Volunteer workers in libraries

Date: 14 April 1989 - 14 Apr 1989

From: NZOHA Country Library Service Oral History Project

By: Bilkey, Joy Margaret, 1925-2013

Reference: OHInt-0058/09

Description: Joy Margaret Bilkey gives details of her family background and how the families were settlers in Waipu. Talks about her paternal great grandfather's cabinet and furniture making career, which included making furniture for English royalty and about her father's work as a builder and her mother's as a music teacher. Describes her education and details the development of her reading habits and tastes and where she got books from. Talks about working for her future parents-in-law. Describes training as a primary school teacher at Auckland Teachers' Training College, teaching at Maungaturoto District High School Primary Department and then relief teaching both before and after her marriage to Arthur Edward Keith Bilkey in 1951. Details the development of their orchard from citrus to kiwifruit and gives some historical background to the development of the Kerikeri area, Kerikeri Primary School and the beginnings of the orchard industry in the area. Describes how the community changed with the influx of orchard people. Mentions the development of clubs and services and how cut off Kerikeri had been in the early days. Notes that there are very few Maori in Kerikeri. Details her involvement with the Kerikeri Public Library as a committee member from 1962-1980 and the early development of the library before the Public Library was established. Describes how the books were looked after by individuals, then by the Plunket Society and then in the school building, membership charge, source of books from Country Library Service and private donation, lending and overdue policy. Details the members of the committee, its work to establish the library, the volunteers and the paid staff, fundraising, getting the building built, changing use of the library and her own involvement while she had young children and was relieving teacher. Mentions Margaret O'Connor as the first library assistant and other people instrumental in establishing the library. Mentions Dennis (?) Malone, Isabella Godbert and Mrs Bonny Cron. Talks about the increasing popularity of non-fiction books, the importance of the Country Library Service, the visits of the book van, its drivers and their routines. Talks about Jim Sutherland and the death of the book van service. Describes the special collections at the library, the request and reserve system operating, the changing nature of the Kerikeri population and change in library membership. Discusses the use of voluntary staff noting that there has only been one paid librarian in the last few years and that Kerikeri Library is the largest in New Zealand to be staffed by voluntary workers. Describes the role of the Library in the community. Venue - Kerikeri Interviewer(s) - Judith Fyfe Venue - Mrs Bilkey's home at Kerikeri Accompanying material - Printed abstract contains a photocopy of a newspaper article on the Kerikeri Public Library. Arrangement: Tape numbers - OHC-002065, OHC-002066 Tape numbers - OHA CLS 2744, 2745, 2746, 2747 Quantity: 2 C60 cassette(s). 1 printed abstract(s). 2 Hours Duration. Finding Aids: Abstract Available - abstracting complete AB 314. Printed abstract contains portrait photograph of Joy Bilkey dated 1986, photograph of Joy Bilkey inside the bookvan in the mid 1970s, a photograph of the Kerikeri Public Library, a photograph of Bilkeys' grandchildren reading in the book van ca 1984 and two photocopies of photographs of Kerikeri Search dates: 1925 - 1989

