The Norwalk Public Library is pleased to announce that at the Connecticut Library Association (CLA) Annual Conference in New Haven, the Norwalk Public Library's Luis Ayala, was named "Librarian of the Year" in a special Awards ceremony held on Friday, May 1, 2009.
Judy Rivas -- Norwalk Public Library Director of Information Services -- presented Luis with the award and a portion of her Nominating Letter which led to the CLA recognition is noted below.
"Luis Ayala is one of those rare people with numerous areas of expertise. He is completely bilingual in English and Spanish which makes him indispensable at the reference desk and all our public service desks.
His technical literacy is wonderful. His pinch hitting for our systems manager helps us survive many "glitches."
Luis designed the curriculum for the computer classes we offer to the public and coordinates all the activities involved in conducting them. He designed and maintains our Spanish webpage, which is a wonderful port of entry to the Norwalk Public Library and the wider world of knowledge for our Spanish speaking public. In addition to delivering excellent reference service, Luis teaches PC skills, Internet, E-mail, word processing and more in English and Spanish.
Luis genuinely loves people. He is especially good at outreach to the underserved. He has spoken at senior centers, represented us at Career Day at the high schools and other venues. Luis has just the right touch with our teen patrons. He is sought out by people who have been told by their friends, "Ask for Luis." Luis excels in programming. Over the years, he has been responsible for numerous successful programs from concerts to book discussions to film festivals for Hispanic Heritage Month and other events. He is always looking for new opportunities to attract users and make the library an integral part of the community.
Luis has his finger on the pulse of the wide world be it the latest fad, gadget, or socio-political movement. Combine that with his keen analytical skills, natural curiosity, love of a good problem and you've got a phenomenal librarian. He is an avid reader (in all formats), which is invaluable for readers' advisory. He is always seeking opportunities to stay current, gain new knowledge and share it with the rest of the staff. We all learned so much from his participation at the 2007 National Computers in Libraries Conference in Washington, DC.
Best of all, he is modest, kind, generous with his time and infinitely patient. His gentle sense of humor keeps us all upbeat and in the now.
Judy Rivas, Director of Information Services finalizes her nominating letter with the following: Luis Ayala is an Outstanding Librarian whom we cannot afford to take for granted. I am therefore, extremely proud to nominate him for the CLA Outstanding Librarian Award."
The Norwalk Public Library System and its staff are also proud of his award and Luis' value to us all. The Norwalk Public Library, 1 Belden Avenue, Norwalk, CT. (203) 899-2780, ext. 109. Corner of Mott Avenue and Belden Avenue.
