* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:15] HI, MY NAME IS SPIKE BARKIN, AND THIS IS PART OF AN ONGOING SERIES CALLED CONVERSATIONS ON THE HUDSON. TODAY'S CONVERSATION IS GOING TO BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. WE'RE GOING TO BE FOCUSING ON THE HASTINGS PUBLIC LIBRARY, WHICH STARTED OUT, UH, AS A WONDERFUL LIBRARY, A GREAT RESOURCE. UH, I MOVED HERE IN 1978 AND THE LIBRARY WAS WONDERFUL, AND THEN IT HAD A TRANSFORMATION, AND NOW THE LIBRARY IS AN INCREDIBLE GEM IN HASTINGS. IT WAS ALWAYS WONDERFUL, BUT NOW IT'S SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY. DEBBIE QUINN, WHO IS THE CURRENT LIBRARIAN, AND ALLIE MANNING, WHO IS THE CHILDREN'S LIBRARIAN, HAVE DONE A SPECTACULAR JOB IN MAKING IT A REAL CENTER FOR THE COMMUNITY IN ALL DIFFERENT KINDS OF THINGS. YES, IT HAS WONDERFUL BOOKS, MAGAZINES, AND NEWSPAPERS, BUT IT HAS SO MUCH MORE. AND WHAT I WANNA DO IS FOCUS ON HOW THAT ALL CAME ABOUT. SO TODAY'S CONVERSATION IS GOING TO BE WITH SUE FEAR, WHO WAS THE PREVIOUS LIBRARIAN AT THE HASTINGS PUBLIC LIBRARY. HI, SUE. HI, SPIKE. SO WHEN, WHEN DID YOU BECOME THE LIBRARIAN? IT'S LIBRARY DIRECTOR. UH, 'CAUSE I WAS A LIBRARIAN STARTING IN 1974, BUT I BECAME THE DIRECTOR OF THE HASTINGS LIBRARY NOVEMBER 1ST, 1993. AND HOW DID THAT COME ABOUT? BECAUSE YOU DON'T LIVE IN HASTINGS? NO, I, MY BACKGROUND AFTER FINISHING LIBRARY SCHOOL WAS FIRST THE PEACE CORPS, AND I WAS OVERSEAS, AND THEN I WENT TO GRADUATE SCHOOL IN EDINBURG, SCOTLAND. AND I DID A, A COURSE IN AFRICAN STUDIES, AND I ALWAYS ENVISIONED THAT I WAS GOING TO BE AN AREA STUDY SPECIALIST AT A UNIVERSITY LIBRARY. I ENDED UP AT TEXACO HEADQUARTERS IN WHITE PLAINS, NEW YORK AS THEIR MIDDLE EASTERN AND AFRICAN STUDIES SPECIALIST. SO I BECAME, UH, MORE OF A BUSINESS CORPORATE LIBRARIAN THAN ACADEMIC, WHICH I HAD ASSUMED THEY STARTED TO MOVE THEIR OPERATIONS OUT TO CHEVRON ON THE WEST COAST. UM, FAST FORWARD A DECADE, AND I TOOK A PART-TIME JOB AT THE GREENBERG PUBLIC LIBRARY TO AUGMENT ALSO WORKING FOR CORPORATE AMERICA. SO THEN THE, WHEN THE COMPANY DISBANDED AND MOVED, I TOOK THE CIVIL SERVICE TEST. NEW YORK STATE MUNICIPAL LIBRARIES ARE COVERED BY CIVIL SERVICE, AND I SCORED WELL ON IT. AND SO HASTINGS HAD TO INTERVIEW ME BECAUSE OF MY HIGH SCORE. AND, UM, THE REST IS, IS HISTORY. UM, THEY SELECTED ME TO BE DIRECTOR. AND WHAT A, FOR ME, WHAT A WONDERFUL MARRIAGE IT WAS. WHO INTERVIEWED YOU? UH, DAVID DEETS, WHO, UH, IS IN STILL LIVES, I THINK, RIGHT ON MOUNT HOPE. UM, DAVID PARKER, WHO WAS A PRINCIPAL IN, UM, RIVERDALE AND HAS MOVED FROM THE COMMUNITY, BUT HE AND HIS WIFE, ELAINE, LONGTIME MEMBERS, STEVE UNDERBERG, UH, WHO LIVED ON AMHERST AND I THINK RAN THE MOUNT SINAI BOOKSHOP. UM, BARBARA STAFFORD, IF YOU HAD ASKED ME FIVE MINUTES AGO, WHO WAS BARBARA STAFFORD, IT WOULDN'T HAVE COME TO ME, BUT SORT OF IT TWIGGED, I THINK SHE WAS WITH THE LITERATURE CLUB, ET CETERA. SO, AND THEN ALICE WALWORTH, UM, UH, WAS A REPRESENTATIVE OF THE FRIENDS, AND THEN I'LL PROBABLY TEAR UP, BUT DAN FRANK, WHO HAD BEEN BROUGHT ON TO THE OF LIBRARY BOARD BY FRAN ECKRIN. [00:05:01] HE WAS THE NEW BABY IN TOWN, THE HEAD OF PANTHEON BOOKS. MAY HIS MEMORY BE A BLESSING. THE MOST WONDERFUL MAN TO WORK FOR, THAT ANYONE COULD EVER, EVER, EVER HOPE. SO THAT WAS THE BOARD THAT INTERVIEWED ME AND OFFERED ME THE DIRECTORSHIP. SO THEY WERE ALL ON THE LIBRARY BOARD, THEY WERE ALL ON THE LIBRARY BOARD. THE LIBRARY BOARD LIBRARIES REPORT TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION. THEY MAY GET THEIR FUNDING FROM A MUNICIPALITY, BUT THEY RE BUT THEIR REPORTING STRUCTURE IS DIFFERENT. SO, UM, THE HABIT IN HASTINGS WAS FOR THE MAYOR TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS, AND I THINK THIS STILL CONTINUES THROUGH FRAN MCCN, LEE CANE, PETER KY, NIKKI ARMACOST, AND NOW TOM DRAKE. SO WHAT CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY AND THE LIBRARY BOARD? I CAN, AND, AND THEN I'LL END UP WITH THAT HAS ALSO BEEN A UNIQUE, UNIQUE MARRIAGE IN THE LIBRARY WORLD, THE LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES, SOME MUNICIPALITIES, YOU