Date: 3 May 1989 - 03 May 1989

From: NZOHA Country Library Service Oral History Project

By: Miller, Jean Yvonne, 1930-2017

Reference: OHInt-0058/08

Description: Jean Yvonne Miller gives details of her family background, her parents' personalities and talks about being the only child of her father's second marriage. Discusses living through the Depression and moving to a State House. Describes her parents' positive attitude to education and reading. Notes her father's musical talents, becoming a compulsive reader, books she reads and joining the Canterbury Public Library at an early age. Recalls how the family read at the meal table. Discusses her parents' views on religion and politics, her own religious and political beliefs and her experiences of being punished as a child. Comments on her father's smoking. Details her educational history and her dislike of school and university. Describes her enjoyment of Library School in Wellington in 1952. Gives details of subjects, salary, board, the teachers, friends, fellow students and their subsequent career development and lives. Discusses how the library students were on a 3 year bond during which time they were discouraged from engagement and marriage. Recalls getting engaged and being summoned to talk to G T Alley. Describes her work at the Country Library Service in Christchurch. Gives details of her work with school exchanges and adult requests. Describes the daily routine and fellow staff members including the book van drivers. Talks about Jean Wright. Details her marriage to Bruce Herbert Miller, his work as a farm adviser, their children, their move to Woodhill, the organisations she joined, being secretary of the local Woodhill `B' country library and involvement in school. Comments on the local population. Details how the library worked, its being housed at the forestry camp and then the school, who used the library and the visits of the book van. Mentions driver Joe O'Neill and the work of the committee. Talks about the family's move back to Christchurch and her work at the Christchurch Public Library. Describes biking around to collect overdue books and the reactions of borrowers. Talks about subsequent jobs at Kaipara College Library and the Helensville Public Library, problems retrieving books and methods of following up overdues. Describes how the holiday activities programme brought more people into the Helensville Public `A' Library, her hours and pay, the racial mix of library users, how few Maori use`B'libraries because they are not invited into people's homes, the visits of the book van, the problems of working with volunteers, her membership of the Library Association and Clerical Workers' Union and the book van drivers' pay rates, routines and boarding arrangements. Mentions driver Jim Sutherland. Discusses in depth problems with the town clerk and the relationship of the library with Rodney County Council. Talks about the demise of the book van service and her feelings of regret. Discusses the general shortcomings of the service. Compares it with the present system with the National Library. Talks about her additional job at Kaipara College Library. Venue - Helensville Interviewer(s) - Judith Fyfe Venue - Mrs Miller's home at Helensville Accompanying material - printed abstract contains family tree for Miller Arrangement: Tape numbers - OHC-002062, OHC-002063 Tape numbers - OHA CLS 2742, 2743, 2748, 2749, 2750, 2751 Quantity: 3 C60 cassette(s). 1 printed abstract(s). 3 Hours Duration. Finding Aids: Abstract Available - abstracting complete AB 313. Printed abstract contains two portrait photographs of Yvonne Miller, dated 1952 and ca 1978 Search dates: 1930 - 1989

Date: 12 April 1989 - 12 Apr 1989

From: NZOHA Country Library Service Oral History Project

By: O'Connor, Margaret, 1926-2008

Reference: OHInt-0058/07

Description: Margaret O'Connor describes her family background and gives details of her parents' jobs as teachers, noting the effect of having her father as headmaster at her school. Talks about being in Napier during the 1931 earthquake and the family moving to Wellington for a period after the earthquake. Discusses her parents' involvement with the Church of England, their lack of interest in politics and how important reading was to the family. Details the books she read as a child, her membership of the Napier Library, reading the newspaper as a child and comments on how her reading patterns have changed. Details her schooling, her father's opposition to her becoming a nurse, her subsequent shorthand training and her eventual training as a nurse. Describes her time in the Women's Auxilliary during World War II. Talks about her nursing career, including her time at Lister Private Hospital in Gisborne, nursing in the Australian outback, becoming a Sister at Tauranga Hospital and notes the reasons she did not continue nursing. Describes meeting and marrying Basil (Snow) O'Connor, his background and decision to become an orchardist, their move to Kerikeri and the orchard they took over. Comments on the roads in the North. Gives first impressions of the Kerikeri area. Comments on the many clubs in the area and lists those she became involved with. Talks about the number of Europeans there, particularly Dalmatians and Dutch, and notes that there were not many Maori. Talks about land values and climate. Gives background details of the development of the Kerikeri Public Library and various buildings it was housed in, the people involved, the school room library, introducing the Dewey System and subscription, rental fee, fine and reservation systems. Discusses bequests, donations and Country Library Service book van selections. Mentions Bonny Cron, Isabella Godbert, Dulcie Hutton and Sandra Kemp. Talks about the voluntary nature of the library work and details the work done by the paid library assistant. Talks about the growth in library membership, increase in membership fee and opening hours and popularity of various types of books. Describes the book van visit routine. Mentions the van drivers including Jim Sutherland and describes the end of the book van service. Talks about budget considerations in decisions made about requests and the numbers of books borrowed. Describes young people's library use pattern. Talks about the committee raising money for the new building. Venue - Kerikeri Interviewer(s) - Judith Fyfe Venue - Mrs O'Connor's home at Kerikeri Arrangement: Tape numbers - OHC-002058, OHC-002059 Tape numbers - OHA CLS/ 2734, 2735, 2736 Quantity: 2 C60 cassette(s). 1 printed abstract(s). 1.30 Hours and minutes Duration. Finding Aids: Abstract Available - abstracting complete AB 311. Printed abstract contains photograph of the Kerikeri library, a photograph of Margaret O'Connor with grandaughter Alice and husband Basil dated ca 1987 and a photograph of Margaret O'Connor and son David in Whangarei dated ca 1958. Search dates: 1926 - 1989

