Follow your bliss. Omaha born-and-raised Cathy Blanchard has applied this philosophy to volunteering.
Almost two years ago, Blanchard began assisting once a week at W. Dale Clark Main Library filling book club bag orders. “Cathy is a valuable volunteer because most of all, she is reliable. I can always count on her to be here no matter what the weather is outside or what she has going on in her life,” said OPL book club coordinator April Earl. “She keeps up with the pace and has developed her own system where she can fill the orders faster, neater and more efficiently.”
Blanchard is also a member of the Fourth Thursday Book Club at Abrahams Branch. “I love my job. I do, because I see on the shelf all the books that are available and I think, ‘I hope our group reads this one.’”
“I’ve discovered so many books [here],” she continued. Working at Goodwill affords her the opportunity to build her personal collection. “I’ve got enough books to entertain me for the rest of my lifetime. There’s no reason anybody ever should be bored with this many books in the world and with [the] many libraries we’ve got in town.”
Blanchard carries a stack of OPL bookmarks in her purse. “When I’m in conversation with someone on the bus or in line at the store, I’ll hand them a bookmark just as advertisement. ‘Give your library a call in your neighborhood and see when their book club meets.’”
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