Debbie McClanahan,  lead circ associate at the Corydon Branch, is HCPL’s  September  winner for Who’s Awesome! There were seven nominations for the  honor this month.

Jessica Stroud, assistant director,  nominated McClanahan  writing, “Debbie ensures awesomeness in the circulation department daily, and most  recently she is to be commended for her suggestions and contributions to the hotspot policy and procedure committee. Not only is she key in shaping the policy, she also articulates and updates the policy in existing documents, then distributes the changes to  circulation staff at all branches. She additionally created a how-to slideshow about circulating hotspots for the benefit of all circulation staff, and prior to that created two Niche Academy tutorials for HCPL staff. Kudos to Debbie for her hard work and dedication! “

McClanahan has worked at the library for nearly 19  years, joining HCPL’s staff  in November of 2005 as a circulation assistant. She was promoted to front desk  supervisor in August of 2006 and now is the Corydon lead circ associate.

In July, Director Alisa Burch nominated  McClanahan stating, “Debbie has been working hard to create tutorials on circulation skills for staff that can be uploaded to the Niche staff academy. This month she spent hours working on hotspot circulation and inspection. Tutorials are a great tool for staff who have questions about specific tasks and make a super training tool. Debbie is awesome!”

“Debbie is a very nice lady who helps me out a lot. :)“, wrote Youth Services Manager Eden Ransdell last November.

Tiffany Thieneman, public services manager, nominated McClanahan in September of 2023 writing, “Debbie is my Scooby-Doo! She always helps me solve the random mysteries that pop up. Whether it is one of our items or a SRCS material, Debbie is willing to help figure out what the issue is and how to solve it. It is awesome to have Debbie as a resource to help when something happens that I can’t figure out. I appreciate her willingness to help me and the Reference staff! “

In August of 2023, patron services co-worker Amanda Applegate nominated McClanahan stating, “ I appreciate Debbie helping me out last week with cross-referencing. She is always willing to help out when needed. “

Each month a winner is selected by random drawing. Other staff members nominated in September include:  Sarah Dorton, Amanda Embrey, Seren Lindsey, Steven Schifcar, Jon Schraffenberger, Pat Schwartz,  and Tiffany Thieneman.

Article by Alisa Burch, Director

Leo Stiner,  genealogy clerk, is HCPL’s  August winner for Who’s Awesome! There were 12 nominations for the  honor this month.

Kathy Fisher, genealogy head, nominated Leo writing, “With a looming deadline and uncooperative home equipment, a patron came to us in a panic. Leo didn’t blink an eye to help create, format, and print nearly 150 labels faster than anyone else. Way to go above and beyond!“

Co-worker Teresa Douglass nominated Leo in July stating, “I nominate Leo Stiner for the July Who’s Awesome award. Leo has been a huge help to me recently by assisting with background research on photographs we included on our digital archives. We had over 170 images of people about whom we had very little information, other than their names, and sometimes not even that. Leo did a great job finding information and writing up summaries of many individuals. Leo also provides excellent customer service to patrons, and is always willing to go that extra step. He has been especially helpful to patrons researching their property by providing them with images and information that they are always thrilled to have. Leo has also been very  flexible and agreeable with last minute changes to his schedule in order to accommodate unexpected staff needs. Leo is a great team player and an awesome co-worker!”

Leo joined the HCPL staff as a genealogy intern as part of a LSTA Digitization Grant through the Indiana State Library funded by the IMLS in January of 2021 and is now a valued member of the genealogy staff. He is courteous and helpful with patrons and has been described as “creative, artistic, and computer savvy.” In an April nomination Douglass wrote, He can “quickly come up with ideas and solutions for images, displays, etc.”

Each month a winner is selected by random drawing. Other staff members nominated in August include:  Amanda Applegate, Teresa Douglass, Nikki Esarey, Megan Grindle, Sandy Harbeson, Eve Kopsolias, JoBeth Mathes, Julie Phipps,  Eden Ransdell, and Trevor Smith.

Article by Alisa Burch, Director

Kathy Fisher, Head of Genealogy, is HCPL’s  June winner for Who’s Awesome! There were 11 nominations for the honor this month.