VOTE FOR THE TRUSTEES IN SOME, LIKE I JUST DESCRIBED, THEY ARE APPOINTED. OUR BOARD, WHICH HAS BYLAWS, IS A FIVE MEMBER BOARD WITH THE FRIENDS AS A EX-OFFICIO SITTING MEMBER, THE HEAD OF THE FRIENDS, AND IT'S FOR FIVE YEAR TERMS. UM, THE FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY, AND THIS IS WIDESPREAD, UH, NATIONWIDE, NOT STATEWIDE OR COUNTYWIDE, IS THE FUNDRAISING ARM. UM, MAIN PURPOSE IS FUNDRAISING ALSO MAYBE WORKS A LITTLE BIT MORE INTIMATELY WITH THE DIRECTOR AND THE LIBRARIANS. THE FRIENDS DO NOT SET POLICY. UM, THEY ABIDE BY THE SAME RULES SET BY THE LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES. AND SO IN MANY LIBRARIES, THERE'S SORT OF TWO, BUT UNEQUAL ARMS. HASTINGS ALREADY HAD A GOOD RELATIONSHIP. ALICE WALWORTH, WHOSE HUSBAND, UM, DAVID HAD BEEN A TRUSTEE AT THE VILLAGE LEVEL. UH, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A LOT OF, UM, SIMPATICA THEN WE WENT IN 2001 TO A MAJOR RENOVATION WHERE THE LIBRARY WAS BONDED FOR $1.5 MILLION TO BUILD AND RENOVATE AND BUILD EXTENSIONS ON OUR EXISTING LIBRARY. AND THE FRIENDS WAS THE VISIBLE, UM, FUNDRAISING ARM THAT STARTED A RELATIONSHIP THAT IT, IT, THE, IT IS SO FLUID BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS, SO MUCH COOPERATION, SO MUCH SIMPATICA AND JOKES AND HAPPINESS. UM, AND LISTENING TO DIRECTORS AT OTHER LIBRARIES, TWO THINGS BECAME OBVIOUS TO ME. I, AND I THINK DEBBIE WOULD SAY THIS TOO, HAVE ALWAYS BEEN IN LIBRARY BOARD HEAVEN AND IN FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY HEAVEN. AND IT'S BEEN WONDERFUL TO WATCH THE TWO GROUPS WORK FOR COMMON CAUSE. AND WHAT KINDS OF THINGS DO THE FRIENDS RAISE MONEY FOR FOR THE LIBRARY? WELL, AGAIN, VERY, UM, WONDERFUL IN HASTINGS. THE FRIENDS TAKE THEIR, UH, GUIDANCE FROM THE DIRECTOR AND FROM THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES A LITTLE BIT. AND IT'S SORT OF, SO WHATEVER NEEDS THERE ARE THEY ALSO, BECAUSE THE LIBRARY BOARD COULDN'T, UM, AUTHORIZE EXPENDITURES, LET'S SAY FOR, UH, A CHRISTMAS PARTY, YOU KNOW, OUTTA MUNICIPAL FUNDS. THE FRIENDS OFTEN PICK UP THE, THE GENTLE STROKING OF STAFF, UM, CELEBRATIONS, BUT ALSO QUICK NEEDS, UM, OR THINGS THAT DON'T FIT INTO YOUR NORMAL BUDGET. [00:10:01] THEY, THEY ARE THE FROSTING ON THE CAKE. SO THAT, I THINK OF, I NOTICED THAT THERE'S UKULELE LESSONS AT THE LIBRARY RIGHT NOW, BOTH FOR CHILDREN AND ADULTS, AND THEY'VE BEEN VERY, VERY POPULAR. UM, SOME PAINTING CLASSES, SO MANY PROGRAMS, BUT ALSO A NEW BOOK TRUCK BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THE OLD ONE FELL APART, THE DIRECTOR GOES QUICKLY TO THE FRIENDS, AND THE FRIENDS GET AUTHORIZATION FROM THEIR EXECUTIVE BOARD. BUT IT'S, IT'S ALWAYS BEEN QUICK, RAPID, NO QUESTIONS ASKED, NO UNNECESSARY QUESTIONS ASKED. SO, UM, WHEREAS OTHER FRIENDS GROUPS, THEY HAVE THEIR OWN AGENDA AND THEY WANT THEIR MONEY TO GO TO WHERE THEY WANT THEIR MONEY TO GO TO. AND I THINK SOMETIMES THE FRIENDS WILL SUGGEST, YOU KNOW, DEBBIE, YOU COULD USE A FEW MORE CHAIRS IN THE BACK. WOULD YOU LIKE US TO BUY THEM? OR DEBBIE COMING TO THE FRIENDS, YOU KNOW, WE COULD USE A FEW MORE CHAIRS IN THE BACK. WILL YOU BUY THEM FOR US? SO, SO WHEN YOU BECAME DIRECTOR OF THE HASTINGS LIBRARY, WHAT WAS YOUR VISION? I THINK IT WAS INITIALLY TO EXPAND SERVICES IN GENERAL. SO THIS MEANT, BUILDING WISE, PRETTY SOON WE WERE LOOKING AT A RENOVATION TO MAKE THE BUILDING MORE COMFORTABLE FOR THE WHOLE COMMUNITY. UM, OUR HOURS, ESPECIALLY PRE COVID, WERE, WERE, WERE PRETTY BANGING . WE EXPANDED HOURS, YOU KNOW, TO WHERE PATRONS NEEDED THEM, NOT WHERE THE STAFF WANTED TO WORK, YOU KNOW, I MEAN, LET'S FACE IT, MOST STAFF WOULD LOVE A NINE TO FIVE, THREE DAYS A WEEK. UM, BUT THAT'S NOT, YOU KNOW, LIBRARY HOURS, UM, TO BECOME, YOU KNOW, LIBRARIES COUNTRYWIDE. WERE BECOMING MORE COMMUNITY CENTERS. UM, I USED TO JOKE ALL THE TIME ABOUT, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE REAL ESTATE. AND MAYBE I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND IN A PRECISE WAY HOW THAT WAS FORMULATING. BUT IF I, YOU WALK INTO THE LIBRARY NOW, THERE'S LIKE FOUR OR FIVE LITTLE SUB COMMUNITIES