Sonya Cramer, who served as circulation manager and public services coordinator for the Lititz Public Library until she retired at the end of 2019, gained a lot of knowledge and experience during her 21 years with the organization.
Cramer shared some of her wisdom at a party given in her honor in early December 2019. "During my farewell speech at my luncheon, I said, 'A library is a growing entity,'" said Cramer. "(A library) is always changing, evolving, and growing. If you don't plan at the beginning for the future, you won't go very far."
Beginning her library career in 2002 when she went from volunteering at the former Lititz Library location at 302 Broad St. to becoming full time, Cramer has seen the library change and evolve, as it moved to a dedicated building at 651 Kissel Hill Road, Lititz.
"Once we moved here, we were dealing with what - to us - was a tremendous (number) of patrons every day," said Cramer, who noted that the library went from about 100 visitors to as many as 700 a day. "We were the shiny new library, so everybody wanted to come and see us."
Cramer said that for a time, the new library methods of operation were similar to the previous locations, only at a faster pace. But more changes were on the way.
"One of the first big changes was offering internet access computers for the public," recalled Cramer, who said that the library had changed to a computerized checkout and inventory system before moving. "After we were here a few years, that was not adequate," she said, remembering that the next change put all the libraries in Lancaster County on the same newer and more up-to-date computerized system. "Now it's all done from the central office of the Lancaster County libraries," she said.
Moving to the larger library was followed by a season of growth. "The collection grew," said Cramer, recalling that the entire children's collection from the Broad Street library would have fit in what is now the story time room. With more patrons, the library budget expanded. Not only did the library purchase more books, but it also expanded children and adult programs.
"We do a monthly concert, and the Lititz Historical Foundation events are always full," said Cramer, who added that an astronomy club and Civil War roundtable meet monthly at the library.
The type of work that Cramer performed changed over the two decades she worked at the library as well. Using barcodes has made the work less physical and information more easily accessible than in the days of the card catalog. "With one swipe, I can see the whole record of the book," said Cramer, who noted that the publishing date, language, illustrators, and more are easily available. "In the old days of having a card catalog, (we had) six individual cards for each item. I can't imagine having that now," she said.
Perhaps the most drastic evolution has been the disappearance of physical books. "The biggest change in library use is that a lot of it is now online," said Cramer, who noted that the rapid changes in information make this a necessity. She recalled a recent patron request to use an encyclopedia. "By the time encyclopedias are researched, edited, and printed, they are already out of date," she said. "Even with the yearly updates," she said, adding, "The internet has changed how people research books to read. They put books on hold on our website. They are told by email to come pick up the book when it is ready. That's lots of change."
In her retirement, Cramer plans to spend time gardening, working on downsizing her home, and traveling with her husband and family. In addition, she will volunteer for the library and with the Friends of the Lititz Library. Originally from Juniata County, Cramer has lived in a number of places including Georgia and New York, but she has grown to love Lititz, and she said she will miss seeing her co-workers each day.
"I have been part of a growing library, and I am proud of the work we have all done," she said.
Readers who would like more information about the library may visit http://www.lititzlibrary.org.
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