Catfish Chronicle, Issue 6, Fall 2024
Falls of Schuylkill Welcomes New Branch Librarian, Jenn Estepp
by Jenna Musket, Chair, Community Outreach and Engagement Committee
On Wednesday, July 31st, I had the pleasure of getting to know our new Branch Librarian, Jennifer “Jenn” Estepp, a little better as she granted me the opportunity to interview her for the Fall issue of the Catfish Chronicle. We had a lovely lunch and chat at Vault and Vine, and so I present to you, dear Friends, some summary highlights from that interview.
Jenn was born in Columbus, Ohio and spent the first twenty-some years of her life there, including college when she went to the Ohio State University where she majored in English. She confessed that she sort of always, maybe, had it in the back of her mind to become a librarian.
“In college I was an English major and the idea of having a job around books in some way was always appealing. I knew I didn’t want to be a teacher. I thought about working in publishing or pursuing a PhD, but none of those options felt exactly right. I worked in a bookstore for a little while, but retail wasn’t quite for me. Eventually, I got a job at the Columbus Metropolitan Library. Although I’d been a patron my whole life, I’d never actually worked in a library and thought it would be a good idea to try it out before committing to graduate school and declaring that this was what I wanted to be. And I had really terrific managers there, who really supported and encouraged me and said that I seemed like I would be a good librarian!”
Jenn lived in Chicago for a while, before she went back to Grad School for a master’s degree in library and information science. At the time, Kent State had a “satellite” program all around the state. After graduating with her Master’s, she moved to New York, where she lived and worked in Queens for a little over a decade.
We talked about how exciting life was living in the “most ethnically and linguistically diverse neighborhood in the U.S.!” Jenn stated that there had to be at least “50 or 60 languages spoken, every cuisine you can think of available, and just a lot going on!” While living in Queens, Jenn was a Children’s Librarian, first at their Central Library and later in one of their branches. She loved youth services very much and sometimes still misses doing story times, along with the relationships that she built with families in that community.
While she shared what a terrific experience that chapter of her life was, after a while, she and her partner, Justin were ready for a change. So, about nine years ago he applied to several grad programs and ended up deciding to do a degree at Drexel. Jenn followed a little while later and eventually got hired by the Free Library.
Her first job with the Free Library of Philadelphia (FLP) was as the Adult/Teen Librarian at the Lawncrest Branch in the Northeast. Then, about six years ago, she moved to a behind-the-scenes role, as a Library Coordinator in Youth Services and Programs (YSP), at the Parkway Central Library. YSP, as it’s known, is in charge of system-wide programs that happen at every single branch – like LEAP (Literacy Enhancement Afterschool Program), and Summer of Wonder, the summer reading program – as well as grant-funded initiatives, both small scale and large.
She admits to being “pretty happy in YSP”, but after doing this for a few years, she started keeping an eye out for other opportunities. One of the nice things about working for a large system like the Free Library is how many different options there are across the board. Jenn stated that “even though I’d never really thought of myself as ‘the management type’ – when the position at Falls of Schuylkill became available, I was pretty interested in it right away. It’s just such a lovely library and has a terrific staff and great community support – things that aren’t true of every location!” Plus, she acknowledged that it offered a much easier commute as she lives in Roxborough.
Having just started this new position on June 24th, I hesitantly asked if she had a vision yet for what she’d like to see at this branch? Given the recent issues with closures due to AC breakdown at the branch, she said, “Right now, I’m just looking forward to us being open again. Beyond that, I’m not sure that my vision for this library has really formed yet. I’ve been spending a lot of time trying to get to know the library and all the things that are specific and unique about it. I want to really understand the Falls of Schuylkill branch and all that entails – the history, the successes, the challenges, the staff, the neighborhood, the community partners – before coming up with a specific vision or plan, per se.” She also mentioned that, philosophically, she believes that a good library is a place where people want to spend time. It is at the heart of the community; is responsive, creative, and welcoming to all; has a good collection of material that people want, along with an interesting and varied slate of programming, and robust staffing and hours. And she stated emphatically, “I would like Falls to be a good library!”
