Special Issue in Memory of Sue Murray (1932-2005)

Sue Murray was one of the best librarians and most inspiring people I have ever known. I feel honored that Assistant Director Peter Uva asked me to edit this special issue of the Synapse as a sort of "festschrift" for Sue. I am patterning it after a memorial volume that Eleanora C. Gordon, M.D., and A. Michael Broennle, M.D., compiled at the College of Physicians of Philadelphia in April 1988 for Samuel X Radbill, M.D. (1901-1987), a universally loved and respected Philadelphia pediatrician. Nora and Mike asked some of Sam's friends and colleagues, including yours truly, to write short reminiscences that would illustrate Sam's impact on each of their lives. In the same way, I have asked some of those who knew Sue at Upstate to tell how she affected them. Besides Peter, Mike, and Nora, I must above all acknowledge Upstate's Circuit Librarian, Kathy Hughes, whose brainchild this was. Without Kathy, Sue would have no festschrift.

It is fitting for Sue's festschrift to be a special issue of the Synapse. Sue conceived this newsletter in 1995 as a means to publicize the new Library, to acquaint the community of what was then called the Health Science Center with the fantastic new services and facilities that the new building could offer for research, teaching, and patient care. At a staff meeting in early 1995 she asked for a volunteer to edit the newsletter in both print and electronic versions. I volunteered. Over the next few weeks, Sue and I had several meetings to plan it. She thought up the name "Synapse" on the spur of the moment one day as she and I were strolling through the Reference stacks in the old Library discussing how the newsletter should look.

The first issue appeared in July 1995. Its very first words were from the Director. By that time we were all frustrated by what seemed to us unconscionable delays in opening the new Library, which had been finished but empty for far too long. Sue -- never one to pull punches -- expressed succinctly what we all felt: "The staff and clients of the SUNY Health Science Center Library have been patiently awaiting the opening of our new, air conditioned, 47,000 net square feet Library since the fall of 1994. We are still waiting, but no longer patiently waiting. Although the move is now imminent, we dare not specify the month in which that long awaited move will take place. We hope that you will be with us on ribbon cutting day, whenever that may be." In fact, the new Library did not open until December 1995 and was not dedicated until April 1996. Sue retired in July 1995, unfortunately before her magnificent dream and achievement came to fulfillment.

There was much to admire about Sue. My first impression of her the day we met in July 1987 was entirely positive. I was making a "cold call" on the Health Sciences Library, looking for a job. Serials Librarian Linda Hulbert approached and asked if she could help me. "Yes," I said, "I'm a former medical librarian who would like to be a present medical librarian." Linda asked, "What's your specialty?" I replied, "Rare books." Linda instantly whisked me back to the office of a tiny, bright, cheerful, and energetic woman, the Director of the Library. It just so happened that at that very moment Sue was putting the final touches on her plan to create the Library's first (and so far only) position in rare books and medical history. She practically hired me on the spot, but since the job had not yet been posted and since much bureaucratic red tape had to be untangled, I could not start for two more months. What impressed me most about Sue during that unexpected, informal interview and the more formal interview that I had with her and Pat Onsi a few weeks later was that she asked me not only about my skills, talents, and professional goals, but also about my family. She showed immediately that she cared about her employees not only as employees, but also as human beings with real lives outside the Library. She was someone for whom I wanted to work. Even after she retired, she would often call me at the office just to ask about my daughters.

Sue believed strongly in promoting the study of the history of medicine and in providing the best possible facilities to preserve primary historical resources. To my great delight, she insisted that the new Library include a state-of-the-art Department of Historical Collections with a climate-controlled Special Collections Vault, a secure reading room, a preservation laboratory, adequate processing space, and a public reading and stacks area. She worked with me and the team of architects from Einhorn Yaffee Prescott to ensure that I got the design I wanted -- or as close to it as the architects would allow. Ever since the new Library opened, the Department of Historical Collections has attracted an increasing number of not only researchers, but also potential donors. A simple tour or demonstration of the archival-quality environment inside the Vault is often all it takes to persuade them to donate their precious manuscripts, books, documents, or photographs to Upstate rather than another repository.

Even before she hired me, Sue said that she expected me to write and publish on the history of Geneva Medical College. She was the first to encourage me to create the book that just appeared as SUNY Upstate Medical University: A Pictorial History. I wish that she could have survived long enough to read it.

