[ILL-L] HELP: What's the best thing about working in ILL/Document Delivery/Electronic Reserve?

[Campbell, Heather]

I have a story to tell.  When I was in middle school, my family moved to
a small town in Southwest Florida and I got my very first library card.
I was curious about how ventriloquism worked, but there wasn't a book
about it on the library's shelves.  The staffer at the front desk told
me that she thought could get me a book on the subject from another
library and explained the process to me.  Yeah, right.  Why would a
library maybe hundreds of miles away send one of their books for me to
use?  For free?  I mean, really! What's the catch?  But, she talked me
into it, filled out a form, and mailed it in.  I left the library
thinking that this whole Interlibrary Loan business sounded too good to
be true.

 

Time passed.  I'd almost forgotten about it when, one day, someone at
the library phoned me to tell me that my book was in.  I read every word
of it and practiced, but those tricky bilabials defeated me.  I was
definitely not going to be a ventriloquist; so, I sought another career
path.  Still, I was impressed by a library that would be so big-hearted
as to take a chance and lend another library's customer their book.  I
still remember the name of that generous library, though I still can't
say its name without moving my lips: Jacksonville Public Library.

 

Until my senior year of high school, I was going to be a teacher. One
day -while I was sitting in one of my favorite classes- I looked around
at my classmates and thought: If my teacher can't reach these people,
what makes me think I can?  But I had to have a career goal to put down
on financial aid forms.  "Just put down Librarian," my father suggested.
"You can always change it later."  I worked my way through college in
libraries. I found the librarians and library workers I came in contact
with to be supportive, possessors of wonderful senses of humor, and -of
course- founts of all knowledge. These were exactly the sort of people I
wanted to be around.  So, I went for my Master's degree.

 

In time, I came to work for Jacksonville Public Library's Main Library.
The book I borrowed all those years ago was still on the shelf.  Eight
months after I started at JPL, Interlibrary Loan was handed to me as an
added duty along with indexing the local newspaper and reference work.
I promoted out of the job and worked at two branches before I was
transferred back to the Main Library.  Nearly 6 years ago, I was
transferred back to ILL- a mere 4 months before we went live with ILLiad
Lending.

 

So- what do I like about ILL?-my top five:

1.      The people I work with- both at JPL and in the ILL community.
We have a great support system of other ILL staffers -many I'll never
meet- that are willing to help each other.  Listservs didn't exist for
ILL when I first was in ILL.  Having them and those who participate in
them in my second time in ILL as resources was a God-send and a delight.
They provide continuing education as well as support.

2.      Matching my wits with the computer and winning.  Getting
computers to do what I, my staff, and the people we serve need them to
takes up a big chunk of what I now do as the ILL librarian. Creating
workarounds when the computers are balking keeps my little grey cells
fit. My knowledge of computers didn't come from formal training, but
from learning as I used them- so I'm always pleased when something I do
works!

3.      Strangely enough- the thank you notes in Lending.  You know,
those sometimes clever, beautiful, and appreciative sheets of paper that
come back with our books from library staff thanking us on their
customers' behalf.  We have them on display on bulletin boards in the
workroom. Since we're a small staff,  we depend on other library staff
throughout Main Library to help us pull the books and make the copies we
need to fill Lending requests.  Seeing all those thank you notes-
amazingly from every state in the USA save 2 and from parts of Canada,
gives them as much of a lift as it does us.  They can see a far-flung
representation of just how much they've helped others. 

4.      In Borrowing, we rarely get feedback from our customers.  When
we do get it, though, it's heartfelt.  Since I've been using Google
Alerts, I've seen in blogs and news articles how valued Interlibrary
Loan is as a library service.  And I know how ILL can provide tools to
change lives.  I'm an example.

5.      The hunt- and the mystery. When I'm able to detect and track
down what our customers and your customers are really asking for.

 

 

Heather Campbell

Manager- Special Services (Interlibrary Loan and Books by Mail)

Jacksonville Public Library (JPL)

303 North Laura Street

Jacksonville, FL 32202-3505 heatherc at coj.net  (904) 630-2986

 

________________________________

From: ill-l-bounces at webjunction.org
[mailto:ill-l-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Samantha Gust
Sent: Tuesday, August 25, 2009 7:03 PM
To: ill-l at webjunction.org
Subject: [ILL-L] HELP: What's the best thing about working in
ILL/Document Delivery/Electronic Reserve? 

 

Dear ILL-L Members:

 

I am guest editing an issue of "The Journal of Interlibrary Loan,
Document Delivery & Electronic Reserve" and would like to compile a list
of what *you* think are the best things about working in any or all of
these areas - "Reasons I Love Working in ILL/DD/ER," if you will. 

 

I want this to be a celebration of these important services that we
provide!

 

All ILL staff and librarians are welcome to respond. It might be a
simple reason, an anecdote about a positive or rewarding experience you
had or perhaps something else I've not thought of. 

 

**If you would like your response to be labeled "Anonymous," you MUST
indicate this in your email to me. Otherwise, I will include your name,
title and institution.** 

 

Of course, my deadline was "yesterday," so I need your responses ASAP. I
will accept responses until 3pm EST on Wednesday, August 26. My sincere
apologies for the short notice! 

 

PLEASE email me directly at gust at niagara.edu. Thank you!

 

Samantha Gust

Niagara University Library

 

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