Hello Members,
Welcome to our new members! I wanted to start off by saying thank you to our committee chairs for all their work over the past year, and to all our members who are volunteering their time by serving on the LLNE committees.
I’d like to give a special thank you to Michael VanderHeijden, who has rotated off the board after serving as immediate past-president. Michael also served as chair to the Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee and as a member of the Bylaws Committee. Another special thank you to Anna Lawless-Collins, who has served as president over the past year; because of Anna’s time as president we now have a strategic plan and have implemented a mission statement and goals.
I’d like to welcome Nicholas Mignanelli to the Education Committee this year, who will be serving with Jessica Panella. Be on the lookout for emails about the Fall meeting coming to your inbox soon. Last, but certainly not least, I’d like to welcome Maureen Quinlan as Vice President/President-Elect! I look forward to working with Marueen over the course of this year.
As I have taken time to reflect on my own time within LLNE, I’ll never forget the warm and kind welcome I received as a new member. It was a chaotic time for me as I was gearing up for law school finals. I walked into my first Access to Justice/Service Committee meeting not knowing anyone in the room. We met at a member’s home (whom I also did not personally know). The librarians I met that day welcomed me in a way I hadn’t experienced before. I know I had found my place.
I hope that this next year brings you joyful reflection on the great work we are doing in LLNE to support each other and our communities. Please consider volunteering for a committee or leadership role within LLNE.
Be well,
Sara