Lorie Womack loves to travel, whether over the oceans on a cruise ship with her husband Robert, or to places only dreamed of thanks to the magic of reading. This week, Womack's travels will take her from her long-time position as branch manager of the Roosevelt Public Library to the Washington branch of the St. George Library for a similar position.

Womack first came to the Roosevelt library in 1994. It was a different world for the library back then, she said.

“When I first came here, the Internet was just beginning to be talked about,” Womack said. Now, libraries routinely deal with the digital world just as deftly as they deal with the printed page, she said.

In 1996, as part of a pilot project through Chevron and Pennzoil, the library bought two computers. Now there are nine public-access computers in Roosevelt, and another seven in Duchesne.

Other parts of the Roosevelt library have seen significant changes under Womack.

“It's evolved in the 17 years I've been here,” she said.

The library, formerly operated jointly by Duchesne County and the city of Roosevelt, is now exclusively ran by Duchesne County. A Duchesne branch opened in 2007.

The library checks out about 8,000 items to about 2,500 patrons each month, Womack said.
Other projects included working to secure CIB grants, serving on the American Library Association, and lobbying for state funding of library construction.

The décor of the library now bears Womack's DNA – western-themed decorations, ranging from a hat belonging to her father to a jacket owned by her grandfather, decorate the walls. Womack's mother, former State Sen. Bev Evans, helped her secure other paintings and decorations.

A former meeting room was turned into a children's room, complete with children's books, a puppet stage and padded steps for a weekly story time.

The library has also focused on young readers through the summer, launching a successful summer reading program. Last summer, a record number of 200 children took part, reading throughout the summer.

For Womack, turning children on to reading has been one of the goals of her job.

“If you can get patrons to come in at a young age and keep them as teenagers, you'll have life-long readers,” she said. “That's a goal.”

Womack said she wasn't looking to leave. The library has a history of long-serving librarians.

In 2015, the library will celebrate its 100th anniversary. In all that time, there have been only three permanent librarians. Norah Matthews began the library and served as the first librarian for 50 years. She was followed by Glenda Killian, who served from 1967 to 1994 and introduced computers into the library and oversaw the current building's construction.

An Altamont native, Womack said the offer from St. George came as a surprise to her.

“I was about as shocked as anybody that it came about,” she said.

As she leaves, she said she would be taking happy memories with her.

“The greatest joy I've had is the people I've had an opportunity to serve,” she said. “It's all about the patrons. I've had the good fortune of working with incredible board members and commissioners. That's the biggest thing I'll miss and what I'll take with me.”


Open house set for departing librarian

- An open house is set for 5 – 7 p.m. Feb. 9 at the Roosevelt Public Library, 70 W. Lagoon to say goodbye to Librarian Lorie Womack.

- Womack is leaving for a similar job in southern Utah.

- She earned her bachelors degree from Southern Utah University in Cedar City in 1994. She completed her Masters of Library Science degree through the University of North Texas in August 2011.

- Womack has served as the branch manager in Roosevelt since 1994. She is one of only three full-time librarians to work at the Roosevelt branch since it opened in the back of a law office in 2015.