UNDER ONE BIG UMBRELLA. YOU HAVE WHAT I CALL YOUR LANDS IN MIDNIGHT SHOPPERS. THEY PUT A BOOK ON HOLD, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE, THEY'RE ORDERING THEIR PANTS FROM LANDS INN AND THEY'RE ORDERING A COUPLE OF BOOKS, AND THEY COME IN, SOMETIMES THESE PATRONS TWO OR THREE TIMES A WEEK, BUT THEY NEVER GO BEYOND THE FRONT DOOR. THEY STOP AT THE DESK AND THEY CHAT AND THEY PICK UP THEIR MATERIALS. AND NOW OF COURSE, MANY OF THEM MAKE A LITTLE DETOUR TO THE BOOKSHOP, WHICH WE'LL GET TO, I'M SURE. UM, YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO COME IN TO WORK, THIS WAS A COURSE INTENSIFIED DURING COVID, BUT THEY COME IN FOR A VIEW OF THE RIVER, A QUIET SPOT WITH THEIR LAPTOP. AND IT'S, IT'S A WORK, IT'S A CONDUCIVE WORKING SPACE. THEY NEVER TAKE OUT A BOOK. SOME OF THEM, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE THERE FOR, AS I SAID, THE REAL ESTATE. YOU HAVE PEOPLE WHO COME IN JUST FOR PROGRAMS OR FOR COMMUNITY, LIKE THE KNITTERS CLUB WHERE THEY SIT AND PERFORM A SOCIAL FUNCTION. UM, SO YOU GOT A LOT OF LITTLE GROUPS, AND I THINK THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT MY VISION, HOW TO HELP THE VARIOUS PEOPLE WHO WANTED THE LIBRARY. AND YOU EXPANDED THE PROGRAMS THAT WERE OFFERED AT THE LIBRARY. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THAT? WELL, IT REALLY, REALLY HELPED TO HAVE A VERY COMMITTED FRIENDS BOARD AND A VERY COMMITTED LIBRARY BOARD IN A VILLAGE THAT WAS KNOWN TO ATTRACT WRITERS, MUSICIANS, ARTISTS. [00:15:02] UM, SO THAT WAS A LITTLE BIT EASIER THAN FOR MAYBE SOME OTHER COMMUNITIES WHERE THE FRIENDS OF THE LIBRARY WOULD PUT ON, YOU KNOW, A SERIES OF, OF, OF, OF EVENTS, OR YOU AND I SPIKE WORKED ON SOME GRANTS FOR FOLK MUSIC. UM, IT REALLY HELPED ME THAT PEOPLE I WAS WORKING FOR, UM, ALSO HAD THE SAME ENTHUSIASM AND CONNECTIONS AND CONNECTIONS THAT, THAT THEN COULD BE UTILIZED. YEAH, IT SEEMS TO ME THAT IT, IT REALLY BECAME A CULTURAL CENTER OF THE COMMUNITY. YEAH. UH, AND WHICH YOU EXPANDED GREATLY. AND THEN DEBBIE IS DONE EVEN UNBELIEVABLE. I MEAN, IT'S LIKE, LIKE A SUPER STAR. WELL, WE ALSO HAD, UM, THE GOOD FORTUNE THAT, SO WE HAD THIS MAJOR RENOVATION, AND THEN WITHIN A YEAR WE WERE SORT OF TALKING TO DEAR BARBARA MORROW, HEAD OF THE FRIENDS THEN, AND IT WAS LIKE, LET'S, LET'S CAPTURE THIS ENTHUSIASM. WE KNEW WE COULDN'T GO BACK TO THE VILLAGE FOR MORE MONEY. SO WE EXPANDED THE ORE ROOM, WHICH IS OUR COMMUNITY ROOM, WHICH YOU JUST TALKED ABOUT, THE EXPANSION OF PROGRAMS RIGHT AFTER THE RENOVATION WHERE WE EXPANDED THIS ROOM, IT BECAME OBVIOUS WE NEEDED TO EXPAND IT AGAIN, AND THEN TO PUT A DECK ON TOP OF IT, WHICH IS I THINK THE ONLY OUTSIDE DECK ATTACHED TO A BUILDING BECAUSE TO CAPITALIZE ON, ON THE RIVER. SO THAT HAPPENED RIGHT AFTER OUR, THE RENOVATION AND THEN OUR CENTENNIAL, AGAIN, THE FRIENDS AND THE BOARD AGREED WE WERE NOT GOING TO CELEBRATE OUR 100TH OVER ONE WEEKEND. WE MADE IT A YEAR LONG FESTIVAL. AND IT STARTED WITH A JOINT PROJECT BETWEEN THE FRIENDS AND THE BOARD. BECCA MUDGE, WHO WAS ON THE BOARD, HAD COME UP THROUGH THE FRIENDS, AND SHE WAS A LANDSCAPE ARTIST. AND I SAID TO HER, WHAT ABOUT A GARDEN TOUR? AND SO IN 2012, WE KICKED OFF OUR HUNDREDTH YEAR WITH A WEEKEND GARDEN TOUR. THEN A GROUP OF US WAS SITTING IN JOANNA REISMAN'S, UM, DINING ROOM PLANNING FOR THE CENTENNIAL YEAR. PRESENT WAS ALSO YOUR WIFE CAROL. AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, AT THIS POINT, MY HUSBAND, MAY HIS MEMORY BE A BLESSING HAD WAS GONE. AND I WAS DOING A FEW THINGS ON MY OWN, LIKE GOING TO THE 92ND STREET. WHY? AND I SAID, WHAT IF WE HAD A SORT OF LECTURE SERIES THAT WOULD, UM, YOU KNOW, SORT OF EMULATED, AND I DON'T KNOW WHO CAME UP WITH THE PRECISE IDEA. I THINK IT WAS ACTUALLY ALEX FERNANDEZ, ONE OF OUR THEN CLERKS, NOW A LIBRARIAN AND PALEONTOLOGIST AND OFF ON MANY WONDERFUL ADVENTURES, WHO SAID, WHY DON'T WE DO A SERIES OVER THE WHOLE YEAR? AND CAROL ORGANIZED IT. SO THAT WE FOUGHT, WE CALLED A DEWEY ON THE HUDSON. AND FOR THE MONTHS, STARTING WITH SEPTEMBER AND ENDING THE FOLLOWING JUNE, WE WENT THROUGH THE ZEROS, THE ONE