In my opinion the greatest thing about Sue was her unwavering willingness to fight for the Library, the librarians, and the staff -- her stubborn eagerness to do whatever it took to make the Library better for everyone. In the late 1980s and early 1990s InterLibrary Loan (ILL) services were a frequently used and increasingly lucrative aspect of ordinary library business. In fiscal year 1987-1988, the Health Sciences Library filled 6,966 ILL requests; but just two years later, that number was up to 9,078, an increase of 30%. Upstate faculty requested 3,594 ILL texts in fiscal year 1987-1988, but that number increased 8% to 3,881 in fiscal year 1989-1990. Sue computed in early 1990 that two full-time clerks plus 20 student worker hours per week were needed to perform this level of ILL service. The administration only appropriated enough money for one ILL clerk. But Sue was never one to whine, complain, or meekly submit. After failing in all other attempts to fund the needed clerk, in May 1990 she shut the ILL Department down! She essentially put that part of the Library "on strike" until it received adequate funding and staffing. This bold move worked! Within a few weeks the administration had miraculously "stolen" funds from other departments to pay for the second ILL clerk.

Eric v.d. Luft
Curator of Historical Collections

Remembering Sue

I knew Sue as both a friend and a colleague. We worked together in the early stages of planning the new library. She developed library resources at Upstate, S.U., and Le Moyne for the students and faculty of the Syracuse Consortium for the Cultural Foundations of Medicine, and for "Medicine and Society," the course that preceded the current "Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues in Medicine (ELSIM)" component of the Practice of Medicine course in the College of Medicine. In the early years of the Consortium we taught a graduate seminar on "The Philosophy of Medicine." Her professional endeavors were marked by competence, a strong sense of responsibility, curiosity, intelligence, good judgment, clarity of written and oral expression, sense of humor, seriousness of purpose, and a practical, no nonsense approach to decision-making. She was a dedicated and learned professional.

Sue was a great friend, one on whom another could rely for good counsel and wit informed by her Irish heritage. Sue was genuinely and consistently attentive to my well-being and that of my family. We miss our good friend -- a realistic and courageous woman whose excellence of character aroused the admiration of all who were fortunate enough to know her.

Robert W. Daly, M.D.
Department of Psychiatry

The adjectives that come to mind in remembering Sue Murray are startling: dauntless, fearless, determined, straightforward. Sue believed that she could make a difference, and she was determined to do so. She had vision, not only for the Library as a place, but also for the Library staff, and what they were capable of. She seemed tireless in advocating for the Library as a place, and for the excellence of the staff. I say "the staff," not "her staff," because Sue viewed us as individuals, not as subordinates. Sue would not say "I am proud of you," rather "You can be very proud," never taking credit for others' accomplishments.

For me, Sue was a mentor, and remains a role model even today. Sue would have spurned the current notion that experience does not count, or that being a librarian is a job that anyone can do. Sue was one of the early advocates of librarians as professionals. She recognized that the obstacles to that goal largely resided in the perceptions of others who underestimated the skills and capabilities of librarians. Sue also advocated within the profession to support excellence. Her vision included the formation of the local chapter of the Medical Library Association (MLA): the Upstate New York and Ontario Chapter (UNYOC).

Sue’s vision for the Health Sciences Library included my present position as outreach librarian to rural hospitals in Central New York. As an extension of her allegiance to the then SUNY Upstate Medical Center, Sue felt a responsibility to give back to the wider Central New York community as well as to the Medical Center. As a native Syracusan, Sue recognized the needs and vulnerabilities of the greater Central New York area. Furthermore, Sue never questioned the premise that the Health Sciences Library shared in the Medical Center’s humanitarian mandate and its mission to reach out to the wider community. Likewise, Sue realized how the programs she envisioned would not bring direct financial benefit to the Library which she directed, but instead would reap benefits to the entire Medical Center in terms of engendered good will and relationships which could be built upon.

Would it be cliché to describe Sue Murray as "a librarian’s librarian"? Certainly, there was nothing ordinary or cliché about her, and yet the comparison holds. It does seem that the type of library director Sue represented has gone out of fashion, one who believes that librarians are more than the handmaids and footmen of students, physicians, and researchers, and instead are leaders, teachers, and indispensable partners.

