Retirement Party
There will be a retirement party for Ann Mueller from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 24 at the Monroe Public Library.
Editor's note: The following story has been updated to correct information.
MONROE - When Ann Mueller began working at the Monroe Public Library, she met a woman who had been working there for 40 years.
"I thought, 'why in the world would anyone stay at a job for 40 years?'" Mueller said.
However, when Mueller retires this month, she will have outlasted her former colleague: Mueller, currently the adult services coordinator, has worked at the library for 41 years.
Mueller began working at what was then the Ludlow Library in 1976 after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a degree in elementary education and, thanks to a suggestion from her mother, a minor in library science.
"There were not a lot of teaching jobs then," Mueller said. "I was a substitute teacher for about a year before I applied for a job at the Ludlow Library."
The renovation of the Ludlow Library into the Monroe Public Library in the 1990s was far from the only change Mueller experienced during her career.
"Everything's changed because of computerization," Mueller said. "When we got our first computers it was very foreign. It made things very different."
Although the arrival of computers made archiving books more efficient, it also significantly altered people's reading habits. Smartphones, in particular, have somewhat supplanted ink-and-paper books with e-books and audiobooks.
Despite these changes, Mueller said she is not worried for the future of libraries.
"People need to realize the library is for everyone; there's something here for everyone," Mueller said.
Mueller said that libraries thrive during times of financial constraints: "We have free internet, and people can check out DVDs.
"People come in here for a connection," Mueller said. "We still have very active story times for kids."
After her retirement at the end of June, Mueller said she plans to visit friends, volunteer around the community and, most of all, read. Currently, Mueller's favorite author is Canadian mystery novelist Louise Penny, but her preferences change constantly.
However, Mueller said the stories of the people she met during her 41 years at the library are the most important.
"People don't realize how many people's lives you touch or touch yours," Mueller said. "Even when you give something to them, they always give something back, whether it be a story, or their favorite book or a movie. Co-workers come and go, but you remember their stories and they stick."
MONROE - When Ann Mueller began working at the Monroe Public Library, she met a woman who had been working there for 40 years.
"I thought, 'why in the world would anyone stay at a job for 40 years?'" Mueller said.
However, when Mueller retires this month, she will have outlasted her former colleague: Mueller, currently the adult services coordinator, has worked at the library for 41 years.
Mueller began working at what was then the Ludlow Library in 1976 after graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a degree in elementary education and, thanks to a suggestion from her mother, a minor in library science.
"There were not a lot of teaching jobs then," Mueller said. "I was a substitute teacher for about a year before I applied for a job at the Ludlow Library."
The renovation of the Ludlow Library into the Monroe Public Library in the 1990s was far from the only change Mueller experienced during her career.
"Everything's changed because of computerization," Mueller said. "When we got our first computers it was very foreign. It made things very different."
Although the arrival of computers made archiving books more efficient, it also significantly altered people's reading habits. Smartphones, in particular, have somewhat supplanted ink-and-paper books with e-books and audiobooks.
Despite these changes, Mueller said she is not worried for the future of libraries.
"People need to realize the library is for everyone; there's something here for everyone," Mueller said.
Mueller said that libraries thrive during times of financial constraints: "We have free internet, and people can check out DVDs.
"People come in here for a connection," Mueller said. "We still have very active story times for kids."
After her retirement at the end of June, Mueller said she plans to visit friends, volunteer around the community and, most of all, read. Currently, Mueller's favorite author is Canadian mystery novelist Louise Penny, but her preferences change constantly.
However, Mueller said the stories of the people she met during her 41 years at the library are the most important.
"People don't realize how many people's lives you touch or touch yours," Mueller said. "Even when you give something to them, they always give something back, whether it be a story, or their favorite book or a movie. Co-workers come and go, but you remember their stories and they stick."