HUNDREDS, THE TWO HUNDREDS, THE THREE HUNDREDS. AND IT WAS CA CAROL AND HER GROUP, BARBARA MORROW, PROBABLY LAUREN CASPER, WHO, UM, APPROACH SPEAKERS. AND THEY, THEY PICKED A TOPIC. AND AGAIN, ALL OF THE SPEAKERS DREW FROM, UM, HASTINGS TALENTS AND OUR INAUGURAL SPEAKER FOR THE ZEROS, WHICH IS GENERALITIES, WAS ED YOUNG, MAY HIS MEMORY BE A BLESSING. AND WE WENT ON FROM THERE. AND, AND I'M GOING TO FORGET SOMEBODY IMPORTANT, BUT OUR SPEAKERS INCLUDED, UM, BARON LERNER, WHO, [00:20:01] WHO'S NOW ON THE FRIENDS BOARD AND, AND SPOKE ABOUT MEDICINE, THE SIX HUNDREDS, UM, THE ARCHITECT FOR OUR LIBRARY, AND ITS EXTENSION, JIM LOHR, WHO SPOKE ABOUT ARCHITECTURE. ANYWAYS, IT WAS PHENOMENAL. AND SO THEN AFTER THAT IT WAS, WELL, WE GOTTA KEEP THIS GOING. WE GOTTA KEEP THIS GOING. SO IT DEVELOPED AGAIN, INTO A JOINT BOARD FRIENDS PROJECT SUNDAYS IN THE LIBRARY, SUNDAY AFTERNOONS, YOU KNOW, ET CETERA. SO JUST JUMPING BACK TO THE, UM, OUTSIDE PORTION OF THE LIBRARY, I KNOW THE ROSENBERG FAMILY WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN, IN HELPING TO FUND THAT, HOW, HOW, WHO APPROACHED THEM? ME, OVER THE YEARS, UM, DENISE AND HER MOTHER ERICA, AND, AND LATER HER CHILDREN AND GRANDCHILDREN WERE REGULAR PATRONS. AND I USED TO SAY OF ERICA, MAY HER MEMORY BE A BLESSING, UM, THAT I HAD TO KEEP MYSTERIES ON THE SHELVES. I, I, I BELIEVE SHE WAS A FOCUSED READER OF MYSTERY BOOKS, BUT THEY WOULD BE IN AN ON A LOT. SO THEN, YOU KNOW, I LEARNED THAT, THAT THE ROSENBERGS, GARY AND DENISE, GREAT SUPPORTERS OF SO MANY, UM, HASTINGS INSTITUTIONS, UH, THE SCHOOL SYSTEM, THE, THE HASTINGS EDUCATION FUND, ET CETERA. SO THEY HAD GIVEN, UM, TO OUR RENOVATION AND TO OTHER PROJECTS. WHEN WE WERE RAISING MONEY FOR THE, UM, DECK, I APPROACHED DENISE AND ASKED IF THEY WOULD, THERE'S, IT'S NOT, IT'S PROBABLY TEMPERED GLASS. I DON'T KNOW ENOUGH ABOUT BUILDING SUPPLIES, BUT AS OPPOSED TO A SOLID BARRIER ON THE, THE DECK, IT'S SEE-THROUGH. AND THAT WAS FUNDED BY THE ROSENBERGS WHO NEVER WANTED TO, YOU KNOW, UM, SHOUT THEIR NAME OUT AND HAVE IT ON BUILDING. SO I SAID, WELL, WHY NOT, UM, IN HONOR OF YOUR MOTHER. WELL, ERICA WAS SORT OF SHY ABOUT THAT TOO. SO THEN YOU BRING IN THE NEW GUY ON IN TOWN, MEANING THAT HE JOINED THE BOARD IN 1995, AS OPPOSED TO ALREADY BEING THERE. TOM FORBES. AND YOU KNOW, TOM IS WORKED WITH, UH, FRED HUBBARD ON THE RALEIGH TRAIL AND LOVES THIS RIVER, YOU KNOW, HE ALSO CANAL COAL, YOU, YOU NAME IT. SO I THINK 2020 WHEN, BECAUSE, OR 21, IT WAS DURING COVI, WE DEDICATED THE DECK TO THE VISION OF TOM FORBES WITH FUNDING FROM THE ROSENBERG FAMILY IN HONOR OF DENISE'S MOTHER. GARY'S MOTHER-IN-LAW, ERICA. AND THE, THE WORDSMITH FOR ALL OF THESE THINGS IS OUR OWN. LAUREN CASPER, WHO ALSO IS ON THE BOARD NOW, BUT CAME UP THROUGH THE FRIENDS, UM, I THINK I MET HER MY FIRST SIX MONTHS HERE. AND IS THE BOTH MOST BEAUTIFUL, INSIGHTFUL, WORDSMITH THAT I'LL EVER KNOW. SO THE LIBRARY OBVIOUSLY HAS BOOKS, IT HAS DVDS, IT HAS CDS, IT HAS MAGAZINES, IT HAS NEWSPAPERS. BUT THAT'S NOT THE ONLY THING THAT YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH AS DIRECTOR OF THE LIBRARY. OH, NO. TOILET PAPER, . CAN YOU, CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THINGS THAT THE VAST MAJORITY OF PEOPLE HAVE NO IDEA OF WHAT YOU HAVE TO DEAL WITH, DIFFERENT PEOPLE COMING IN, DEMANDING DIFFERENT THINGS. CAN YOU TALK ABOUT THOSE? WELL, I SAID EARLIER THAT IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BUILDING, AND I WAS REFERRING TO WHO WANTS THE BUILDING, BUT ALSO IF A LOT OF PEOPLE [00:25:01] WANT THE BUILDING, THEN YOU'VE GOT TO KEEP THE BUILDING GOING. AND SO, UH, JUST THIS MORNING, UM, I WENT INTO THE LIBRARY BEFORE COMING HERE, AND I CRISSCROSSED WITH DEBBIE QUINN, AND I HAD, AND I SAID, OH MY GOODNESS, DEBBIE, I JUST SAW A LITTLE YOUTUBE VIDEO OF THIS LIBRARIAN WHO GETS INTO WORK BEFORE THE DOORS ARE UNLOCKED. AND SHE'S DANCING AROUND, BUT SHE'S PICKING UP, UH, THE, THE GUM WRAPPER FROM THE FLOOR. SHE'S CHECKING THE BATHROOM FOR TOILET PAPER SHE'S DOING, AND WHAT WAS DEBBIE DOING? BUT DOING HER SORT OF MORNING WALK AROUND. UM, WE ARE A SMALL VILLAGE