National Library Week is a celebration of the role libraries play in our communities. This year’s theme is “Welcome to your library.” Welcoming patrons to the library either virtually, through curbside delivery or, on rare occasions this year, in-person are three of the many supportive staff employed by the Longmont Public Library.
In local celebration of National Library Week, The Leader spoke with three members of the Longmont Public Library staff, Nancy Kerr, executive director, Jason Merrill, head of Technical Services, and Julia Jacobs, circulation manager.
These three individuals took on different roles throughout the pandemic to keep the library as operational as possible.
Kerr grew up in the Midwest and tried a variety of things in her youth and while raising her two boys, including French translation.
“I did a lot of odd part-time jobs when my kids were young so that I didn’t have to put them in daycare,” she said.
Although she did not start her career in a library system, she enjoyed volunteering in libraries throughout her life. Even as a child, Kerr could not be without a book. A fact known to her elementary school librarian who made a house call once, while Kerr was at home, sick.
“I kept looking at this and said ‘why aren’t you a librarian,’” Kerr said. “I should have figured it out earlier and I didn’t.”
Kerr sought an education in library studies in her 30s and has “never looked back,” she said.
Kerr joined the Longmont Public Library as executive director in 2018. The position of executive director, before and after COVID, entails different things, Kerr said.
“It’s been very different, this past year, than in any of my previous positions that I have held in libraries, this is my tenth library system,” Kerr said. “I’ve never had to talk about where to locate quarantined materials … or how to keep our staff safe.”
For Kerr, remaining in contact with the library staff has been a priority. Communication, when half the staff is out at a given time, has been difficult, especially when trying to maintain the library’s cohesive work environment.
“We have a very tight knit staff but it is hard to communicate solely through email and phone calls, etc.,” Kerr said, adding that she began adding multiple updates a week, when prior it would have been weekly. “One of the challenges for any management position is the mental health and well-being of your staff … just trying to keep in touch with the staff and checking in on people, making sure they are ok.”
But communication doesn’t stop there for Kerr, it is also important that the library stays in touch with patrons.
“Our patrons our (the library’s) reason for existence,” Kerr said. “We have been talking, in libraries, for years about the digital divide. Nothing has exasperated that like COVID.”
For some, the library remains the only way to connect digitally. With the library being closed, many people are unable to access the resources they need to find employment or access services, Kerr said.
A lot has changed this year and Kerr has encouraged her staff to be creative in ways to get ahead of those changes. “It’s been tough, just knowing those needs are out there … I feel like we have a firm grasp on what people need from us and not being able to provide everything has been tough,” she said.
Kerr said all the library staff have worked hard during the pandemic to keep services flowing to the public, but the circulation department has really amazed her with the amount of work the group has been able to accomplish.
The circulation department handles much of the person-to-person services the library offers including the library’s curbside service. It is a constant adaptation, Jacobs said.
One adaptation has been serving the public’s needs with limited staffing, due to COVID-19 guidelines. Prior to the pandemic, the library had volunteers helping to get books to patrons. Since that was no longer available and the demand for books went up the staff were tasked to come up with systems to get books out as quickly as possible, usually filling an order a minute at curbside, Kerr said.
The demand for books has increased the number of times a day the books are pulled from the shelves with as many as 800 items being pulled a day, Jacobs said.
“It is like the heart of the library,” Jacobs said.
Jacobs began as a shelver, nearly 20 years ago, and worked her way up through the library system and now manages the largest team in the library.
“My heart is really in the circulation department at this library,” Jacobs said.
As a child, Jacobs, two cousins and her sister, grew up without a lot of money. Living in Longmont, they utilized the library as their entertainment, she said.
One day she went to check out a book and learned that she had a fine. The policy, at the time, was to deny further book check-outs until the fine was paid. Jacobs and her family could not afford the fine and instead read books while sitting in the library, returning them to the shelf until the next day, she said.
“It was really heartbreaking for us because this was our safe place,” she said.
Being denied the ability to check out books and her love of the library, motivated Jacobs to not only seek an education in library studies but to find creative ways to never deny a child a book.
“It’s personal for me. I want to try my best, as circulation manager to never deny a child a library card or a book,” she said.
Another staff member who is dedicated to helping the public is Merrill.
Merrill holds a unique position at the Longmont Public Library as head of technical services. He oversees many areas of the library from “processing books as they come through, all the way to the computer lab,” where he maintains the computers, he said.
Merrill did not seek out libraries in his youth, however, when he found a position at the Longmont Public Library he knew it was a great fit.
“I came in super excited and I love working with people, making people happy by giving them the services they need,” Merrill said.
Merrill entered his position with a Master’s degree in computer security, shortly after working at the Longmont Library he returned to school for a Master’s degree in library science.
The pandemic has been chaos, Merrill said, as he and others on his team have had to rework library computer software to accommodate the COVID-19 restrictions.
Merrill has led a team that has added other features to the libraries offering through the pandemic, including the Text a Librarian program and online programming. While he was not the lead on these projects he stepped in to help his team when and where he could.
When Merrill is not running around the library helping with technology needs it is likely he could be found in the teen section. He believes he relates better to the characters since he enjoys some of the same interests, such as video games.
During a week that celebrates libraries, these three individuals are among many who are inspired to help the public connect with libraries and their services.
