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Tarpon library director to retire
By KELLEY BENHAM, Times Staff Writer
TARPON SPRINGS -- When she took over the public library in 1980, checkout cards were handwritten and the books were so outdated they contained no reference to the moon landing. After almost 23 years, Tarpon Springs Public Library director Elizabeth O'Brien will retire at the end of the month, leaving behind a library that has expanded dramatically in two decades. When she arrived, the library was a 3,000-square-foot structure built in 1964. It had 10,000 books and maybe a cassette tape or two. No computers. Not even a daily newspaper subscription. "There was nowhere to go but up," she said. In her time the library has gone through two major expansions, moving from its location in Craig Park to a 20,000-square-foot stucco and glass structure built in 1997. Already, O'Brien said, the library is outgrowing its $2.9-million building on Lemon Street. At last count it had more than 91,000 books, and there is often a line for its 28 computers. It offers computer classes, author workshops and children's activities, and it has a genealogy department and a small business resource center. "It isn't just a repository of things," O'Brien said. "It's a living, vibrant place where people learn, they are entertained, they are informed, they are inspired." When she leaves Jan. 31, she'll spend more time traveling, sailing and visiting her 11 grandchildren. She moved to Florida from Connecticut, where she had worked as a librarian and raised her children. When she arrived here, she lived for 10 years on a sailboat named the Irish Mist. She orders all the fiction for the library, and loves to read about places she has traveled, she said. She'll keep using her library card, but she'll miss being around the books every day. "I'm going to miss it all," she said. "I just love being a librarian." The city has already received 10 resumes for her job, which has a salary range of $43,556 to $65,334 a year. O'Brien is the fourth North Pinellas library director to leave in recent months. The East Lake Public Library recently replaced its director. Dunedin and Safety Harbor are both searching for new directors. That means three cities will be trying to fill the position at the same time, and likely competing for the same pool of applicants. "It's rare," said Palm Harbor library director Gene Coppola, who also oversees the East Lake library. "So many in such a short time, it's surprising." The Safety Harbor position has been open since mid November, and the applications are already being processed. The Dunedin position closes the same day as the Tarpon Springs job, and it pays about $10,000 more. In filling the East Lake library job, Coppola reviewed 14 applications from all over the country, he said. Pinellas County appeals to applicants because of its unique library system, where libraries operate independently but share resources, he said. "In librarianship, Pinellas County is a really cool place to work," Coppola said. Tarpon Springs has already received 10 resumes for O'Brien's job, which was posted last week and closes Jan. 17. Local applicants include Marylin Murphy Ady, a former Tarpon Springs assistant library director; and Lois Eannel, an assistant director and head of youth services at the Palm Harbor Public Library. Resumes have arrived from Miami, Orlando, Land O'Lakes and Lutz, and from library directors in New York, New Jersey and Alabama. O'Brien supports the library's current assistant director, Lana Bullian, who she expects will apply for the job. "She's a lovely person and she's got an insider's scoop," O'Brien said. -- Kelley Benham can be reached at (727) 445-4182 or benham@sptimes.com .
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From the Times North Pinellas desks |