Kathleen D. Hughes
Circuit Librarian

Memories of Suzanne H. Murray

From many years of working closely with Sue Murray, I choose to share several interesting and remarkable personal characteristics from her eclectic assortment of interests. As one example, Sue conveyed a sincere and genuine interest in every person she met. She took a special, personal interest in the activities of the family of each staff member. She kept track of everyone, and never missed an opportunity to inquire into the status of personal projects and family members. On subsequent meetings with the staff member, she would pick up from the news of the previous conversation and ask how everyone was doing and what happened or how was ... so and so, and so on.

Another characteristic which should be mentioned was her sharp and inquisitive mind. She was a very early adopter of the use of computer spreadsheets to manage and monitor the Library budget. She started out with Microsoft Multiplan on a Radio Shack TRS-80, and proceeded to set up a myriad of over 200 interrelated spreadsheets to manage and monitor the Library's State accounts for various expenditures. She then linked all the individual accounts to summary spreadsheets to reflect the total expenditures of the Library. Each staff member who worked with expenditures was trained to enter information into specific spreadsheets. Using this computer spreadsheet system, the monthly account expenditure sheets were much easier to reconcile. After a dozen or so years, all the spreadsheets were converted to Microsoft Excel, and she continued her masterful ways with the newer software. The spreadsheet system established by Sue is still in use today. The Library always knows the status of its accounts and expenditures, even before the monthly accounting sheets come out from the Upstate Business Office. Kudos to Sue on this achievement and its lasting impact on Library operations.

Lastly, mention should be made of her keen sense of humor. She would give a hearty laugh in appreciation of anecdotes and jokes she found humorous. She also had the Irish way with words, while sharing a good joke. I do not think she would mind a retelling of a joke which originally came from her. It goes as follows:

Seems that two widows, Edna and Irene, were chatting after dinner, while still sitting in the dining room of a senior citizens' residence. The topic of conversation was, of course, the often discussed subject of the resident men. Edna, the first woman, declared firmly that the men in the residence were not really interested in anything, and there was no way one would ever be interested in or even glance at a woman. Irene seized upon her statement and added that even if she ran naked in front of the men, not one would pay any attention to her.

Later that day, seems two men, Carl and Al, were sitting on the porch, rocking away and chatting, enjoying the late day sun on a lovely summer day. Suddenly, someone ran past them. Carl turned to Al and said, "Did you see that?" Al answered, "Yep." Carl pursued the topic and asked, "Wasn’t that Irene who just went by?" Al again answered, "Yep." Continuing, Carl asked, "Did you see what she was wearing?" Al answered, "No, but whatever it was, it needed ironing."

Godspeed, Sue.

Patricia W. Onsi
Associate Director, Library Systems

Sue Murray: "The Little Librarian That Could"

I first met Sue in August 1966 when I was hired as the medical library page. At the time Sue was Acquisitions Librarian and we seemed to connect on the personal level right away. Sue was interested in what I was doing as a graduate student and extended that interest into the personal side of my life in raising a family. Sue made it a point, even after retirement, of calling me to inquire about my family and how my children were doing in their specific professions. Sue always paid attention to the personal side of her staff.

On the professional side Sue and I worked closely together after her appointment as Associate Director in 1973. During this time Sue and I would often talk about the future of the Library and how we could come to terms with our changing technological environment. Many of our discussions centered on the physical limitations of our Library and how we could deal with these issues. This of course was a portent of things to come when we were thrown into the battle of expanding our Library after Sue became Director in 1985. We had a game plan in place from these discussions. One thing Sue showed me during this period was just how tough she was. She would not back down from anyone when it came to the Health Sciences Library. This would show itself again and again. One interesting incident that occurred during this period serves as a good example. In the mid-eighties Sue and I met with our head of physical plant over the problem of lack of space. He told us we could never expect any more space for our collection. Sue said, "We'll see." Within a few years we were planning a new Library.

Sue inaugurated so many changes in the Library, first as acting Director and later as Director, that there are almost too many to list. I will attempt to highlight what I consider some of the major efforts on her part. During Sue’s tenure she secured the funds to add personal computers for both staff and patrons. We created a CD-ROM network (CD-Link) that could be searched off-campus. She added staff positions in Reference allowing us to move staff to nights and weekends. She extended our hours to meet the needs of our student body. She began the Consumer Information Collection, which grew into a separate department in our new Library, the Health Information Center (HIC). She hired a professional to consolidate and organize our archives and rare books. That initiative grew into what is now the 3200-square-foot Department of Historical Collections in the new Library, including a 1500-square-foot climate-controlled Special Collections Vault. Sue also enabled us to take over the running of our own copy service, which resulted in a profit for the Library. On the personnel level Sue attempted to deal with pay inequities and the promotional issues of her professional staff.

