DECEMBER 3 IS HEATHER BOOTH DAY!

December 3 is Heather Booth Day! Stop by the Library on Thursday to congratulate Heather, the Young Adult Librarian of the Year. Sweet? Yes, it is, and a little more so since the Library will have candy for all her well-wishers. That’s the short and sweet version--literally. Want more details? Read on.

On October 26, the Village of Western Springs passed a resolution honoring Heather Booth as the 2015 recipient of the Illinois Library Association Young Adult Librarian of the Year. To celebrate her accomplishments,Thomas Ford Library has declared Thursday, December 3 as Heather Booth Day.

Anyone who’s interacted with Thomas Ford’s Teen Librarian Heather Booth knows she’s a winner; on October 23, she got the certificate to prove it. At the Awards Gala of the Illinois Library Association in Peoria, Heather received the Young Adult Librarian of the Year Award and was lauded “for making an outstanding contribution in library services to young adults...by creating and implementing library programs and services that promote a love of literature and/or instill positive feelings about libraries.”

Heather said, “I am incredibly honored to have won the award. Every day that I come to work I feel fortunate to have the job I have, working with teens in this community...The award ceremony was very nice. It was wonderful to learn about all of the programs and services that librarians around the state had done. I was very glad that Anne Kozak and my husband Paul were both able to join me in Peoria for the event. It made for a very nice evening!”

Among Heather’s many accomplishments are co-writing three books on Teen Services, initiating the Library’s STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) Club, creating the Career Conversations series, and receiving a grant for ILEAD (Innovative Librarians Explore, Apply, and Discover) to discover innovative ways to connect to library users through technology and share them with her community.

When asked about future plans, Heather said, “I’m very excited about our new YA Tech Tools collection. The Makerspace movement is big in libraries lately, but even without a dedicated space, I think that there are lots of ways to engage our teen members in creating and innovating. The Tech Tools collection includes a variety of tools that can be used to learn coding, technology, and artistic creation. All of the items can be checked out for three weeks at a time and we are eager for member feedback on their experience using these tools and their suggestions for how to grow the collection. I am interested in the idea that making isn’t just about technology too. We have craft activities here, and I’m really proud that four teens involved with the library are working on novels through NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month)...I’m glad to have a lot of involvement from the Teen Board in suggesting new programs and activities.”

Congratulations, Heather!