AND OUR BUDGET, YOU KNOW, IF YOU ASK US, IT'S NEVER BIG ENOUGH. SORRY, MR. DRAKE. UM, BUT YOU KNOW, IT, IT HAS TO COVER A LOT OF SERVICES IN HASTINGS. AND SO BUILDING SUPPORT, IT'S, OH MY GOD, THE TOILET IS, IS CLOGGED. OH, CAN WE AFFORD THE, THE, THE PLUMBER, ET CETERA. UM, SO A LOT OF ATTENTION GOES TO, UM, THE, THE BUILDING. UH, A LOT OF ATTENTION GOES TO SCHMOOZING. SOME OF IT BECOMES VERY FRUITFUL DOWN THE ROAD. UH, I WAS JUST, I, I JUST SAW OUR AUTHOR JAMES KAPLAN IN ANOTHER VENUE UP NEAR ME IN, IN CROTON. AND IT BROUGHT BACK MEMORIES OF ME CHASING HIM UP SPRING STREET TO, YOU KNOW, MAKE SURE THAT WHEN HE, THE BOOK ON SINATRA WAS RELEASED ON A TUESDAY, THE FIRST VOLUME THAT WE WERE ONE OF THE FIRST GIGS FOR GIVING A BOOK TALK. SO A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE SCHMOOZING AND 90% OF THE TIME IT IS ESTABLISHING RELATIONSHIPS, CALMING PEOPLE DOWN, FINDING OUT THEIR INTERESTS, AB BETTING, LONELINESS, WHICH, YOU KNOW, MANY PEOPLE COME INTO THE LIBRARY FOR JUST NOT TO BE ALONE. A LITTLE BIT OF IT IS TO, UH, TAKE A COMPLAINT AND PUT IT INTO, UM, A WIDER PERSPECTIVE FOR BOTH YOURSELF AND FOR THE PERSON. SO A LOT OF TIME IT LOOKS LIKE YOU'RE NOT WORKING BECAUSE YOU'RE STANDING THERE CHITCHATTING, BUT YOU'RE WORKING . AND WHAT ABOUT, UH, UNUSUAL PATRONS? UNUSUAL? WELL, AS IT WAS BROUGHT UP AT THE MARTIN LUTHER KING BREAKFAST WHERE THE LIBRARY WAS THIS YEAR'S RECIPIENT OF THE MARTIN LUTHER KING AWARD, AND LAUREN WROTE THE WORDS THAT JACKIE, UM, WEITZMAN ACCEPTING THE AWARD SPOKE FOR THE LIBRARY. UM, THE, THE QUEST TO KEEP IT AN OPEN, NEUTRAL PLACE, THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU DON'T HAVE RULES, THAT YOU DON'T HAVE, UM, UH, BELIEFS. CERTAINLY THE BANNING OF BOOKS IS SOMETHING THAT, THAT HASTINGS HAS RE RESISTED FOREVER AND HOPEFULLY WILL RESIST FOREVER. SO IT'S NOT THAT YOU'RE NEUTRAL IN THE SENSE OF EVERYBODY'S RIGHT AND NOBODY'S WRONG, BUT AS A PLACE WHERE, AS A PLACE OF SAFETY, A PLACE OF SAFETY THAT YOU CAN COME INTO AND HOPEFULLY FIND A BREATH OF MATERIALS. UM, AND S JUST, YEAH, I'LL, I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT. A PLACE OF SAFETY. AND HAVE THERE BEEN EXPERIENCES WHERE PEOPLE HAVE ABUSED THAT? YES. HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH IT? UM, OVER THE YEARS, AND OF COURSE I'VE NOT BEEN ACTIVE DIRECTOR SINCE 2016. [00:30:01] I STILL DO A LITTLE BIT OF WORK FOR, FOR DEBBIE ON, YOU KNOW, PROJECTS. BUT, UM, WELL, IT'S, IT'S TO KNOW WHERE TO BRING THE PROBLEM TO MOST TIMES. OFTEN THEY CAN BE SETTLED INTERNALLY. YOU KNOW, WE DO HAVE CODES OF CONDUCT AND GUIDELINES AND HELP SERVICES AND, AND MOST THINGS CAN BE D DEALT WITH. IF IT IS SOMEONE'S PHYSICAL OR MENTAL SAFETY, THEN, YOU KNOW, THE POLICE ARE RIGHT NEXT DOOR. IF IT IS, UM, MAYBE A COMPLAINT THAT IS A LITTLE BIT BELLIGERENT AND, UM, THE DIRECTOR WOULD NEED HELP YOU, YOU GO IMMEDIATELY TO YOUR BOARD OF, OF TRUSTEES AND ESPECIALLY, YOU KNOW, THE PRESIDENT AND GET GUIDANCE AS TO HOW TO SOLVE IT. UNPLEASANT SITUATIONS ARE ALWAYS WHAT YOU REMEMBER, WHETHER IT BE YOUR PERSONAL LIFE AT HOME OR YOUR LAST FORAY INTO THE SUPERMARKET. AND SO IN THE LIBRARY TOO, I THINK THERE PRETTY, AT A MINIMUM, CERTAINLY IN MY EXPERIENCE, AND VERBALLY, I WOULD SAY FROM, UH, DEBBIE'S. YEAH. AND HAVE YOU EVER ENCOUNTERED THEFT IN THE LIBRARY? WELL, I'M SURE, BUT WE DON'T KNOW IF WE'VE, YOU KNOW, UNTIL YOU, UNTIL YOU RUN A REPORT THAT SAYS THIS IS WHAT SHOULD BE ON THE SHELF, IS IT ON THE SHELF? IS IT MISSING? YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH IT IS UNTIL YOU GO LOOKING FOR SOMETHING. UM, I THINK BECAUSE LIBRARY, WE DO NOT HAVE GATES WITH, YOU KNOW, MONITORS LIKE SOME URBAN LIBRARIES FEEL. THEY MUST, YEAH, I'M SURE THERE'S, I WOULDN'T EVEN CALL IT, IT PROBABLY RUNS A SPECTRUM OF THEFT DOWN TO, OH YEAH, I HAVE A LOT OF THINGS IN MY ARMS AND I WANDERED OUT AND HALF OF THEM WILL, WILL COME BACK. UM, I DON'T THINK IT'S, IT'S A HUGE PROBLEM. YOU KNOW, THERE'S A COUPLE OF PEOPLE THAT YOU SORT OF FEEL MAYBE ARE TAKING ADVANTAGE, BUT NO, I WOULDN'T SAY THAT'S A, IT'S A RED FLAG IN, IN HASTINGS. DO YOU EVER CONFRONT PEOPLE? WELL, PROBABLY NOT. 