Tom Bailey
Tom Bailey was elected president of the Friends of the North Shelby Library in October 2023.
Q: What's the role you're entering into?
A: There's a group of us; the Friends consist of about 60 members interested in its wellbeing and come together for fundraising events to help support librarians if they have more things to do than they can do, and then we will come help them.
Q: How did you get involved in Friends of the North Shelby Library?
A: I spent from 1967 even to today with books, writing books, editing books, editing articles, writing articles for magazines and newspapers. It was a joy. And so it was a real joy to go to the library and find out they had a Friends of the Library. And actually my wife noticed it first, and she said we ought to join that. And so we did.
Q: If there is one thing you would want the public to know about the group, what would it be?
A: There is this dedicated cadre of men and women — mostly women — who love books and who love that library, and who want that library to be the very best library it can possibly be. They love that library, they love books. They love the learning that is associated with books. And I would want people to know what sweet and dedicated people they are, and I hope some of them [the public] want to be a part of that.
