Something Is Hatching at St. Joe County Public Library 

New Early Literacy Mascot “Paige” to Debut Following Interactive Egg Cam Experience 

Something special is hatching at the St. Joe County Public Library (SJCPL), and the community can watch it happen live. 

This March, St. Joe County Public Library will introduce Paige, the library’s new Early Literacy mascot for children ages 0–5. In the weeks leading up to her debut, families can follow along through the library’s live “Paige Egg Cam,” an interactive experience where viewers will see the egg subtly change and develop as hatch day approaches. 

As March unfolds, the egg will show visible signs of progress, building anticipation until Paige officially makes her appearance. 

In addition to being available online, the live Egg Cam will also be displayed inside St. Joe County Public Library branches at various times throughout the day, allowing visiting families to check in and follow the journey together. 

Paige will serve as the face of Early Birds, SJCPL’s new early literacy initiative replacing 1,000 Books Before Kindergarten. The program is based on the nationally recognized Every Child Ready to Read framework. Early Birds is a habit tracker that helps families build at least one small literacy moment into each day. The program highlights that early reading skills are developed not only through books, but also through talking, singing, playing, and writing. 

When Paige hatches, Early Birds will officially launch across all SJCPL locations. Families will be able to pick up a free Early Birds Habit Tracker at any branch and begin building simple literacy moments into their daily routine. Rather than focusing solely on counting books, Early Birds emphasizes consistent, everyday interactions from bedtime stories and songs to conversations and creative play. The Paige Egg Cam is available now at sjcpl.org/egg. Paige is expected to hatch in early March.