Date: 13 April 1989 - 13 Apr 1989

From: NZOHA Country Library Service Oral History Project

By: Godbert, Isabella Phoebe Catriona, 1938-

Reference: OHInt-0058/12

Description: Isabella Phoebe Catriona Godbert (nee Lumgair) gives details of her family background in England and Scotland. Notes the Scottish origin of her names. Describes her childhood and education at 13 different schools because of her father's Air Force job. Mentions the lack of expectation that she would have a tertiary education. Gives details of learning to read at an early age and her reading tastes. Describes her job at the Kerikeri Public Library processing fiction. Notes the categories of books in the library, the nature of the users, membership numbers, subscription system and the impact of volunteers on the costs. Describes her employment history as an au pair, as an officer cadet with the Royal Air Force, as a Kindergarten relief teacher and in the Post Office in New Zealand. Mentions marriage to Derrington Godbert who was in the Air Force and then a teacher. Talks about returning to England for four years and living in Beachlands and then Kerikeri when they returned to New Zealand. Talks about Kerikeri before the kiwifruit boom noting that it had been a poor area and cut off because of bad roads. Discusses changes because of the boom including immigration. Describes the role of the Settlers' Association in the development of the area and in the history of the library. Details the history of library services in the area. Recalls the establishment of the Kerikeri Public Library, the library committee, the architecture of the new building, the problems getting it built, fundraising activities and organising the loan. Describes her work at the library, the volunteer system, ordering books, the system of Council Rates payment and how the paid and unpaid staff work together. Notes that Kerikeri Library is not a free service but that it is possible to subsidise users. Mentions that there are few Maori members of the library. Details the use of the library for blood testing, traffic tests, ambulance centre and meeting rooms. Describes how the library collections and users have changed over the years and notes the importance of the Country Library Service book supply in the early years. Mentions volunteer Bonny Cron. Talks about the library's relationship with the local school, Country Library Service and the National Library and discusses the general development of regional libraries during the 1970s and the impact of the end of the book van service. Describes the day of the book van visit including the role of the book van drivers. Notes that the role of summer holiday student scheme workers and PEP (Project Employment Programme) workers in running the library. Comments on her work as a laboratory assistant and resource librarian at the school. Venue - Kerikeri Interviewer(s) - Judith Fyfe Venue - Mrs Godbert's home at Kerikeri Accompanying material - Printed abstract contains photocopies of minutes from meetings of the Kerikeri Settlers Assocation which mention the library service, dated 1944, 1947, 1960 and 1961. Arrangement: Tape numbers - OHC-002060, OHC-002061 Tape numbers - OHA CLS 2738, 2739, 2740, 2741 Quantity: 2 C60 cassette(s). 1 printed abstract(s). 2 Hours Duration. Finding Aids: Abstract Available - abstracting complete AB 312. Printed abstract contains portrait photograph of Isabella Godbert dated 1965 and a photograph of Isabella Godbert with her husband Derry and children Catriona and Timothy dated 1988. Search dates: 1938 - 1989