Meet A Volunteer - Diane Carlson

We've teamed up with the Duluth News Tribune to recognize volunteers for their time and efforts at many Northland organizations.

City: Duluth

Organization: Delta Kappa Gamma, Beta Chapter, and Friends of the Duluth Public Library.

How long have you volunteered for this organization? One year for Delta Kappa Gamma, Beta Chapter, and 11 years for Friends of the Duluth Public Library.

Volunteer duties: I donate children's books from Delta Kappa Gamma and deliver them to the Big Red Bookshelf in the Women, Infants and Children's center in the government building. The new and slightly used books are donated by several organizations to the United Way, where they are sorted, stamped and placed on bookshelves. Every two weeks, another volunteer and I deliver books for the young children who visit the WIC center. Children can choose a book to take home.

As a former school librarian, I enjoy working with books, so when I retired, I volunteered to help the library's annual book sale. During the year, I spend some time each week sorting and packing children's materials that are donated by the community and items that are withdrawn from the library. The four-day sale is in the summer each year, and I am part of a group that unpacks and sets up books and more so the public can come in to browse and buy inexpensive materials.

Favorite part of volunteering here: I really enjoy reading and learning about new books and materials for children and then providing these books to the young people who visit the Big Red Bookshelf or those who attend the book sale.

Favorite memory: I have many memories of seeing children fall in love with a book, their smiles, and the need for them to read it right away. During the sale, small children will chose a book and sit right down on the floor to open it and begin enjoying it, unaware of anything going on around them.