SAN FERNANDO : Librarian Shelves 26-Year Career but Looks Forward to Volunteering

Library assistant Edythe Grant walked out of the San Fernando Library on Wednesday for the final time as an employee. She vows to return soon as a volunteer.

After working at the library for 26 years, Grant is retiring from full-time work but looking forward to doing the small tasks for which she never had time.

“It drives me nuts when books are out of order. That’s going to be one of my volunteer jobs,” said Grant, 65, who called her departure a new beginning.

Her library career began in 1966 when she started work as a page, putting books away on the shelves for $2.50 an hour. She became a library assistant in 1972, supervising the work of pages and clerical aides and doing every job in between, from filling in as a reference librarian to checking out books.

“I will miss what I’m doing. Yet, I still feel ready to start something else, something new,” Grant said.

Her retirement plans include travel, genealogy research and, of course, volunteer work at the library. She also plans to read a few books.

“That’s what I’d like to do now, just walk up and down and pick out books to read,” said Grant, who lives a mile away from the Library Street facility. “This is my second home.”

Colleagues say they will miss Grant’s contributions, especially since she will leave with years of knowledge that come from working in a single branch.

“She really dedicated herself to this community,” said Library Manager Judith Babka. “She will be a hard act to follow.”