Foundation Stories

My love of the library goes back many years.  It started when I paid my way through college by working at the KCK Public Library.   Then I volunteered at the Gardner branch of the Johnson County Library, and recently I served two terms as a member of the Friends of the Johnson County Library Board of Directors.  Beginning this January, I will be serving on the Board of the Library’s Foundation.

Ironically, as I was planning to write this, I saw a lady reading a book, and someone walked by her and said, “I saw that movie.”  Her response was, “Books are better,” and she encapsulated why I give in one succinct phrase.

It is so important that books are available to everyone in the community.  Multiple, uncensored sources of information and points of view are essential, especially in our world today.  Books educate us, expand our world and ideas, and bring us so much joy.  I cannot imagine a world without all that books and reading have brought to me and others.

That is why the work of the Foundation is so important.  It supports early literacy initiatives and service programs that are dedicated to the library and are intended to benefit all ages and interests in our community.  It is so fulfilling to give to a cause that does so much good and that I believe in so passionately.

As for what I’m reading, I just finished reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid and now I’m reading Horse by Geraldine Brooks.

The word Library conjures up wonderful memories of when I was a little girl and how impactful the library was for me. I loved to read and even before I could actually read words, I read picture books making up the stories! For me it was a form of escapism from the harshness of the real world. My family immigrated to the U.K. when I was about five years old. My parents didn’t speak too much English, and both worked long hours. My brother and I were thrust into a new world not speaking or reading English.

The library became an outlet for my imagination, and through reading, I traveled the world, visiting magical places.  In England, the libraries were old, stately, almost gothic buildings, often with little daylight from small windows and dim lights. The furniture, old wooden desks and chairs dotted around, and one could always find a nook or cranny to sit and read a book or do homework and study for a test. My school library, in particular, resembled what we have all seen in movies like Harry Potter – a place that stirs the imagination for all.

My friends and I enjoyed spending a day at library, returning read books and searching for new ones to check out, proudly walking home with our finds. It was a safe place for us to spend time with each other and witness the role it played in the community, with Saturday morning reading clubs for children and different book clubs for adults.

As an adult, I hope that through the Foundation, I can, in a small way, help to support the library system in Johnson County and the many ways it benefits our community.

Today’s libraries are far more complex, providing traditional books and videos and also providing digital formats, technology, groundbreaking interactive spaces like the MakerSpace and genealogy lab, meeting rooms etc. Although well-funded, I see how meaningful the role of the Foundation is in order to continue to develop new features and bring on sponsors to continue to evolve the Library system and ensure it remains a relevant and accessible resource for our community. 

As a newcomer to the Johnson County Library Foundation Board, I fondly recall my earliest encounter with the library during a field trip in elementary school. Throughout my professional journey, libraries have been an invaluable resource for research and discovery.

Today, I see libraries, with their programming and lifelong learning resources, as pillars of our community, offering knowledge and connections. Inspired by their integral role, I am committed to donating my time, skills, and resources to supporting the enrichment they provide. I believe the future of libraries is bright, evolving to meet the diverse needs of our society while retaining their core essence as repositories of knowledge.

Currently, my intellectual curiosities lead me to historical biographies and documentaries, mid-century modern design books – with a soft spot for vintage ones, local history literature, and industrial design, furthering my understanding and love for the stories and designs that shape our world.

I donate and volunteer for the Johnson County Library Foundation because libraries and books have always played an important role in my life. I want to help provide that opportunity for others. My first memory of a library is of the one from my grade school, where the librarian, Mrs. Sanchez, nurtured my love of reading and learning. She and my teachers realized that as long as I had a book in my hand, I was less likely to cause trouble. So, I always had a book in my hand. (And I was even allowed to shelve books as a reward!)

Those educators along with my parents also nurtured my desire to learn about all types of topics. No topic was off limits, but they created a safe opportunity for me to ask questions about and discuss any topic. This directly impacted my analytical and critical thinking skills. And, my ability to think for myself. I am so grateful they gave me these opportunities and think they should be available to every child.

Libraries serve many roles; I feel like I am always learning new things. For me, at this stage of my life, it’s about being a meeting place for the community. I go to the library for meetings for other groups I am involved with almost as much as I go to pick up books. Not too long ago we invited some family friends to join us for a library event. They ran into several friends, including a beloved staff member I also know well. In that moment the library was the mutual friend that brought us all together.

I am currently finishing Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Mind and on deck are Entre Guadalupe and Malinche: Tejanas in Literature and Art and Book Collecting Now: The Value of Print in a Digital Age. I always have a “next up” pile of books going. I will even start carrying around my next book before I finish the one I’m reading.

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My most vivid childhood memories are of books and reading. I recall my mom staying up reading almost all night long on the weekends and how I spent time at my local library where I would walk down the aisles of my favorite authors, Judy Blume, Stephen King, Dean Koontz, with my head tilted to the right reading the spines and my neck getting sore. I wanted to work at the library so strongly that it just seemed like the perfect job. I never did get a job at my library once I was old enough, but I definitely applied!

Decades later, I have now been involved with the Johnson County Library my entire adult life. Getting my library card with my new Kansas address was one of the very first things I did when I became a resident. Then a few short years later, I began my journey volunteering for JCL.

I started as a Friends of Johnson County Library bookstore volunteer, working at the Blue Valley Library every other Saturday. Then I became a Friends Board member. A few years later, I became a JCL Foundation volunteer once a week, and now I am a JCL Foundation Board member!

The library is my favorite place to donate my time, talents, and treasure because it’s so easy to SEE the impact you can make at your library and the community surrounding it.

JCL’s partnerships with other organizations ensure that we’re reaching the most people and getting the experts in their fields to help.

As parents, Chris and I have fond memories of browsing the children’s floor at Corinth Library and filling up whole tote bags of books to bring home and read together with our daughter, Abi. I shared some of my favorites with her, like The Poky Little Puppy and the Little Red Hen and Ira Sleeps Over, and then we discovered new ones together like The Gruffalo and If Animals Kissed Good Night. Now Abi reads prize-winning novels like The Goldfinch and The Secret History for fun, and I think sharing our love of reading with her was integral to that.

You can help support this kind of family engagement with reading through the Johnson County Library Foundation. Come to Library Lets Loose and have a ball at one of my favorite places, and support lifelong learning and literacy at the same time.