Library Director Julie Perrin will make the leap from one Monadnock region library to another, leaving the Stephenson Memorial Library in Greenfield for the Jaffrey Public Library.
Perrin, who has worked in Greenfield since November 2014, will transition to Jaffrey over the next month, taking the helm at her new role officially on Jan. 11.
“I’m excited for the chance to impact a larger community,” said Perrin. “I would to like to see [Jaffrey’s library] reach its potential. It probably needs a little boost to be as relevant as it could be.”
Perrin takes over for Libby Feil, whose last day was on Dec. 7. Feil, who had been working in Jaffrey since June 2015, tendered her resignation due to “personal family reasons” and is currently back in her home state of California, according to Library Trustee Francis McBride.
“It was very unexpected,” said McBride, of Feil’s resignation. “We consider ourselves lucky that Julie stepped in; normally searches like these take some time.”
Perrin reached out to Jaffrey’s library trustees after hearing that Feil would be leaving, and offered to step up in her place. The trustees asked a few previous candidates for the director position if they had any interest, but in the end decided on Perrin.
“Julie has a great reputation throughout the region and the state,” said McBride. “Julie was so outstanding that we had to offer her the position.”
Perrin said she is sad to be leaving all the good memories and things she has built up in Greenfield, but is excited to turn the page and enter her next challenge.
Perrin is the fourth library director for Jaffrey since longtime director Joan Knight retired in July 2013. Knight’s replacement, Emily Donnelly, unexpectedly resigned in the fall of 2014. Between Donnelly and Feil, the library hired Carol Roberts on an interim basis.