Why Christine?

Of course it should be natural for a library's assistant director to cheer on "the boss" for what can be a rare career highlight, ALA president. The truth is that sending the leader of one's organization on a year-long trek will surely create extra work and challenges for the staff back home. After 23 years of seeing her in action, I think our association is extremely fortunate to potentially have such a talented person for ALA's president in 2006!

So here's my top 10 list of why you should vote for Christine Lind Hage:

1.      She inspires the best in others. I will owe her a lifetime career that I love, and I have met many other people who have benefited from her advice, confidence and trust. She often sees the potential in other people before they see it in themselves.

2.      She is a practical person. You need not look beyond her presidential platform to see that she is concerned about the best use of time and resources. Rather than chart ALA in another direction, she will focus on one of ALA's core goals--literacy.

3.      She listens. You can see it at the library with her open door policy, publicly posted direct-dial phone number and e-mail address.

4.      She shares and responds. If you've ever posted a request for information on PUBLIB, MICH-L, or ALA Council, you can bet you'll hear back shortly from Christine if she's got information she thinks will help you. She is always extremely prompt to respond to voice and e-mail messages.

5.      She values professional association work. She has been a member of ALA consistently for 33 years. She is a past president of the Public Library Association, and has held dozens of positions on committees over the years. She encourages our staff members to become involved in association work.

6.      She would never ask someone to do something she wouldn't be willing to do herself. Ask any CMPL staff member, whether it's pitching a little salt on the sidewalk to prevent a patron from slipping or "taking a delivery bag" to a branch if going there for a meeting (I've seen her do this time and time again in high heels no less).

7.      She isn't perfect and admits it. "Often wrong, never in doubt" is one of her favorite sayings from a colleague's e-mail signature block. When writing our personnel policy manual, one of the first things she wanted a new employee to hear was, "We believe that staff is capable of learning and growing and will make mistakes as these concepts are applied. We accept that as part of the process of growth."

8.      She asks. Christine is never shy about asking for more information regardless of the situation, to help her make a more informed decision. Whether it is understanding the impact of a new technology standard, to the durability of a roof seam for a new library building, she asks.

9.      She knows libraries. She has always wanted to be a librarian since she was a child and has been one for 31 years (even more if you count her work experience before obtaining her degree). She has overseen the construction of four library building projects, including building the Clinton-Macomb Public Library system from the ground up (employees, policies, and facilities).

10.  She will represent all ALA members tirelessly and professionally. Our staff often kids that she never sleeps. And, anyone who attended ALA Midwinter was sure to have encountered her octogenarian mother passing our campaign literature all day (the nut doesn't fall far from the tree in terms of the energy gene). Day or night, around the corner or around the globe, Christine will be ready to promote libraries and their value to society.