Library Staff Spotlight
Foundation Newsletter Spring 2023 Spotlight
David Adkins-Brown, Temporary West District Manager
I was born in Fairbanks, Alaska, and grew up in Albany, Oregon. I left Oregon to live in China off and on for about 13 years, came back to Alaska to be with family, and then moved here to Washington.
I was that kid who loved going to the library. When I was 5, I spent part of my birthday at the Albany Public Library but was pulled out of a fun Storytime and taken home immediately because my sister decided to be born right then. The nerve of her disrupting my library birthday! I love her a ton though and both of us love going to libraries just to relax, do programs, and browse.
I started working for libraries in Jr High as a teen volunteer. Later I took a college job working in Inter Library Loan and Circulation. Professionally, I started off in school libraries with my first library being for an Alaskan Native School. I joined Sno-Isle Libraries in 2021 as an Assistant Managing Librarian of the Mill Creek Library and presently, I’m serving as a temporary District Manager. I am also a professor for the Highline College/Seattle Pacific University School librarian program where I teach two classes: School Librarianship and Library Administration and Management.
Library work is something I was always involved in or close to. I keep asking myself if I chose it or if it chose me. One of my favorite library jobs is doing Storytime. My Storytimes have always been noisy with a lot of singing, dancing, and audience interaction. Some little-known facts about me:
- My husband and I used to spend summers living on the Deschutes River out of a tent while working as river guides.
- We have two corgis.
- I have driven the ALCAN Highway (a.k.a. the Alaskan Highway) several times.
- I have traveled to more locations in Asia than I have in the United States.
- I enjoy cooking and will randomly make a Thanksgiving dinner.
- I regularly go hunting for mushrooms.
- I enjoy reading baking books and fully recommend Tartine Bread.
Foundation Newsletter Winter 2022 Spotlight
Tricia Lee, Assistant Director of Equity, Inclusion, and Development
Greetings! I’m Tricia Lee, Sno-Isle Libraries Assistant Director of Equity, Inclusion, and Development. I started working at Sno-Isle Libraries about three and half years ago after moving here from Colorado. Our Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) team works to embed principles and practices of EDI into the fabric of Sno-Isle Libraries and the customer experience. I also work with our Talent Development Department providing learning and growth experiences to the organization. I’m incredibly fortunate to combine my passions of racial equity, social justice, facilitation, training, and libraries every day in my work. I appreciate the small and big moments when we move the needle toward a more equitable and inclusive world.
I have worked in libraries for over thirty years and much of that time has been dedicated to EDI work. My first memory of the library as a child was visiting our small neighborhood West Slope Community Library in Portland Oregon. I remember secretly creating book displays in the library by placing my favorite books face out on the top shelves (this was before merchandising was a thing in libraries). In my teen years, my family relocated from Portland Oregon to the mountain community of Evergreen, just west of Denver, Colorado. I struggled to fit in, and the library was a refuge that gave me access to a world that was bigger and more diverse. In fact, I spent so much time in the library, I was offered a job at my middle school library stamping date due slips (yes, paper date due slips!), typing cards for the card catalog (remember those?), and shelving books. I was hooked and continued working in libraries for the rest of my life in so many different roles.
When I am not working, I enjoy spending time at home with my family, including my spouse, three kiddos, ages 8, 10, and 13, and Jupiter, our Siberian Husky. Some little-known facts about me are that:
- I sang in a band in college, took singing lessons for a few years, and still love belting out songs in my car.
- I love exploring social media platforms on all things art, fashion, music, and design.
- My first date with my spouse was at a corn maze and we have a tradition of visiting a corn maze/pumpkin patch every year since then. The tradition we started 19 years ago is now shared with our kids and extended family.
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