HARDWICK – As head librarian, Diane Grenkow tries to cultivate a welcoming environment. With its accessibility issues, the historic Jeudevine Public Library hasn’t made it easy.
“You can’t get in here if you can’t navigate a set of steps,” Grenkow said. “Once inside, everything is too close together, and the bathroom is down a winding set of stairs into the basement.”

Soon that will change, with the completion of a $3.3 million dollar expansion set to open by March.
Grenkow says the new layout will create a more welcoming atmosphere, literally.
“Now you walk in, and you are faced with computers, and you have to wander around to find one of us,” she said. “I’m looking forward to the new building, where you will come in the front door and be greeted by a librarian right away.”
The notion of coming into a warm, inviting, and safe space is Grenkow’s guiding light. After all, librarians make the place what it is.
Grenkow is a native Californian who has lived in Vermont for 35 years, and in Hardwick for 24. She left high school when she was 16 to pursue travel, eventually ending up in Montreal. After her city stint, she ended up at Goddard College in Plainfield and never looked back.
Grenkow has been the library director for two years and prior to that worked as the youth librarian for eight years. That is not her only library experience. She worked at the Kellogg Hubbard Library in Montpelier, as well as the Eliot D. Pratt Library at Goddard College.
Her day-to-day can look different, depending on what the library has going on that month.
“On any given day, I might be at the front desk helping patrons, cataloging books, giving recommendations for books or movies, helping patrons use computers or their devices and answering phone calls,” she said. “We do a lot of copying, scanning and faxing for people.”
In addition to working on physical accessibility, Grenkow wants to make technology more available as well. Being a center for reliable internet access in rural communities is critical.
“Last week, I turned in a grant to allow us to buy new computers and audio/visual equipment,” she said. “I have my fingers crossed that we get that because our computers are pretty quirky at this point! I plan, promote, and carry out programming for adults.”
Beyond physical equipment and renovations, Grenkow says her favorite part of the job is working with the people of the community.
“I get to work with a lot of great people, from the staff to the town employees, the trustees and the public,” she said. “There is never a dull day at the library; every day brings different challenges and stories.”
She said that libraries and librarians are integral to any community, rural or urban.
“We are one of the few places where you don’t have to do anything to be there,” she said. “You don’t have to pay any money, you don’t have to buy anything, you don’t even have to register and be a patron. The library is a gathering place, and there are many ways to be a part of it. You can just come and be here.”
Grenkow knows how special Hardwick and its people are, and she wanted this job because of it. It is her place of work and life. She and those that make up the library visitors make Hardwick.
“My kids grew up going to this library. I was a patron at the Jeudevine long before I was the youth librarian,” she said.
“I would be happy doing this work anywhere, but I feel really lucky to be doing it in Hardwick, where I live, have friends, and feel like a part of the fabric that makes up this place.”
Kate Lewton writes for the Community News Service, a University of Vermont journalism internship, on assignment for The Hardwick Gazette.