LIBRARY STAFF
Karin Goodell became the Director of SML in December of 2021. Prior to that, she was the Director of the Beardsley Library in Winsted, CT, for ten years and served at Beardsley as the Head of Children’s Services for four years. Actively involved in the Connecticut library community, she’s served as the Chair of the Northwest CT Library Director’s Roundtable and the Region 1 Representative to the CT Library Association since July 2021. Karin has a passion for creating excellent library services by connecting with the community and maintaining positive relationships with all the people who love and support the library.
She’s been a book enthusiast ever since she could hold one in her hand and particularly enjoys exploring new authors and genres, although she gravitates toward dark thrillers. The creepier, the better. In her spare time, Karin loves gardening, feeding birds, spending time with her family, and petting every dog she encounters. Karin lives in Winsted with her husband and a small menagerie of three dogs, three ducks, and a cat.
Carolyn moved to Salisbury after retiring from a career in higher education administration that spanned 35 years and took her to seven states. She has traveled extensively throughout Europe, the U.S. and the Caribbean. Beyond travel Carolyn’s interests are family, reading and volunteerism. Her greatest joys are her two beautiful grandsons who live in County Cork, Ireland and her son who lives in Palm Beach, Florida and Ireland. Carolyn enjoys working at SML and meeting with the enthusiastic readers who frequent our library.
Julia is a book-lover, reader, book-recommender extraordinaire. Julia started reading religiously in her late 20’s and pretty much has done only that ever since. She was a bookseller at an independent bookstore for 9 years where she honed her recommending skills and broadened her reading horizons from mostly children’s action packed fantasy books to all varieties of adult and children’s books. Fantasy will forever remain her first love, but she reads widely, from essays, poetry, romances & memoir to listening to mysteries, contemporary lit & classics. Julia remains a bookseller at heart and shares her recommendations online as the shire_bookseller.
Kendra is a Lakeville native who recently returned to her hometown after living, studying and working abroad for most of her adult life. Her aim as Children’s Services Coordinator is to create accessible and diverse programs that spark curiosity and inspire learning through play and experience. Before joining SML, Kendra was a K-12 Museum and Classroom Educator at The Museum of the City of New York, the Metropolitan Museum of Art for teen programs and the American Museum of Natural History, where she developed an award-winning prototype exhibition for the Children’s Science Room. Kendra holds an MS in Education from Bank Street College of Education in New York City, where she was also a student and substitute teacher for 10s/11s. This position is a dream come true.
Before coming to SML, Heath worked at the Litchfield Probate Court and she has also been an Outward Bound instructor, bar hussy, newspaper reporter and graphic artist. She has two grown sons and is an artist in her spare time.
Jennifer and her husband have lived in Salisbury for 23 years, raising 5 children here. A vegan, animal and nature lover, you can often find her out and about on the trails with a trusty canine companion. When not working, hiking, or spending time with family, she can be found fiddling in her garden or kicked back reading in the oasis she’s created in her backyard, often sipping iced tea if it’s warm out, cuddled in bed with the dogs and a good book when it’s not.