Library Board of Trustee Opening
The Dundee Township Public Library District is looking to the community to fill a vacated trustee position on the library’s Board of Directors. The term expires in May 2011. Trustees must be residents of the district and attend regularly scheduled monthly board meetings.
Interested parties should submit a letter of interest and resume to Library Director Roxane Bennett at rbennett@dundeelibrary.info by 5 p.m. on Monday, March 8. The selected candidate will be appointed by the Board in April.
“We are looking for someone who shares our belief that the library is a very integral part of our community. The trustee position requires important decision making that helps provide an environment of intellectual freedom for our diverse community. The services, programs, materials, and information provided by the library help our patrons to remember our past, live in the present, and strive for the future,” said board president Lenore McDonald.
Library Newsletter Interviews of Board Members
Liz Gade (May-July 2009 issue)
East Dundee resident Liz Gade, treasurer of the Dundee Township Public Library’s Board of Trustees, is no newcomer to the demands of public service.
Since 1991, she’s held the elected position of Dundee Township Clerk. In 1985, she began working in the township supervisor’s office in what she thought would be only a transitional career position.
Today, she is the full-time administrative assistant to Dundee Township Supervisor Sue Harney, handling multiple responsibilities that include general assistance, accounting, payroll, cemetery records, Ride in Kane registration and duties related to the Open Space Program administration.
Though born in Elgin, she recalls that her formative years were spent growing up on a farm in rural Wisconsin, where her family relocated when she was four years old.She remembers spending most of her time out-doors, exploring the forests and fields with her brother, or reading. “I lived in such a small town that a book-mobile came to the one-room schoolhouse I attended. It was my first ‘library experience,’” she said. When her family returned to East Dundee, Liz brought her love of nature and of books with her. She is an excellent nature photographer: her photos of the land restoration work fill the walls of the township’s office.
After graduating from Dundee High School, she worked for local businesses. She went on to receive a nursing degree in 1972 from Elgin Community College. A career change in 1985 brought her to her current position.
Liz has seen many changes in the Fox Valley, especially due to land developers who have dramatically changed the way of life in the area and who bring new and ongoing challenges.
Appointed in 2004 as a library trustee, Liz finds a parallel in the library’s role in the township. “Like every taxing body, it’s our responsibility to figure out what our people want and need, and respond with those services without increasing taxes,” she said.
In this economy, she believes the library can serve as a valuable resource for those seeking jobs. “Libraries have always been the centers of knowledge, and knowledge belongs to everyone,” she said. “We are now a multicultural, multiracial community and we must read the needs of our people and make the necessary changes to meet them.”
Since 1991, she’s held the elected position of Dundee Township Clerk. In 1985, she began working in the township supervisor’s office in what she thought would be only a transitional career position.
Today, she is the full-time administrative assistant to Dundee Township Supervisor Sue Harney, handling multiple responsibilities that include general assistance, accounting, payroll, cemetery records, Ride in Kane registration and duties related to the Open Space Program administration.
Though born in Elgin, she recalls that her formative years were spent growing up on a farm in rural Wisconsin, where her family relocated when she was four years old.She remembers spending most of her time out-doors, exploring the forests and fields with her brother, or reading. “I lived in such a small town that a book-mobile came to the one-room schoolhouse I attended. It was my first ‘library experience,’” she said. When her family returned to East Dundee, Liz brought her love of nature and of books with her. She is an excellent nature photographer: her photos of the land restoration work fill the walls of the township’s office.
After graduating from Dundee High School, she worked for local businesses. She went on to receive a nursing degree in 1972 from Elgin Community College. A career change in 1985 brought her to her current position.
Liz has seen many changes in the Fox Valley, especially due to land developers who have dramatically changed the way of life in the area and who bring new and ongoing challenges.
Appointed in 2004 as a library trustee, Liz finds a parallel in the library’s role in the township. “Like every taxing body, it’s our responsibility to figure out what our people want and need, and respond with those services without increasing taxes,” she said.
In this economy, she believes the library can serve as a valuable resource for those seeking jobs. “Libraries have always been the centers of knowledge, and knowledge belongs to everyone,” she said. “We are now a multicultural, multiracial community and we must read the needs of our people and make the necessary changes to meet them.”
Marge Skold (May-Jul 2008 issue)
Trustee Marge Skold, Ph.D., a West Dundee resident, was elected to the Dundee Township Public Library District Board in 2007. Currently the Vice President of Academic Affairs for Harper College in Palatine, she brings a wealth of life experience and management skills to her volunteer position as trustee.
Like her current favorite mystery author, Joanne Fluke, Marge grew up in a small town in rural Minnesota where the winters were harsh and the neighbors were friendly. The oldest of six children, Marge and her family had traveled from coast to coast many times as her father was moved because of his career. By her count, Marge studied or taught in 26 schools before she finished her doctorate in 1992 at the University of Iowa.
These experiences served her well. “I’ve learned a lot about meeting new people,” she remarked. “You want to listen first, respect their space, and let them take time to get to know you.”
