Popular local Leeann Morgan gets top title at Kapiti Coast libraries

After many years work on just about every job in the Kapiti Coast libraries, Leeann Morgan has been appointed to the top job.

The new Libraries (and Arts) Manager has just taken up her new job, full of enthusiasm, and ready to take the four libraries in the District to an even higher level of service.

Leeann is married to Paraparaumu’s deputy chief fire officer Tim Morgan and they have a boy and a girl at St Patrick’s primary school.

She succeeds Leslie Clague, who was a highly successful District Libraries Manager for five and a-half years until she retired after several bouts of ill health.

During Leeann’s work at the old Paraparaumu Library in thew 1990’s, she worked hard with the then Chief Librarian Hilary Wooding (now a KCDC Councillor) to get the award-winning new Library built. She’s also worked closely with the local Friends of the Libraries over many years.

She’s always loved reading and wanted to try writing her own novel. Two years ago Leeann joined Romance Writers of New Zealand and found many kindred spirits.

She sways:”Overflowing with enthusiasm and support, the Kapiti/Wellington RWNZ group of published and unpublished writers is fantastic. We meet monthly, learn new writing skills, encourage each other and most importantly have a great time! ”

But now the personal story of how Leeann arrived where she is today: —

Leeann writes…

“In February, 1985, I started my first job as a library assistant at Palmerston North Public Library. I’d always loved reading. On Monday afternoons the mobile library bus would park at the Highbury shopping centre and I’d come home with a pile of books, close my bedroom door and disappear into another world.

“I’d never considered becoming a librarian. My first job was only supposed to last a year. It was a way to save money before I went to university, a chance to decide whether I wanted to be a doctor or a teacher.

“But within a few weeks of joining the incredible Library team in Palmerston North I realized I’d found something special. Being a librarian is more than issuing books and finding the answers to curly questions – it’s about connecting the community with each other and the world we live in.

“It’s about bringing joy to people’s lives and providing a gateway to the exciting possibilities that lie waiting for everyone.

Twenty-sevenyears’ experience

“It has been twenty-seven years, almost to the day, since I took my first tentative steps into the world of librarianship. And now here I am, beginning another new and exciting phase of my career as Library and Arts Manager for the Kapiti Coast District Council.

And I’m excited. Really excited. We have a fantastic team of librarians who are passionate about what they do. We have a Council who recognize what a treasure they have in our libraries and support our activities with courage and enthusiasm. And a community that embraces the services and resources that our libraries provide.

“Over six hundred thousand visits are made to our libraries on the Kapiti Coast each year. That’s six hundred thousand reasons why our libraries will continue to grow and meet the changing needs of our community.

Many changes coming

“Over the coming months you will see many changes taking place in our libraries. We will target our services and resources to what you want.

“Whether you visit our libraries to borrow the latest blockbuster novel, to study, to use the internet, to type a report, discover our local history, follow your family tree or enjoy a cup of tea and great conversation at a library event, there will be more choices available to you.

“More opportunities to enjoy what makes our libraries amazing. Visit our libraries at Paekakariki, Paraparaumu, Waikanae and Otaki and see what I mean. It’s going to be an exciting year!”