Get to Know Us – Anne Mead

I LOVE BEING A LIBRARIAN!  As a librarian I learn new information everyday whether I’m helping a student at the research help desk or looking up topics for a library instruction class.  My career started in a Seminary Library (that’s how I became a preacher’s wife).  After taking time off to stay home with my kids, I worked in a small university library where I always had to be on my toes and ready for the wide variety of questions that would come up.  Now I’m here at NWC as the Electronic Resources Librarian and I’m constantly learning about new technologies.  Each library job has challenged me and provided me with numerous opportunities to learn new things.  

  

Here are a few statements about me; can you tell which one is NOT true?

1. Brian Regan is my favorite comedian.
2. I graduated from High School in New Jersey.
3. I threw a rock and broke the windshield of a chauffer-driven Cadillac.
4. I studied voice in college.

Besides my work as a librarian, I am married and have two children.  I am currently involved in a quilting group at my church and I recently attended a Zumba (dance based fitness) class. 

I learned about Brian Regan from my nephew and have enjoyed his comedy ever since.  I have the DVD “I Walked on the Moon” and his CD “Brian Regan Live” that I listen to in the car.  My favorite sketch is “Hooked on Phonics”.

Yes it’s true, I threw a rock across the street and broke the windshield of a black cadillac.  It was terrifying!  My cousins who were with me disappeared immediately and I was left alone to face the consequences.  My Dad had to pay $100 for a new windshield and that was a lot of money then.

I minored in voice at college because I’ve always loved to sing. When I was growing up I drove my family crazy singing in the car and all around the house.

Statement #2 is not true.   I graduated from High School in Havre de Grace, Maryland.

Media and Missiles

Greetings from the Interlibrary Loan (ILL) office!  I am the library staff member Dan mentioned earlier, who has experience with missiles.  You can actually find out more about the missile system

  that I used while I was in the National_Guard, at the link from a  search I did in Google.  (scroll to the bottom of that search page to see more pictures)  Or, you could find even more scholarly information at the link on Ramaker’s website to do a search for the TOW missile,

  and come up with the full text results found in EBSCOhost or JSTOR. (I would sort from most recent to oldest)  Of course, it would be best to start your search for missiles in  Ramaker’s current holdings or any of these sites before you submit a request to ILL! 

Now, I know what you’re thinking: “How does your missile experience qualify you to work in a library?” 

  Here’s your answer:  “I don’t know!”  But I will say this.  Using the missile system I used does have a relationship to ILL.  When I fired that missile at a tank,

  I had to keep my sights on that target until the missile reached it.  Otherwise, the missile would have                  flown off into the sky  

                 or into the ground.       

I couldn’t stop tracking it until the target  was hit.  When you submit a request for an item through ILL, that item becomes my target.  I stay focused on that target and don’t take my sights off it until it is hit.  If your request comes back unfilled, I fire again at different libraries until that target is reached, or every option is exhausted.  If I didn’t, your request would go off into cyberspace

   never to be seen again, and I would have missed the target.  So, everytime you submit a request to ILL, think of the book-and-article-requesting “missile system”

  in Ramaker. (It’s in the office to the left of the circulation desk)  I’m here to help you meet your educational needs and goals  by getting you the information you desire. 

       If you ever have any questions, want to talk about missiles or the military, or about my last job as a high school choir director,

     email me or come on over to my office .  My door is always open!  

 Bryan Van Gelder, ILL and Curriculum Library Coordinator

Get to Know Us - Sherri Langton

Guess which one of these statements is NOT true of me,

Sherri Langton. 

a.  I have been to Ethiopia.

b.  I was proposed to in a cow pasture.

c.  I used to teach middle school.

d.  I wear size 10 shoes.

While you think about that, I’ll share a little more about myself.  I am the Cataloger/Library Systems Specialist for Ramaker Library.  So, I catalog all of the books, media, etc. that come into Ramaker Library and the LRC.  I also manage the library’s software.  This software helps us keep track of purchases, checkouts, journals, and many other things.

My husband, Ben, and I have 2 children:  a daughter who is 3 1/2 and a son who is 1 1/2.   They keep us very busy. 

When I am not busy with work or the kids, I enjoy reading and photography. 

OK, time for the answer . . . I do NOT wear size 10 shoes!  I have been to Ethiopia, twice actually.  Both of our children were born in Ethiopia, and we travelled there to adopt them.

Yep, my husband proposed in a cow pasture, and I still said “yes.”  It was a very beautiful cow pasture. 

I taught middle school computer for 3 years and loved it!  My husband got a new job in the Orange City area, and I was interested in learning more about computer support.  NWC had a position that included computer support for the library.  I gave it a try and am still here 7 years later!  Who would have thought that a student who was a “library avoider” would love working in one so much?!