When asked what she loved most about being a librarian, she quickly replied “I love that every day is different. That you get to meet and get to know lots of different people, each with their own unique needs. And I like that much of that interaction can be really meaningful and that people often say “thank you” at the end of it. I like the way that being a librarian is a little bit like being a detective and a little bit like being a teacher. You may not always know the answer, but you know how to go about finding the answer and you get to help others learn how to find them too. You get to be a great generalist – learning a little bit about a lot of different subjects – which helps when you’re playing trivia!” (Ah, Jenn, we will have to keep this in mind as the Community Outreach and Engagement Committee has been discussing the prospects of holding Literary Trivia events).
One question that I thought was ridiculous to ask, but was very curious having an answer(s) to was “do you have a favorite book?” To this, Jenn shared “Not really, or at least not consistently. It changes often and is probably more like a top 25 or 30. I have favorite genres maybe – like literary fiction, mysteries, and memoirs. But my reading tends to be pretty wide and varied… I tend to have at least half a dozen going at a time. But chiefly among them right now is one called Margo’s Got Money Troubles. And I just started one called Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect. It’s a sequel to a book I recently read, Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone and as soon as I finished that one I had to get the sequel! Also, this entire year I’ve been reading War and Peace, through a Substack readalong, where you read one chapter of it a day. That novel has been on my “To Be Read List” for a long time. Doing such a classic on your own can be formidable, so taking it slow in the company of others seemed like a good way to finally get to it.” In talking about Russian classics, I shared with her that I had once read an article in Philadelphia Stories on “writing prompts” by Aimee LaBrie where LaBrie wrote that Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina was inspired by a writing prompt suggested during a Thursday evening writing group that met at the Moscow Library. (A fun fact for a trivia night!)
On touching upon “fun”, I asked her what might be a “fun fact” that many people might not know about her?
Being a proud cat-Mom, she giggled. “Well, I have two cats, but many people know that about me.” When I quickly said the Friends’ don’t, she continued. “Okay, I can pretty easily talk about them. Both of them were rescues. One cat, Iggy (Ignatius) – he’s an orange and white, very outgoing and social – we sometimes call him puppycat, because his behavior can be more like a dog than your average cat. And Dot (Dottie)-she looks a bit like Russian Blue or Chartreux cat – dark greyish blue, with big expressive eyes. She tends to be a little more reserved, and sort of take things in before making any big moves. And it’s funny, I like to joke that their different personalities reflect my boyfriend and I, with Justin being more like Iggy and me being more like Dottie.”
In moving to a more serious topic, I asked her “What do you see as the role of libraries in the 21st century?” She thoughtfully responded, “Contrary to what some might think (and have been thinking for decades!) I don’t think that libraries are going anywhere. People still love and support them and people still like books, reading them and browsing them. We remain a place that’s open and free, here to provide space and resources and opportunities – access to stories and information in whatever form they might take. We’re a safe space, physically and intellectually, where you have the chance to delve into whatever interests you – that lifelong learning. We’re a place to build community and make connections with others. And we play a role in terms of information literacy – there’s so much at everyone’s fingertips these days, on the internet and on social media – that figuring out how to navigate it and what voice is actually providing good, correct information, can be a real challenge at times.” In light of the cultural dynamics about “alternative facts” or recent media posts about “generative A.I.” I felt assured that Falls of Schuylkill is in good hands in terms of our new librarian being, here, to help patrons, Friends, neighbors and members of the East Falls community navigate “all that is out there.”
We wrapped up our time together with Jenn sharing her love and passion for satiating “curiosity – and being interested in and willing to explore and learn more about the world around us. “
Next time, you are curious, have a question, or want to check out a book on your to be read list – stop by Falls of Schuylkill to say hello to our new Branch Librarian!