In 1972, Marge and her husband, a public librarian, settled in Waterloo, Iowa, where they raised a family. Her life took on a new direction in 1992. Then working as an administrator at Hawkeye Community College, she played a key role in local economic development initiatives and was invited to visit China by a delegation that toured Waterloo’s local John Deere plant.
Three months later, she was a guest of the delegation’s leader in Liuzhou, China, an experience that whetted her appetite for international travel. Her experiences in foreign countries have added much to her understanding of other cultures, she notes. Still blessed with an adventurous spirit, the self-described gypsy loves to road trip with a good friend, a good book and many good sites.
As a trustee, Marge brings more than 30 years of experience in education and leadership to the library Board. “I’ve always thought a public library could be described by the title of one of Hemingway’s short stories as ‘a clean well-lighted place’ where everyone is welcome,” she said. “That is what a library should be – friendly, open to all, with something for everyone – from toys to tax forms,” she said.
The fact that libraries can absorb new technologies such as laptops, wifi, pdas, dvds and audio books continues to position them as repositories of knowledge and culture, she observes.
“People will always want what is in books – they just want to get it in a different format, like audio books,” she said.
While she’s always encouraged diversity in the workplace, the Minnesota native sees the library as a perfect place that can embrace a global society “where everyone learns to work and live together, enriching each other's lives.”
Like her current favorite mystery author, Joanne Fluke, Marge grew up in a small town in rural Minnesota where the winters were harsh and the neighbors were friendly. The oldest of six children, Marge and her family had traveled from coast to coast many times as her father was moved because of his career. By her count, Marge studied or taught in 26 schools before she finished her doctorate in 1992 at the University of Iowa.
These experiences served her well. “I’ve learned a lot about meeting new people,” she remarked. “You want to listen first, respect their space, and let them take time to get to know you.”
In 1972, Marge and her husband, a public librarian, settled in Waterloo, Iowa, where they raised a family. Her life took on a new direction in 1992. Then working as an administrator at Hawkeye Community College, she played a key role in local economic development initiatives and was invited to visit China by a delegation that toured Waterloo’s local John Deere plant.
Three months later, she was a guest of the delegation’s leader in Liuzhou, China, an experience that whetted her appetite for international travel. Her experiences in foreign countries have added much to her understanding of other cultures, she notes. Still blessed with an adventurous spirit, the self-described gypsy loves to road trip with a good friend, a good book and many good sites.
As a trustee, Marge brings more than 30 years of experience in education and leadership to the library Board. “I’ve always thought a public library could be described by the title of one of Hemingway’s short stories as ‘a clean well-lighted place’ where everyone is welcome,” she said. “That is what a library should be – friendly, open to all, with something for everyone – from toys to tax forms,” she said.
The fact that libraries can absorb new technologies such as laptops, wifi, pdas, dvds and audio books continues to position them as repositories of knowledge and culture, she observes.
“People will always want what is in books – they just want to get it in a different format, like audio books,” she said.
While she’s always encouraged diversity in the workplace, the Minnesota native sees the library as a perfect place that can embrace a global society “where everyone learns to work and live together, enriching each other's lives.”
Lenore M. McDonald (Feb-Apr 2008 issue)
Elected in 2007, Trustee Lenore M. McDonald moved to East Dundee just two years ago. But for many years, she had been a frequent user of the Dundee Township Public Library, preferring to travel out this way from her home in a near west suburb. “I really liked the Dundee library’s collection of materials and enjoyed dealing with the staff here, especially the people at the Circulation Desk,” she recalled. With friends who already lived in the area, Lenore liked the small town friendliness she experienced when she would visit. “It was like Mayberry,” she commented. Once a resident of the Fox Valley, she found her first impressions of community camaraderie well-founded, especially when the area was hit by the severe storms and flooding last year. “I saw neighbors helping neighbors, and then reaching out to help others. Everyone pitched in,” she recalled.
Born in Chicago, Lenore was raised in Augusta, Georgia, and received her bachelor’s degree in Industrial Technology from Georgia Southern University in 1982. She began her career laboring at production plants making plastic for Tupperware and resins for the paint industry. She moved to Illinois to work for the NutraSweet Corporation, first as a production technician then a chemist, “making everything from pints of ice cream to vats of cheese,” she recalled. Whether it was food or chemical, her heavy-duty industrial background served her well when she was hired by the Lockheed Martin Corporation in 2000 as a contract employee of the Federal Aviation Association (FAA). Lockheed Martin is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacture and integration of advanced technology systems, products and services. Major customers include the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. federal government agencies. Based in Des Plaines, Lenore is a safety and health trainer who provides training for the FAA technicians servicing equipment for air traffic controllers in 17 states. “I travel from Albuquerque, New Mexico and up to Fargo, North Dakota, with every state in between,” she said. She also coordinates the training courses the technicians may need for their jobs.
She is a frequent visitor to the library, preferring humor as her favorite genre, and enjoys authors like Janet Evanovich, Joan Hess and Robert B. Parker. She also enjoys riding her bike and getting together with friends.
She sees a bright future for the library and recognizes the need for expanding services on the west side of the Fox River to serve the population growth. “I also hope my background in safety and health issues will be useful as the Board develops the long range plan that looks at programs, services and the library’s collection,” she said.