What Does It Take To Be A Good Librarian?

It takes knowledge of people, so says librarian David Wathan in his assessment of his long and satisfying career as a librarian in Henderson KY.


Donald Wathen attended three colleges, earning a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. But he considers what he learned working at a supermarket the most valuable.

“I worked eight years at (the former) Dick’s Finer Foods” on Marywood Drive, Wathen related. “I went to school and got my degrees. But I got my education at Dick’s Finer Foods.” “I learned a lot … in terms of people, and it’s all about people” he explained. “I learned at Dick’s Finer Foods about service and how the public behaves and how you treat the public — things that serve you well in whatever you did.”

As Wathen approaches retirement Aug. 1 after 33 years as director of the Henderson County Public Library, he jokes about the changes in how libraries are run.

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