With all of these achievements in mind Sue's most lasting legacy may have been the work she did on the design of the new Library. After visiting numerous libraries, and bringing relevant staff along, she wrote the program for the new Library. Sue was the real instigation for us getting a new Library building. She decided that in order for us to get one we had to prove to the powers that be that we needed one. This was accomplished by just leaving things as they were. Instead of trying to accommodate the collection by off-site shelving, we let the collection outgrow the old Library. Journals were stacked on floors, tables, wherever we could find a space. The next time the Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools accreditation team came through they threatened to remove the accreditation if something was not done about the Library. The State then allocated the funds for the new building. Sue had been right when she said, "We'll see." Sue then fought the battle on an almost daily basis with the architects and the construction fund. While she may have lost some of these battles, she won the war, and the new Library was built, mostly as she and her staff imagined it.

Sue fought the hard fight in all aspects of her life. Whether it was a chronic condition or a dreaded disease Sue took them on with the same determination and courage.

Peter A. Uva
Assistant Director, Access Services and Media

Shelving at over 100% capacity in the mid-eighties made Sue want to tear her hair out!

Dearly Missed

I met Suzanne Murray over 25 years ago, prior to her role as head librarian. We met at the former SUNY Health Sciences Library in Weiskotten Hall, complete with leaky ceilings, cramped quarters, and often too warm for comfort. She introduced me to biomedical collections and management theory. She demonstrated tenacity and high service standards, characteristics of the SUNY Library that prevail today. That's where I went to learn the art of medical librarianship.

Fast forward to 1990, Suzanne and I attended several annual meetings of the Medical Library Association together. We chatted about our travels, took walks, and shared our thoughts about library problems and solutions. I thought Suzanne very sociable in her way and a person I had grown attached to over the years.

The new SUNY Library is a brick and mortar testimony to Suzanne's work in the medical community. Her genuine and unbroken commitment to the library profession had a memorable impact on us all. But first and most, I will treasure Suzanne's marked kindness, friendship, and time spent with me. She was an angel in training. Now she can spread her wings and fly.

Wendy Tarby
Director, Knowledge Management and Quality Services, Community General Hospital

I am honored to contribute to a memorial publication in honor of Sue Murray. Along with many others, I will say, "I learned a lot from Sue." She had a strong interest in outreach programs and was supportive and helpful as the New York State Hospital Library Services Program (HLSP) was established, first to provide library services to rural hospitals and then to support library services for all hospitals in the state. She served on the Central New York Library Resources Council (CENTRO) Hospital Library Services Committee and helped to shape the regional services and the introduction of "Circuit Rider" library services to the smaller hospitals.

Sue helped with the many transitions of Hospital Library Services in Central New York. She worked closely with me to define the contract for supporting the Circuit program at SUNY Upstate. Sue and Sharon Quist defined the transition from the concept of "Circuit Rider" to the more professional "Medical Circuit Librarian."

Sue was always gracious and had a calm manner. She was attentive and interested in the people around her. She stayed connected with the profession and it was always a treat to see her at Syracuse University alumni events and at Librarians Unlimited. I will miss her.

Jeannette Smithee
Associate Director for Community of Learning and Grants, Southeast Florida Library Information Network (SEFLIN)
former Associate Director, Central New York Library Resources Council (CLRC)
and former Liaison to the New York State Hospital Library Services Program

I have long admired Sue Murray's professional accomplishments. Most of her career was spent developing and improving resources and programs to support medical education by providing for the information needs of medical and health care professionals. The SUNY Health Sciences Library built during her tenure as Director is a testament to the achievement of her goals.

Sue and I enjoyed a long professional association in our jobs as medical librarians at SUNY and the VA Medical Center and in library organizations. Retirement meant increased time together to enjoy plays, programs, travel, concerts, and long visits about this and that. I miss her! She was a very special person.

June Mitchell
former Director, Medical Library, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Syracuse

A Reminiscence of Sue Murray

Hearing of Sue Murray’s passing brought me great sadness. Yet thinking about the enduring legacy she has left through her lifelong service to others brings a smile. As a colleague and a friend, she truly has enriched my life.

