The lid is off, now we can say it: Clancy (Clarise) Pool has won the "Paralibrarian of the Year" award from Library Journal Magazine . This trade magazine has a circulation of over a hundred-thousand which is very respectable in the world of publishing and makes sense when you consider the number of people with library careers countrywide. This is a national competition and Ms. Pool, of St John, Washington, was judged to be the most stellar performer in the world of libraries as a paralibrarian. She has done some great things for the Whitman County Library system. She shepherded funding and support for the building of a new facility in St. John and has worked at and improved a number of the small rural libraries in their system. We were sworn to secrecy in this work, even as we went to St. John to produce the images. We dissembled when asked what we were doing there and stayed obscure in our explanations.
Clancy was a great sport as we put her through a lengthy session for a cover image and then photographed her entertaining and reading to kids, out on the main street of St. John (in bitter cold), and collaborating with other library folks. I'm guessing she slept very well that night. Commonly, one person runs this library- it's a small operation and she is often it, but it is more successful and of a much higher profile and much more used by the locals with her effort to build it up. The magazine has been released, so we can talk openly about her recognition- pretty good for a small-town lady of great charm. Read the article here: Library Journal Magazine
