Starting Over

Having just completed my first round of visits to libraries,it is time to start over.  The first visits were in May and for most schools it was the week between graduation and the beginning of summer school.  Consequently, I missed seeing some of the librarians.  As I begin a new round, school is in session and I hope to be able to see all of them.

My first call was at Western Carolina University.  Jessica Zellers is in charge of acquisitions and when I met her, she had her dog, Rev, with her.  He's a miniature Australian Shepherd and reminded me of our family dog, Junior.  Jessica is an Asheville native who traveled to Missouri to work in public libraries.  She was delighted when the Western Carolina position came open and she could return to western Carolina.

Mars Hill University was one of the schools I visited on my very first day.  That day, I missed seeing both the Director, Bev Robertson who was having surgery, and the person in charge of acquisitions, Kristina Blackford, who was on vacation.  Today, however, I got to sit down with both.  Because of their openness, I was able to do my job which is to be the "eyes and ears" of the company.





I traveled back to Asheville and it was after lunchtime so I went to
a local diner called "Little Pigs."  They've been serving both barbeque and their signature "broasted chicken" since 1963.

After lunch I drove to the Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College, known locally as A-B Tech.  Sue Donato is in charge of buying books but she had gone home for the day when I arrived.








When I visited Warren Wilson during the summer both the director and the man in charge of buying books were gone to Germany.  Both returned safely and were hard at work.  Brian Conlan is a motor cycle enthusiast and juggles the need for books and the demands of budgets.

Montreat College is one of the most beautiful campuses I visit.  It also has a connection to the families of both Billy and Ruth Graham.  In fact, the library is named for Ruth's father.  There is a two-lane stone entrance to Montreat which was under "reconstruction" because someone had tried to squeeze a too-large vehicle into the entrance.






My final stop was at McDowell Technical Community College.  It was rather late in the afternoon when I arrived and Sharon Smith had already gone home but I had a wonderful talk with her assistant, Pat Tallent.  Like me, Pat sees the growing incivility in our world as a product, in part, of the absence of art, music and literature in public education.  She's certainly doing her part to curb that trend.