By Jennifer Eisenbart
Editor
As Gayle Falk reflects on her time at Burlington Public Library – first as children’s director and then as the library director – she is satisfied.
“It’s the best place I could have possibly spent my career,” said Falk, whose retirement was celebrated by library staff Nov. 14.
And yet, Falk doesn’t want to take credit for the successes and growth the library has had. Instead, she credits the library staff and the patrons.
“The achievements belong to the entire staff,” said Falk, adding that the Library Board helped a great deal as well.
“Anything we accomplished was a team effort,” she added.
Falk came on board as director in 1997 when Pat Chevis chose to retire.
“Pat had done an excellent job,” Falk said. “We were very well organized. It was just moving in and then finding my own ways to accomplish what I wanted to accomplish.”
Falk said that under Chevis’ direction, the library had built a positive relationship with the public.
“We had that to build on,” she said.
She didn’t want to take credit for what had transpired at the library, which included a reputation for good service, keeping up with technology and adding instructional classes like knitting and MakerSpace – places in the library where people gather to create, invent and learn.
“Things that would be lost arts,” Falk said.
Examples like that – and a growing reliance on Internet technology – also show how the mission of the library hasn’t changed.
“It is always to meet the information needs of the public,” Falk said. “It’s how we meet those needs that have changed.”
As Falk retires, it is a time of change at the library. With a joint facility study with Racine County and the Burlington Area School District moving forward, the location of the library could change.
“The library is right on the brink of a really exciting time,” Falk said, adding that a new facility has been needed for some time.
“This is a time of a lot of excitement and a lot of movement for the library,” Falk added.
A search for a new library director is underway, with a Dec. 12 deadline for applications. Tammy McCarthy is serving as interim director.
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