A Historic Start: Lisa’s Path to the Library
Originally hailing from Canada, Lisa’s journey to the Cowboy State is a classic tale of love and adventure. “I moved here 13 years ago when I met my husband,” Lisa shares. “He told me Wyoming was a great place to live, and he was absolutely right!”
Before bringing her talents to the library world, Lisa spent time connecting with local history by giving costumed tours at Fort Bridger State Park. After taking some time at home to raise her daughter, destiny called when a position opened up at the Mountain View Branch.
“I knew I would love to work there,” she says. Now, three years into the role, she is doing exactly what she was meant to do: sparking a lifelong love for learning in local youth. Lisa recently knocked it out of the park with a brilliant, community-driven youth initiative that turned local kids into CEOs for a day.
What makes this program a massive win for librarians everywhere? It cost the library absolutely nothing to produce! It was entirely fueled by passion, creativity, and smart, free local marketing.
“This was a no-cost program planned to let the kids shine in our community,” Lisa explains. “I did all the Facebook advertising, and the town always lets me put a flyer on their jumbo TV in the park!”
To say the event was a success would be an understatement. The community showed up in droves to support their youngest makers and creators.
“We had 16 sign-ups and 14 tables of Kid Entrepreneurs,” Lisa says. “But the true shock was the amount of adult shoppers. We had about 200 people come to shop from the kids’ booths!”
With a turnout like that and a room full of empowered kids, Lisa says she wouldn’t change a single thing about how it ran. Unsurprisingly, this event is locked in to return. “Yes, I would love to put this on again!”
For Lisa, being a children’s librarian isn’t just a job—it’s a mission to build a brighter future, one book and one memory at a time.
“I am so passionate about children’s activities,” Lisa states. “I want every single kid that walks through the library door to be excited for the books they can read, the activities that I plan to be self-led, and the programs we do all together. I want them to have such fond memories of the library that when they grow up and have kids, they make it a point to keep the library tradition alive.”