My early impressions of Sue were of her wit, wisdom, elegance, and friendliness during meetings and workshops for the New York / New Jersey Regional Medical Library at the New York Academy of Medicine in the early 1970s. At that time Sue was working for the Regional Medical Program facilitating cooperation among librarians, library technicians, and hospital administrators in Central New York State. Sue was honing talents which she shared throughout her career.

Since Sue and I were Directors of "sister" SUNY Health Sciences Libraries at Syracuse and Stony Brook respectively throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, we often were roommates at conferences of the SUNY Council of Head Librarians and of the Medical Library Association. We would constantly talk of our libraries and profession -- comparing and contrasting how things worked at our respective institutions, within SUNY, and nationally. I really valued her wise counsel, reassurance, and dedication. Eased by her wonderful sense of humor, Sue would clarify issues and contribute to cooperative efforts SUNY-wide and beyond. During the many years of planning for the new Health Sciences Library at Syracuse, she would personally go to offices in SUNY Central, including those of the SUNY Construction Fund. She would arrange to discuss the evolving plans with them even over lunch hours or prior to dinner at meetings of the SUNY Council of Head Librarians. She was passionate about the Library and improving its role in education, research, and patient care. She knew that medical librarians do make a difference in peoples' lives.

Sue's participation in the People-to-People Delegation of Medical Librarians to China in 1989 was so satisfying that she eagerly joined the April 1992 People-to-People Delegation of Medical Educators to Russia, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia. Sue and I were the only medical librarians in this delegation. We often split (with an interpreter) from the main group for talks with librarians in these countries. Sue loved travel and relished these opportunities to take a "busman's holiday."

Her courage and determination were very evident our first night in Moscow where we stayed in the immense (over 3,000 rooms) Hotel Russiya on Red Square. Following our delegations' nighttime tour of the area, we discovered that our room was infested with cockroaches! Sue was emphatic that she never had to endure such conditions in China or in the Balkans and we must complain to the management. Together we set out on an eye-opening midnight quest through that vast hotel. The floor supervisors and the night manager were sympathetic. But this was an ongoing problem and they had a full house. Since I had brought "Deep Woods Off" towelettes, we slept with the lights on and strips of "Off" surrounding our pillows and beds.

Relatively rested, we headed off in the morning to a meeting with Moscow area medical librarians at the All Union Cardiology Institute. There, in an auditorium like those at our National Institutes of Health, Sue presented her talk on "Resource Sharing, Cooperative Acquisitions, and Interlibrary Loan" and I presented mine on "Library Automation." Our audience of 45 or so librarians alternately listened attentively and watched our slides for several of our sentences, then, as these were translated, they took notes. Following our talks not one question was asked within the auditorium. But as soon as we all moved into the library and throughout the luncheon, we were so peppered with questions that our interpreters could hardly keep up! Our common concerns and dedication to providing the best possible library service transcended any boundaries of language or of nationality.

Repeatedly during this journey we were warmly welcomed by our librarian colleagues with generous hospitality. They advised us of museums with special exhibits and shops nearby. Sue was always on the lookout for gifts for her family and friends. She made special efforts to find books for her brother, nieces, and nephews, and, in later years, for her great nieces and nephews. Her face always lit up with her eyes twinkling when she spoke of her family.

Sue Murray was proud of her roots -- her family, her city, and her Irish heritage. During her retirement she continued to enjoy attending concerts, the theater, and opera as well as researching her family genealogy. Sustained by her strong faith, Sue never complained to me of suffering. Undaunted by physical limitations, Sue had perseverance. Sue was a loyal friend who was generous in giving of herself and enriched many lives. Sue Murray was an excellent librarian and an admirable human being.

Ruth Marcolina
Librarian Emerita, Health Sciences Library, Stony Brook University

Word of the death of Sue Murray has brought sorrow to her many friends and colleagues. My friendship with her began when we met at the Upstate New York and Ontario Chapter (UNYOC) of the Medical Library Association (MLA) in the 1960s. She was a dedicated librarian who gave her talents and support to her library, the Health Sciences Library at SUNY Upstate, as well as contributing in a variety of ways to the profession of librarianship.

Sue Murray retired in 1995 as Director of the Library she had served so long and so well. She was responsible for many innovative programs at the Library and for planning the new building. Her professional activities included membership in a number of library organizations. She was very active in MLA and UNYOC, serving on various committees and sections of the association.