Library Director Alisa Burch, nominated Kathy stating, “Kathy worked HCPL’s pop-up library at the Corydon Pride Fest June 21. She braved the heat to share information on library’s services and programs. Kathy is awesome! ”

Teresa Douglass, genealogy specialist, had this to say about Kathy last July, “Kathy is an awesome person to work with. She is incredibly knowledgeable in her field, and I have learned a tremendous amount about genealogy from her. She is my “go to” person when I just can’t seem to find a solution. Even if I think I’ve tried every possible angle, she never fails to come up with an additional resource to try or a different research route to consider. Kathy knows her stuff! Also, Kathy has always been very understanding and accommodating with my schedule.  She’s always willing to work work around appointments, or needing time to take care of mom, or working around (often short-notice) visits with my son, etc., which is VERY MUCH appreciated. Lastly, but certainly not least, Kathy has been an amazing trooper during her own personal battles over the past year. She never once brought her troubles or issues into work with her, but remained unbelievably positive and professional throughout. Can’t get more awesome than that!“

Kathy joined HCPL’s staff 20 years ago splitting her work week between the reference department and genealogy. She went full-time as head of the genealogy department when Jim Burnside retired in 2005.  Kathy oversees the center and staff. She answers patron requests, handles monetary and artifact donations and conducts  programming. She was nominated by Burch several times for her programming ideas including this nomination from September of 2023. “Kathy plans fun activities to “spotlight” the offerings of the Frederick Porter Griffin Center several times during the year. This September she has focused the Saturday Spotlights on Indiana Archaeology Month. Kathy uses humor to make the activities more appealing and bring awareness to the physical and digital records the FPGC offers including photos, files, newspapers, yearbooks, donated materials, artifacts, Ancestry.com and Fold3. For September she has planned a scavenger hunt to “Find Indiana” where she has hidden images of Indiana Jones throughout the collection and a “Not My Job!” quiz to test knowledge of antiquated occupations. Kathy is awesome!”

Each month a winner is selected by random drawing. Other staff members nominated in June include: Amanda Applegate, Amanda Embrey, Connie Gresham, Megan Grindle, JoBeth Mathes, Trevor Smith, Jessica Stroud, Tiffany Thieneman, Savannah Wallace, and Heather Wyss.

Article by Alisa Burch, Director

Shawnda Mosson, Palmyra Library Assistant, is HCPL’s May winner for Who’s Awesome! There were eight nominations for the honor this month.

Megan Grindle, also a member of the Palmyra Branch staff, nominated Shawnda stating, “Shawnda is so polite and nice to staff and patrons, always going above and beyond to be helpful. I always appreciate working with her as she finds solutions to any inquiry or issue. You can’t help but smile when around her because she is usually laughing about something and her happy demeanor is contagious.”

Library Director Alisa Burch had this to say about Shawnda, “Shawnda offers great readers’ advisory at the Palmyra Branch. I have witnessed her helping patrons find books that they will enjoy. She has broad knowledge of the collection and shares that daily. Shawnda also created fun decorations for the summer reading challenge Adventure Begins at Your Library. She is a practical joker and full of fun. Shawnda is awesome!”

Shawnda interned with HCPL before joining the staff in March of 2010. She has worked at the Palmyra Branch for more than 14 years. In addition to providing great readers’ advisory and customer service, she does youth storytime, hosts the monthly “Not Your Mother’s Book Club,” and leads teen and family painting classes.

Nikki Esarey, the Palmyra lead circ associate and Shawnda’s immediate supervisor, nominated Shawnda in March of 2024 writing, “Shawnda has been so much help with the escape room. Escape room week can be crazy, but she has been amazing at multitasking—along with circulation, shelving, weeding and customer service, she has been making reminder calls, resetting the escape room, repairing props, hosting programs, and handing out eclipse glasses. She is so awesome!” Nikki also nominated Shawnda a year ago saying, “I really appreciate that Shawnda takes time every work day to shelf read and straighten. Her self-motivated efforts create a more welcoming environment for our patrons. She is awesome!”

Each month a winner is selected by random drawing. Other staff members nominated in May include: Amanda Applegate, Sandy Harbeson, Eden Randsell, Steven Schifcar, Jennifer Schroering, Debi Strubler and Heather Wyss.

Article by Alisa Burch, Director