'CAUSE YOU'D HAVE TO HAVE, YOU KNOW, VIEW SOMEONE PURPOSEFULLY TAKING SOMETHING AND PUTTING IT. IT'S JUST, IT'S SO EASY TO BORROW MATERIALS. IT IS. SO, UM, THE FINES ARE SO REASONABLE. THE RENEWAL PERIODS ARE SO LIBERAL. IT'S SORT OF, IT'S NOT LIKE THE LOCKED PERFUMES IN AT CVS WHERE YOU'RE GONNA BE ABLE TO TAKE IT AND GO OUT ON THE STREET AND, YOU KNOW, SELL IT QUICKLY. UH, IT DOES, IT DOESN'T BEG THEFT THIEVERY. AND THEN AS DIRECTOR, WHEN YOU WERE DIRECTOR, HOW DID YOU DEAL WITH THE DIFFERENT PERSONALITIES OF YOUR PEOPLE THAT WERE EMPLOYED AT THE LIBRARY? UM, HMM. GOOD QUESTION. I THINK, YOU KNOW, SOME, SOME RELATIONSHIPS YOU LOOK BACK ON AND YOU SAY, I DIDN'T, YOU KNOW, I COULD HAVE HANDLED THIS IN A, IN A, IN A DIFFERENT WAY. MANY, YOU HAVE TO HAVE BASIC CIVIL SERVICE, UM, QUALIFICATIONS TO BE THERE. UH, UH, SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO FILTER OUT, YOU'RE REALLY NOT COMPETENT FOR THIS JOB AND YOUR COUSIN HIRED YOU AND IT'S NEPOTISM AND ET CETERA. SO THERE IS SOME PROTECTION THAT WAY. PEOPLE WORK ON A [00:35:01] PROBATION PERIOD TO BEGIN WITH. SO, UM, SO THERE'S, THERE'S SOME, YOU KNOW, PROTECTION FOR SOME SORT OF DIFFERENCES THAT CAN OVER THE PERIOD, AGAIN, IN A SMALL PLACE. UM, I WOULD, THE DIRECTORS OFTEN, I, I KNOW THIS FROM MY FRIEND ANGELA GRO FROM HARDLEY AND OTHER DIRECTORS FROM SMALL LIBRARIES THAT, UH, THERE'S A NURTURING ASPECT THAT GOES ON AND THERE'S A FAMILY FEELING. UH, CERTAINLY THERE ARE DIFFERENT VIEWPOINTS REPRESENTED, BUT I WOULDN'T SAY HOW THAT IS DIFFERENT FROM A LOT OF WORK ENVIRONMENTS. AND HOW, HOW DO YOU CHOOSE WHICH BOOKS TO BUY FOR THE LIBRARY? UM, WELL, THAT'S A, A LIBRARIAN'S DELIGHT. AND, YOU KNOW, I'LL, I'LL GIVE YOU THE, THE DARK DIRTY SECRET RIGHT NOW THAT IN ANY LIBRARY, UM, THE, A LITTLE BIT OF THE COLLECTION REPRESENTS, UM, THE LIBRARIAN'S INTERESTS. EVEN WHEN YOU THINK THAT YOU'RE, YOU KNOW, BUYING, YOU KNOW, SO GLOBALLY FOR THE COMMUNITY, IF YOU LOVE BAKING BREAD, I GUARANTEE YOU THERE'LL BE 20 BOOKS ON BAKING BREAD VERSUS ZERO ON SOMETHING ELSE. IN A SMALL LIBRARY, YOU CANNOT BUY EVERYTHING 'CAUSE OF THE, OF THE BUDGET AND THE ROOM. SO YOU DO TRY TO STAY ATTUNED FOR, UM, UH, INTERESTS OF THE COMMUNITY. LIKE I SAID ABOUT, UM, DENISE ROSENBERG'S MOTHER, THIS COMMUNITY ALWAYS SORT OF LIKED MYSTERIES. THEY WEREN'T AS BIG INTO ROMANCES. WESTERNS. HAVING THE WESTCHESTER LIBRARY SYSTEM WHERE YOU CAN GET BOOKS FROM 38 LIBRARIES FREES YOU UP THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO BUY IN CONCENTRATION FOR A, A SUBJECT THAT MAYBE ONLY ONE OR TWO PEOPLE ARE, ARE INTERESTED IN. UM, YOU, THERE'S ALSO STATE MONEY THAT GOES TO THE LARGER LIBRARIES IN A LIBRARY SYSTEM. SO IN OUR CASE, THE WESTCHESTER LIBRARY SYSTEM. AND THAT IS MONEY TO BUY ACADEMIC BOOKS, UM, VERY, VERY EXPENSIVE ART BOOKS, ET CETERA, SO THAT THAT BURDEN ISN'T ON THE LOCAL LIBRARY. UH, SO IT, YEAH, IT IS, IT'S SORT OF THE FUN OF, OF PURCHASING, AND IT'S MORE JUST BE JUST BEING CONSCIOUS OF WHAT MANY PEOPLE IN YOUR COMMUNITY WOULD LIKE YOU TO OWN. NOW WE ALSO RUN A REPORT EACH WEEK, WHICH SHOWS WHERE, WHERE, UM, WE CALL 'EM HOLDS. SO YOU WOULD AT NIGHT DECIDE YOU WANT THE, UH, NEW BOOK ON THAT WAS JUST RELEASED THIS PAST WEEK ON SOMETHING AND YOU PUT A HOLD ON IT. WE CAN TRACK THAT. SO THAT DECIDE WHETHER WE SHOULD BAR BUY IT FOR OUR HOME LIBRARY OR JUST, YOU KNOW, LET BORROW IT FROM THE GENERAL. FROM THE GENERAL. AND DOES THE DIRECTOR, OR DID YOU CONSULT WITH THE OTHER LIBRARIANS ABOUT NEW BOOKS TO, TO GET, OR IS THAT SOLELY THE DIRECTOR'S DISCRETION? NO, AND EACH DIRECTOR HANDLES IT DI DIFFERENTLY. UM, I DID MOST OF THE BUYING FOR, UM, I ADULT BOOKS. JANET MURPHY, WHO WAS WITH US AT THE TIME, UM, WAS INTO THE NEW AUDIO VISUAL AS FIRST VHS TAPES, AND THEN LATER, YOU KNOW, DISS. UM, SO THERE'S STILL CONCENTRATIONS. AND OF COURSE, THE ONE WHO HAS THE, THE BIGGEST AND, AND, AND [00:40:01] HARDEST JOB IN SOME WAYS IS THE CHILDREN'S LIBRARIAN. SO IT WAS JOAN VALEN COURT WHO, UH, THEN BECAME DIRECTOR FOR A SHORT PERIOD OF TIME BEFORE MOVING TO CONNECTICUT. THEN THERE WAS, UM, OF