Sue had a marvelous sense of humor and she was a delightful companion. Often we would find an hour to leave a meeting to go shopping or to enjoy a quiet lunch. She frequently brought her mother to MLA meetings and often she joined in our excursions. These are the times I like to remember.

Sue Murray was a great asset to the SUNY Library System. She was a staunch advocate of medical libraries and a source of assistance and guidance to her colleagues. Her goal was to provide the best library services to the medical community and all those interested in health in the Syracuse area. Her legacy is that she did just that.

I am blessed to have known her and to have enjoyed her friendship. She was a true and loyal friend and we shall all miss her.

Lucretia W. McClure
Special Assistant to the Director, Countway Library of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
and Director Emerita, Edward G. Miner Library, University of Rochester Medical Center

I admired Sue for her courage and dedication, despite the obvious physical difficulties she had to constantly overcome. She had a sense of humor and a sense of adventure and it was wonderful to meet her unexpectedly on some sightseeing exploration in whatever city MLA was meeting. One had the sense that she was getting as much joy out of life as she could possibly reach for and there was never a word of self-pity.

She was the consummate professional and dependable colleague; I treasure the time I spent in her presence.

Ursula (Anker) Poland
Librarian Emerita, Albany Medical College

I will always remember Sue's penetrating and intense eyes as she described vividly and showed me on-site the obsolete condition of our Library in 1985. It was reinforced with a visit by the Director of the National Library of Medicine, Donald A.B. Lindberg, M.D., in the subsequent year. Don was most helpful to both of us in making the case with SUNY Central to modernize and augment the Library in the new facility that we have today. Groundbreaking was on August 14, 1992, while I was concluding my last year in the President's office.

Sue was a vivacious, deliberate, and dedicated professional of the first order who had the respect and trust of all who had privilege of knowing her. Her leadership and legacy will always be evident in our new Library. As a person I gained by just knowing her.

May we never forget how much she accomplished with what she had and how Upstate has gained from her presence.

John Bernard Henry, M.D.
President, SUNY Health Science Center at Syracuse, 1985-1992

On what was surely one of the happiest days of her life, Sue slings her shovelful of dirt at groundbreaking for the new Library on August 14, 1992, along with JAMA editor George D. Lundberg, M.D., SUNY Health Science Center Council member Marguerite McKennan, SUNY Health Science Center President John Bernard Henry, M.D., SUNY Assistant Provost for Library Services Glyn Evans, and SUNY Health Science Center Provost Donald C. Goodman, Ph.D.

Sue Murray was a gem. It was educating, stimulating, and fun to work with her on committees or faculty projects. I looked forward to her ideas and opinions.

However, this alone did not illustrate her depth as a professional educator. One day, while waiting for a meeting to start, we were approached by one of her students. The look in that individual's eyes clearly demonstrated panic. Something was not going well. A blurted expression of calamity was followed by Sue's calm reassurance and direction. The fear melted, and was replaced by a look of purpose and relief. The interaction lasted all of two minutes, but made one thing very clear to me. Sue was a gem. I will miss her.

David G. Heisig, M.D.
former Director, Residency Program, Department of Medicine

I knew Sue Murray as a librarian colleague during my years working across the street at the VA Medical Center Library. Her leadership as the director of the Health Sciences Library resulted in the building of the wonderful new structure that now houses the Upstate Medical University Library. I saw Sue at numerous professional meetings as well as various cultural events around the Syracuse area. Her strength and enthusiastic interest in all aspects of life during times of great physical adversity are to be admired. I miss her presence in our lives.

Kay A.W. Root
Medical Librarian (retired), Veterans Administration Medical Center, Syracuse
and SUNY Upstate Medical University Library

I first started working for Sue when I came to Upstate in the spring of 1988; it did not take long to find out that she was a demanding taskmaster who had high standards for herself and her staff. In spite of her diminutive size she could run a meeting like a drill sergeant. But she had a softer side too, and made a special effort to ask about my three children on a regular basis. I appreciated that she remembered each of their names, what school they attended, and their interests.

With Sue, you had to be careful what you asked for. On two occasions I went to her to point out the need for "someone" to take charge of and coordinate a growing area of library services. In both instances I came away from the meeting with a new title and increased responsibilities. She was indeed willing to listen, and would expect you to have supporting arguments, but you had to be ready to be part of the solution.

I will remember Sue for being a leader with vision and the courage to stand up for her convictions.

Diane Davis Luft
Assistant Director, Reference and Educational Services