Stepping Down

I have been overseeing the Grace Village Library for over 7 years; next February would have been my eighth year. I worked on the library committee for 6 months before taking over management of the library with my husband. (He discontinued his efforts after 2 years). During the 6 months on the committee I worked extensively on the LibraryThing input project, sometimes putting in 5 hours a day 3-4 days a week. I see that data base as my biggest accomplishment. Our 4,000 books are now searchable by author, title, series, subject headings, keywords. You can even browse the "shelves" by book cover. Sadly, few residents use LibraryThing.

I have been growing weary of some of the tasks. Now that I have pelvic and back problems, I can no longer haul off unwanted donations and weeded books to donation sites; too heavy. The past few months I have been putting them on the book truck and taking them to Give 'N Take table, but I know the housekeeper who is in charge of that table is not happy when I fill it with books because she has to get rid of any that the residents don't take.

 Right now the pc is unable to connect properly with the wifi so there is no internet. It has been almost 2 weeks since I talked with the administrator in charge of computer service. People can use the Telekin computer, which is actually easier to use but novel to most so they avoid it. Yesterday the monitor of the pc was inoperable; users can still use Microsoft Office 2010 and play games on the pc, but not without a working monitor. I spent time checking on cables, etc. and finally got it to display. I also cleaned the grime (including food stains) off of the Telekin keyboard and mouse. These are the types of things I don't like doing. As of December 1st, they will be somebody else's problems.

I liked seeing the books we added to the library. When I received monetary donations I even actively bought used books to fill fiction series gaps and an occasional new book. I think it is a diverse collection that seems to meet the users' preferences, especially the fiction section.

My replacement is the man who was librarian before my husband and I took over. He will be assisted by the lady who did shelving and bulletin boards for me; she will now take over "cataloging" (adding to LibraryThing) and end processing (labels, stamping) while a new volunteer who has already started will take over shelving.

 I spent some time with the new librarian 2 weeks ago. From his comments, I can see making decisions about which donated books to keep and which books to discard to make shelf room is going to be his biggest challenge. He asked me, "How do you know which to keep and which to get rid of?" My new shelver is an avid fiction reader so maybe he will get input from her. Other than obvious condition problems, a librarian has to use his/her best judgment. That is not something I can teach him; he will have to learn through experience, just doing it. 

I am looking forward to some more free time and not having to go over to the main campus in winter cold and snow. I can stay in my cozy condo working on jigsaw puzzles or reading.