“I started as a page; I was in high school at the time,” she said. “I put books away and then started waiting on people at the counter and then I did just about any job that needed done around here. I’ve done the over-dues; all the processing. For a while, I did end-processing, which is where we put the covers on and the stamps. I really loved doing that. For a very short time, I was the children’s librarian and I found out that wasn’t what I wanted. I didn’t always have a specific title but I’ve done just about everything.”

Mericle became director 27 years ago and has held the post ever since. She made the decision to retire because it felt like the right time.
“The time was right. My husband Jerry retired this summer and we have plans to do some more traveling,” she said. “I also wanted to spend more time with my daughter, Jennifer, and my four grandkids. We don’t have anything particular on the board yet. I was hoping to enjoy this snowy winter from home, though.”

After nearly 50 years at the library, Mericle has understandably grown attached to her co-workers and the people she’s met over the decades.
“I’ll definitely miss the contact with the people, the public and staff,” she said. “Aside from the people, my favorite part is seeing all the new books that come in. That’s also a bad part because I see a lot of books I’d like to read and I don’t get a chance to. I won’t miss the really busy days, like after holidays when we have a ton of books to check in, or days when the computers go down.”

“I really loved my years working here at the library,” she continued. “I know that Kelly Rist, the new director, will do a good job.”