COURSE, OUR DEBBIE WHO CAME IN AS CHILDREN'S LIBRARIAN AND IS NOW DIRECTOR AND ALLIE. UM, SO THEY, BECAUSE MANY, MANY MORE CHILDREN'S BOOKS COME DIRECTLY OFF THE SHELVES, MANY ADULTS LOVE THE SORT OF PICKUP SYSTEM. I DON'T EVEN HAVE TO GO INTO THE SHELF, I JUST ORDER IT ONLINE. AND, UM, YOU KNOW, I PICK IT UP AT THE FRONT DESK, CHI CHILDREN AND, AND THE PARENTS AND CAREGIVERS OF CHILDREN, LIKE THE BROWSING, ESPECIALLY A CHILD GETS INTO A FAVORITE SERIES OF BOOKS OR A FAVORITE AUTHOR. SO THE CHILDREN'S LIBRARIAN DOES A, A LOT OF FOCUSED BUYING. AND DO YOU, DO YOU READ PERIOD, DID YOU READ PERIODICALS TO ALERT YOURSELF TO NEW BOOKS THAT WERE COMING OUT? THERE'S A FEW IN THE TRADE, UM, PUT OUT BY THE AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, UM, UH, PUBLISHES WEEKLY BY THE PUBLISHER'S ASSOCIATION SO THAT YOU GET A LOT. UM, I TENDED TO GO MORE TO PERIODICALS TO MAKE SURE I WASN'T MISSING. SO I WOULD GO TO THE ATLANTIC MONTHLY, THE NEW YORKER, UH, THE WEEK, WHICH ALL HAVE BOOK REVIEWS TO MAKE SURE I WASN'T MISSING, NOT THE SO, SO ESOTERIC BOOK THAT IT'S, NOBODY WANTS IT, BUT YOU KNOW, OH, THE SEQUEL TO THAT MEMOIR BY THAT NORWEGIAN WHO BECAME SO POPULAR. UM, SO I WOULD TEND TO KEEP AN EYE MORE NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS. BUT THEN FOR YOUR BASICS, UM, THERE ARE TRADE PUBLICATIONS PUBLISHED BY OUR OWN ASSOCIATIONS. AND DID YOU EVER GET COMPLAINTS FROM PATRONS ABOUT HAVING OR NOT HAVING CERTAIN BOOKS? UH, YES. AGAIN, NOT, NOT FOR LUMINOUS IN NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS, UM, THERE, AND I DON'T THINK WE EVER HAD ON OUR SHELVES ANYTHING HATEFUL TO EITHER END OF A SPECTRUM, OBVIOUSLY POLITICAL BOOKS. AND WE USED TO, UM, UNTIL BAKER AND TAYLOR, A BIG DISTRIBUTOR OF BOOKS THAT JUST WENT OUTTA BUSINESS. SO THE LIBRARY WORLD IS ALL WOO . UM, WE USED TO LEASE BOOKS FROM THEM. SO IT WAS A GREAT WAY OF SATISFYING, UH, CONTEMPORARY DESIRES WITHOUT IT ENDING UP ON OUR SHELVES FOREVER. I LOVE HILLARY CLINTON. I HATE HILLARY CLINTON. UM, I'M FOLLOWING THIS DIET FAD. OH, THIS DIET FAD IS NO GOOD. IT'S BAD FOR YOUR HEALTH. YOU COULD, YOU KNOW, WE USED TO RENT THOSE BOOKS NOW AND AGAIN, PEOPLE CAN GET A WIDE VARIETY FROM THE WESTCHESTER LIBRARY SYSTEM. UM, SO YES, WE GOT A FEW COMPLAINTS. WE GOT A FEW COMPLAINTS. SOMETIMES IN SOME OF OUR JOURNALS, YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU'LL MAGAZINES ONCE IN A GREAT WHILE, THERE'LL BE AN ANNOTATION, YOU KNOW, THIS IS GARBAGE OR THIS OR THAT. AND IT REFLECTS USUALLY A POLITICAL VIEW, UM, ONCE IN A WHILE, A RELIGIOUS, NOT, NOT TOO OFTEN, BUT IT'S SO EASY TO GET WHAT YOU WANT. YOU DON'T HAVE TO COMPLAIN THAT MUCH ABOUT WHAT YOU DON'T WANT. SO EXPLAIN THIS LEASING PORTION. HOW, HOW MUCH DID IT COST TO LEASE A BOOK AS COMPARED TO HOW MUCH IT WOULD'VE COST TO PURCHASE THE BOOK? PROBABLY ABOUT THE SAME, BUT THE ADVANTAGE WAS THAT ONE, IT CAME WITH THE BOOK WRAPPER ALREADY ON IT, SO YOU SAVED A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME, UH, AND COST. SO YOU SAVED STAFF TIME, [00:45:01] THEY CAME READY, AND THEY DIDN'T END UP ON YOUR SHELVES. YOU SENT THEM BACK, YOU KNOW, AFTER A PERIOD OF TIME. UM, ONE OF THE BIGGEST, YOU KNOW, WE, WE DON'T HAVE SUBTERRANEAN STACKS THAT GO 50 FEET UNDER THE LIBRARY. SO I SOMETIMES JOKE WITH, WITH, UH, UH, MY FELLOW LIBRARIANS TODAY, FOR EVERY 20 BOOKS THAT YOU'RE BRINGING IN, YOU OUGHT TO BE SENDING FIVE OR SIX OUT AT LEAST. UM, SO YEAH, SO THAT WAS THE ADVANTAGE TO IT. I'M NOT SURE IT HAD A DIRECT, UM, FINANCIAL ADV ADVANTAGE. SO WHEN YOU, WHEN YOU GET A NEW BOOK, CAN YOU TALK ABOUT WHAT HAS TO BE DONE WITH THAT NEW BOOK TO PREPARE IT, TO PUT IT ON THE SHELF? YOU DON'T, YOU JUST, YOU DON'T GET A NEW BOOK AND PUT IT ON THE SHELF. YOU HAVE TO DO WHAT? YEAH, WELL, SO FIRST THERE IS ORDERING AND YOU DON'T ORDER DIRECTLY FROM A PUBLISHER. YOU GO THROUGH A DISTRIBUTOR, AS I SAID, BAKER AND TAYLOR WAS THE NAME IN TOWN, AND THEY, UH, FOLDED SHARP MAJOR CORPORATION LAST YEAR, SWEETLY, OR IRONICALLY, BARNES AND NOBLE, WHICH HAD BEEN IN CHAPTER 11, HAS COME OUT OF CHAPTER 11 AND IS NOW PICKING UP