Farewell, so long, auf wiedersehen, adieu

Sent: Wednesday, August 29, 2018 11:01 AM

Subject: Farewell, so long, auf wiedersehen, adieu

 

Hello, everyone,

 

The time has come for me to say goodbye.  My last day is tomorrow, August 31.  It’s been a wonderful 18 ½ years being the branch manager of La Habra Library and a complete joy working with my staff, the Friends of the Library, City Hall, and the community.  I have learned so much from my colleagues in OCPL and have felt part of a large extended family.  And it has been very rewarding to see former staff move on to bigger and better things. 

 

Libraries have been a vital part of my life since I was a child and my family visited the library weekly.  I well remember the children’s room at Pomona Public Library and reading voraciously in every genre that caught my interest.  The librarian at my junior high took the time to select non-fiction books to broaden my reading and I was so impressed that she would do that, that I read every book she selected.  I remember in high school going to the Pomona library with my best friend to ask them to check to see if the address I had was for an unwed mother’s home—the librarian confirmed it and that’s how we found out that our other friend was pregnant.  It was my first realization that librarians did more than check out books.

 

When I received my MLS, my goal was to work in every kind of library.  I’ve worked in both county and city libraries, worked as a substitute at an academic library, volunteered at my daughter’s school library to create machine readable records of their collection when they automated, worked at General Electric’s Aviation Service Operations’ library, and worked for over 12 years in the private sector with a library vendor.  In fact, OCPL was one of my customers!  I left the company because I wanted a job that I felt would make a difference in people’s lives.  I never regretted taking a 30% pay cut to return to the public library arena.

 

And I will never forget the SWM meeting the day after 9/11 and County Librarian John Adams telling us that we fight for freedom and liberty every day when we open the doors to our libraries.  That libraries stand for the best of our American values of justice,  equality, and the pursuit of happiness.  I have always believed that libraries change lives for the better. 

 

While I am retiring from OCPL, I am not retiring from librarianship.  I will be at CLA this November to lead two workshops:  how to emotionally prepare for retirement and the annual California Writer’s Panel:  California Vintage.  I hope to see many of you there and encourage you to be an active member of our profession.  Libraries matter more than ever and what we do makes a difference. 

 

I found the attached cartoon in my files and wanted to share it with you.  Be proud of what you do.  OCPL has done great things and will continue to do so in the future.  OCPL staff is its greatest resource and your ideas and energy have propelled OCPL to excellence. 

 

I will miss all of you and will really miss being the La Habra librarian.  At the same time, I am excited at what the future holds—I already have the next 9 months filled up!  I will be taking classes at CSU Fullerton through OLLI, doing a lot of traveling, getting back into hiking and backpacking, and I just bought a kayak—which I’ll take on my cross country trip this coming spring.  And I’ll finally make a dent in my many TBR piles!

 

Good luck and best wishes to all of you.

 

Jill

Branch Manager

Goodbye, Farewell, Tofa Soifua!

The art of saying good bye …

 

Sent: Tuesday, December 26, 2017 12:40 PM

Subject: Goodbye, Farewell, Tofa Soifua!

 

Hiyah,!

 

Thank you so much for making the last (almost) ten years some of the most rewarding, exciting and character-building years of my life.

 

I’ve made wonderful life-long friends, found mentors who I will look up to forever more, and will take with me skills and experience that I’m confident will see me through whatever adventures, harrowing or delightful, come my way.

 

If there’s one piece of advice I’d leave for all of you, something that has seen me through our many challenges and changes over the years it’s don’t forget the people.

 

I remind myself constantly that everything we do, whether it be storytime, or book clubs, collection development, outreach, service to the public, isn’t for politics, or demographics, or the majority.

 

Libraries are the keepers of literacy, learning, and information, without judgment, and that means we should be actively welcoming to all, no matter your race, nationality, your sexual orientation, your economic status, your occupation, or personal beliefs.  Anyone should be able to come into a library and find some small place that enlightens, encourages and inspires them.  A single mother might find books on how to start her own business at home.  A retiree might discover a risqué comedian’s books and rediscover his love for humor.  Or a skinny queer kid, with curly hair and quirky glasses might find stories about kids just like him that help him get through a rough time in high school J

 

But most importantly, don’t forget the people behind the desk.  We are people with dreams, and expectations, too, with hopes for our future.  We are lonely, and happy, and excited, and depressed, and content, and anxious, and dreaming of days when we can travel, but not today because it’s storytime.  We are wise, and experienced, in our different ways, with treasures of life to share, if someone would just ask and, even more importantly, listen.

 

We are reflections of the people we serve, and they are mirrors of our state of emotion and happiness and well-being, and when that’s forgotten, when we merely become people who are workers, paper-pushers and schedule-keepers and seatfillers at meetings, we lose that part of our jobs that makes us relatable, that makes us relate, to others who may need that from us.

 

Passion and compassion drive us to do more.  But when that is gone, we are compelled to seek it elsewhere.  While I leave so much behind, here with you, it’s time for me to find my passion out there.

 

If yours is here, make sure to nurture it.  Remember the people.

 

Warmest wishes and regards to you all!  Good luck and happy new year!

 

Pat

(Former) Library Assistant, future adventurer and writer-to-be