by Kelly D. Vorhis
English Teacher/Part-time Librarian
Spell Bowl, English Academic Teams Coach
NorthWood High School
Nappanee, Indiana
For as long as I can remember, the public library has been a part of my life and I have always felt at home there. Some of my earliest memories are of visiting the children's
department to check out a stack of books from Miss Audrey, the librarian. As the years went by, I spent countless hours browsing shelves, sitting in the aisles reading books, and participating in programs the library offered.
One day almost fifteen years ago, I found myself filling out an application for a part-time position at the Adult Services Desk of my childhood library. Why, you might ask? I guess I was feeling the need to reconnect with my younger self. Or the memories at least. In the intervening years since I have spent two or more days a month helping library patrons find books to read, promoting our community through a variety of projects that our library participates in, along with learning and sharing the wide and varied ongoing story of our city's history.
Shelving books relieves stress and taking a moment to pause in the quiet, back hallway of the library where original copies of the Nappanee Advance News are housed reminds me of why I love words, writing, and teaching high schoolers on a daily basis.
I see myself being involved with my public library for the foreseeable future, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.