Announcing the Jesup's New Library Director Matt DeLaney
The Jesup Memorial Library is embarking on its next voyage, under the guidance of a visionary new leader. As announced in February, I will be stepping down as Library Director and intro an interim role as Capital Campaign Liaison. We’ve had a wonderful trip together, you and I, and I hope you have enjoyed and gained as much from it as I have. My stepping aside as Library Director truly involves a mix of emotions. I am thrilled to pass this honored title to Matt DeLaney. Matt will take the Jesup into a new era, starting on August 9, 2021. This is the perfect time in the work of the Jesup for this transition, with much accomplished but some big goals ready for a burst of energy. I’m proud of the solid groundwork we have set in place and upon which we can build our library for the 21st century.
My whole career has been in public libraries. Thanks to an inspirational mentor I have always believed libraries to be the public institution with the most possibilities for serving its community. The library should both reflect and challenge the community, support its life, and open doors to new opportunities. We offer a place for everyone to come and to be and to do. We support learning and exploring, for concerns both large and small. We strive to help make connections, with information and with other people. My husband and I moved to Bar Harbor in 1993 to make our home with our two small boys. I’ve never lived in one place nearly as long as this, and I hope never to leave our wonderful island. My internal gyroscope tells me this is where I belong.
With our new director in place I can cheerfully relinquish my library responsibilities to concentrate on completing the capital campaign.
It is my privilege and delight to introduce you to Matt. He comes to us most recently from the Millinocket Memorial Library where he has spearheaded a remarkable revitalization of the library (and arguably the town), introduced creative services including an outdoor gear library, and is also a fellow recipient of the Maine Library Association’s Outstanding Librarian of the Year award. Matt has provided a few words of his own introduction here:
I am thrilled to be joining the Jesup at this exciting time and I thank you for welcoming me to Bar Harbor! Since I moved to Maine five years ago, I have admired Ruth’s work and the outstanding services at the Jesup. The Jesup has served as a model for many of us around the state who believe in community-driven services, transformative programs, and aspirational community leadership.
My career in public libraries has spanned over ten years and my work has ranged from small and rural libraries to large, urban community centers. I have been fortunate to work in diverse communities and I’ve learned from outstanding leaders. These experiences have shaped my philosophy of public libraries and I have come to deeply understand how vital public libraries are in building community, inspiring imaginations, and empowering people.
The Jesup is poised to take its program to new heights over the next several years. The designs for the new building are breathtaking and the planning work that the community has undertaken to prepare for the future is inspiring. It is an honor to serve the Jesup community during this transformative time. I am excited about what we will achieve together this year, and in years to come!
As you can see, you will be in very good hands under Matt’s leadership and I know you will enjoy working with him. Thank you for welcoming him to our community. Stop by the Jesup on Tuesday, August 24 from 9:30-11 a.m. or Thursday August 26th from 5-6:30 p.m. for a meet-and-greet session and introduce yourself to Matt in person.
I will continue to support the Jesup in any way I can. Since this is my last letter to you as the Library Director, please know that your support for the work we have done together, in all the ways you have provided it, has been sustaining and inspirational. Together we have made the Jesup sing and dance (sometimes literally). You have invested your talent and time and treasure in making this vision real.
“People say, what is the sense of our small effort? They cannot see that we must lay one brick at a time, take one step at a time. A pebble cast into a pond causes ripples that spread in all directions. Each one of our thoughts, words and deeds is like that. No one has a right to sit down and feel hopeless. There’s too much work to do.” Dorothy Day, Journalist and Social Activist.
It is my deepest pleasure and honor to have served as our community’s librarian. I hope to see you at the Jesup in the near future.
Ruth Eveland