at Nessa's, 2591 Route 903, on Thursday, where she will visit as a guest reader at 10 a.m.

Nessa's assistant director, Jonae Fredericks, said she "hopes the program will awaken and encourage the imaginations inside the minds of our preschoolers."Fredericks said she recently contacted Mariann to "express the importance of incorporating a community literacy project into our preschoolers' curriculum."Fredericks said Kmetz was very receptive to the idea, mentioning her own idea to kick-start the same type of program for the area. The goal, Fredericks said, is to encourage other area preschools to incorporate similar activities."Our hope is that the outcome will be so positive that other child-care centers in the area will consider reaching out to the Dimmick Memorial Library for age-appropriate programs," Fredericks said.After the first visit on Thursday, children can expect Kmetz every one to two weeks.For more information on starting a similar program, contact the Dimmick Library 570-325-2131.