Member of the Month

Describe yourself using a book title: The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy I know that sounds weird, but at different times, I am one, or all four of these. I am always asking questions, seeking God’s wisdom, unsure of myself, yet striving to always be kind and to be a friend to all those I meet.

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? In some way, I believe I always wanted to be a librarian. I would help in the library in elementary school, shelving books. I created a library in the local homeless shelter for my Gold Award project in Girl Scouts that remained in operation until the shelter closed 25 years later. It wasn’t until I began my career as a public librarian, and later a health science librarian though that I truly realized how people gravitate to libraries when they are hurting or need a safe space. As a teacher, I believed the best thing was seeing the “ah-ha” moments in a student’s educational journey. As a teaching librarian, I still love those breakthroughs and cherish each one but even more, my cup is filled when a student tells me they come to the library because it is comforting, relaxing, or a welcoming place for them. I love hearing that we have succeeded in creating a space within the library where all of our students feel welcomed, valued, and wanted.

Describe yourself using a book title: A Man for All Seasons (a play and film rather than a book but a literary product nonetheless)

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? As someone who is fascinated by just about everything I find librarianship to be a great career to discover and learn about God’s creation and our role in it. I can’t think of a better profession for a generalist with a lot of curiosity. I can’t decide if I would call myself a Renaissance man or just a guy with ADD.

Describe yourself using a book title: Curious George Goes to the Library

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? Being able to share my love of reading with my students by introducing them to the wonderful world books have to offer. I love seeing that light bulb go off when they discover how wonderful books are.

Describe yourself using a book title: Knowing God by J.I. Packer. In all that I do, I want to know Christ.

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? There are two things that I enjoy about being a librarian: serving others and knowledge. It’s not a secret that at the heart of librarianship is serving others by assisting them with the information (or knowledge) they are seeking. On the one hand, we model Christ’s command to love others (service) and on the other hand, we provide hope (information). Information (or knowledge) can bring hope to a person who needs it.

Twitter Handle: @mrssultanik

Describe yourself using a book title: Getting Things Done

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? I love being able to help people and to see them succeed in their academic endeavors.

Describe yourself using a book title: Paradoxology: Why Christianity Was Never Meant to Be Simple by Krish Kandiah. I haven’t read the book, but it sounds like my life message!

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? The best thing about being a librarian is being able to help students when they don’t even know they need help.

Describe yourself using a book title: I had to ask my best friend, and she said A Girl of the Limberlost almost immediately. Now I need to go read that!

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? Not having to work outside and working in a quiet environment.

Twitter Handle: @rory_patt

Describe yourself using a book title: The Grace Awakening by Charles R. Swindoll. This book introduced me to the reality of lived grace. I try to live daily in the awareness of God’s grace, both giving and receiving grace, and to journal what grace I received each day.

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? To me, the best thing about being a librarian is meeting others’ needs. I get to meet informational needs in reference and instruction events. As a team, we meet many types of resource needs. I work with departments to meet job needs in hiring. As Christian librarians, we meet spiritual needs via praying and peer discipling.

Twitter Handle: @NiseNelson

Describe yourself using a book title: A Lineage of Grace

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? Particularly at small or medium-sized institutions, librarians are uniquely situated to engage with students and faculty from across the disciplines–every student is “our” student. I love having that window into the work underway in so many areas of my university, and I’m grateful for the variety of ways I can provide support and direction to students and colleagues alike. It’s a privilege to help demystify the world of information and research, and I especially enjoy seeing students’ confidence grow as they become increasingly self-sufficient users of information.

Describe yourself using a book title: The Book of Psalms

What’s the best thing about being a librarian? The best thing is helping students with research and writing then watching their faces light up!