On Nov. 30, the Carmel Clay Public Library (CCPL) will host DIY Holiday Gifts anytime after school until 5 p.m in the program room. The event gives teens the opportunity make their own holiday gifts for family and friends by using origami, calligraphy, duct tape, and more.

Recently, the library obtained a grant from an organization called the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). The DIY Holiday Gifts event is part of that grant.

Hope Baugh, young adult services manager, said the best way for students to get involved in the event is simply to attend.

“If Carmel High School students get involved and come to this DIY Holiday Gifts event, we hope that they’ll become more financially literate, smarter about money, smarter about how they spend their money and those habits will continue into the future and they will become smarter about money the rest of their lives,” Baugh said.

This event will also benefit the library, according to Baugh.

“We hope (the DIY Holiday Gifts event) will give teens a positive experience where they felt like they got some value from the library. Then that helps the library by staying relevant to people’s lives,” Baugh said.

Shea Jendrusina, vice president of the CCPL’s Teen Library Council and senior, said he agrees with her.

“The event has the potential to make the library useful for people who otherwise would not be interested in the library and to expand the library’s usefulness for current teenage patrons,” Jendrusina said via email.