SOME OF THIS NOT-FOR-PROFIT SCHOOL AND LIBRARY BUSINESS. SO YOU ORDER THE BOOKS AND THEN THEY COME IN. SO YOU GOTTA BE CAREFUL WHEN YOU ORDER A BOOK THAT YOU SPIKE SITTING FIVE FEET FROM ME AS A FELLOW LIBRARIAN IS NOT ORDERING THE SAME BOOK. DOESN'T HAPPEN TOO OFTEN. THE BOOKS COME IN WITH BAKER AND TAYLOR. THEY USED TO HAVE, UM, THOSE CLEAR JACKETS ALREADY ON IT. WE PAID FOR THAT, BUT IT MEANT THAT SOMEONE DIDN'T HAVE TO STAND THERE AND DO THE PAPER, PAPER JACKET. I, I DON'T KNOW IF BARNES AND NOBLE IS DOING THAT YET. THAT I DON'T KNOW. SO I SUSPECT NOT, WHICH MEANS THAT SOMEONE THEN HAS TO PREPARE THEM, LABEL THEM, UM, JACKET THEM, AND THEN WHAT, WHAT WE CALL LINKING. SO I TAKE THIS BOOK, THIS MEMOIR MY LIFE WITH CAROL BARKIN BY SPIKE BARKIN, AND I LINK IT TO A RECORD THAT THEN GIVES YOU YOUR CATALOG RECORD ONLINE. AND SO THEN I CAN I LABEL IT B FOR BIOGRAPHY? BARKING FOR BARKING. UM, SO IT'S A, IT'S STILL A LITTLE BIT LABOR INTENSIVE, EVEN WHEN YOU PAY FOR SOME MASS SERVICES FOR, FOR YOU. UM, SO AFTER YOU LEFT AS DIRECTOR, I'M LIKE A BAD PENNY. KEEP COMING BACK. WHY I, WHEN I RETIRED DECEMBER 31ST, 2015, IT WASN'T BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, I'M 89 YEARS OLD AND IT'S TIME FOR ME TO GO, OR IT WAS FOR TWO REASONS. I HAD A DEAR, DEAR, DEAR FRIEND GORDON CUTLER, WHO WAS 20 YEARS OLDER, MAY HIS MEMORY BE A BLESSING THAN ME. AND I, YOU KNOW, IF I WAS GONNA SPEND TIME WITH HIM, IT WAS NOW I ALSO WAS FACING WHAT TURNED OUT TO BE A LONG SERIES OF ORTHOPEDIC SURGERIES. SOME MAJOR, SOME, NO, NONE OF THEM WERE MINOR . AND WHILE I COULD HAVE REMAINED WORKING, I HAD PLENTY OF SICK TIME. I HAD A WONDERFUL BOARD, YOU KNOW, TRUSTEES IN THE VILLAGE, ET CETERA, SICK TIME. UM, IT'S HARD TO RUN A FULL-TIME JOB IF YOU KNOW THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BE PHYSICALLY UP. SO IT, IT WAS TIME JOAN VALOUR, WHO TOOK OVER FROM ME FOR, UH, I BELIEVE FOUR YEARS, UM, SAID, WELL, I'VE LOOKED UP WHAT YOU CAN WORK FOR AND BE ON SOCIAL SECURITY, AND IT'S X NUMBER DOLLARS A YEAR, A A YEAR, AND THAT'S WHAT YOU'RE GONNA KEEP WORKING [00:50:01] AND, UH, ON PROJECTS OR THINGS TO HELP ME OR ET CETERA, ET CETERA. AND, YOU KNOW, HONESTLY, IT WAS A, A WIN-WIN SITUATION, YOU KNOW, FOR ME. UM, SO THEN IN 2020, UM, UM, JOAN NEEDED TO, TO LEAVE FAIRLY QUICKLY FOR FAMILY REASONS. AND LAUREN CASPER CALLED ME, SHE WAS THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD, AND SHE SAID, WILL YOU COME BACK AS DIRECTOR? AND WE, WE WERE TWO WEEKS INTO COVID, SO IT WAS, AND I SAID, UM, YES, BUT THE CALL YOU'RE GONNA MAKE WHEN YOU HANG UP THE PHONE WITH ME IS TO DEBBIE QUINN. NOW, DEBBIE AND I, WE SORT OF KNEW EACH OTHER. HI, DEBBIE, HOW ARE YOU? HI, SUE, HOW ARE YOU? HI, DEBBIE, HOW ARE YOU? BUT YOU KNOW, UM, I I, I JUST INSTINCTIVELY FELT THAT IF, EVEN IF SHE WASN'T THE NEXT DIRECTOR FOR WHATEVER REASONS, THAT SHE WAS VITAL TO THE SERVICES WE WERE GOING TO GIVE DURING COVID, WELL, IT BECAME ONE OF THE BEST TIMES OF MY LIFE. AND, YOU KNOW, AND I FEEL ASHAMED TO SAY THIS WHEN SO MANY PEOPLE WERE SO SUFFERING. SO DEBBIE AND I COULD FOLLOW THE, THE LIBRARY WAS CLOSED FOR THREE MONTHS CLOSED. UM, BUT WE WERE IN THIS BIG BUILDING, JUST THE TWO OF US. WE STILL HAD TO PAY THE BILLS AND SET UP WORK FOR PATRONS TO GET BOOKS AND GET THEM FROM, YOU KNOW, THE PARKING LOT, ET CETERA. UH, SO WE FORMED A VERY STRONG PERSONAL FRIENDSHIP AND A STRONG PROFESSIONAL, UM, FRIENDSHIP THAT AUGUST. SO FIVE MONTHS INTO COVID, DEBBIE WAS NAMED AS DIRECTOR, AND THEN I ONCE AGAIN STEPPED BACK. BUT IT WAS ALSO, AGAIN, A WIN-WIN FOR ME. YOU KNOW, I NOW CAN GO INTO THE LIBRARY AND SAY, ALL RIGHT, BOSS, WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO WORK ON? OKAY, BOSS, DO YOU THINK I SHOULD BE PERFECT? PERFECT. WELL, THE WIN-WIN IS FOR HASTINGS OUT. HUDSON, I'LL TELL YOU THAT. THE LIBRARY IS AN AMAZING PLACE, AND THANKS TO YOU AND, AND DEBBIE, IT'S, IT'S JUST A GEM. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. IT'S BEEN REALLY INTERESTING. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. AND WE'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.