| The
AU community was extraordinarily fortunate to have Mary Canfield
help build its library collections for over 35 years. Mary
worked behind the scenes, so most of the people who use the
library never saw her. But everyone who worked in the library
knew how important Mary was, and thousands of people who have
used the library collections have benefited from her dedication.
Mary
came to AU in 1965. A graduate of Genesee State College in
New York, she worked in the library at the Eastman School
of Music in Rochester before moving to Washington. From the
day she casually dropped by to see whether there might be
a job at the AU library, she spent the next thirty-five years
helping to select, purchase, and organize the library’s
collections.
|
Mary
A. Canfield |
She loved her work, and maybe she was born for it. Her sister
remembers Mary as a child happily pulling a little red wagon
full of comic books to trade with the boy down the street. Her
professional work acquiring books was a little more complicated,
but she took the same joy in it.
Mary’s focus was on quality. Nothing
was more important to her than getting things right. She never
wanted or accepted an official role in managing other people’s
work, but all of us in the library knew that Mary was the
person to go to when you needed an answer. If you weren’t
getting something right, she very gently but firmly corrected
you, as many times as it took. Her high standards had a profound
influence on her colleagues and on the library collection.
Mary was interested in everything. She knew
a lot and delighted in learning more. She loved facts, she
loved information, she loved books, and she was generous about
sharing what she loved. She enjoyed routing a new book to
someone she knew would be interested in it, and she always
kept in mind the unknown reader who would one day take pleasure
in finding the book she had helped provide. Even after thirty-five
years of looking at thousands of books, she was still excited
about a new edition by a favorite author or a beautiful binding.
Generosity characterized everything Mary did.
She took time to listen, to inquire, and to encourage. She
knew people’s individual interests and needs, and she
routinely shared supportive words, news, clippings, and even
coupons that met those needs. Every Monday morning Mary brought
in a treat for the library staff—coffee cake or cookies—just
because Monday mornings are hard. Even when she became too
ill to come to work she continued to send in the Monday treat.
Library staff members are saddened by the
loss of a great friend. We miss her personally, and the university
community will miss the fruits of her hard work. We are aware
of how lucky we were to have her with us.
Tribute
written by Linda Chase
|
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