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By BOOKIE BALOGH
Photo by PI ILLIOS
 October’s Volunteer of the Month, Cindy Elkhart, is hardly a stranger to those who frequent the Information Archipelago. In her own modest and quiet way, she has made a significant impact on the way that libraries use SL in real life, and on the way that librarians and libraries serve the SL community.
Elkhart began her SL career after her husband, Rocky Vallejo (rl: Bill Sowers), tested the water and urged her to come in. They met Lorelei Junot and Abbey Zenith, and the rest, as they say, is history. Almost anywhere where there is a function, you can discern Cindy’s presence. She makes signs, assists in putting on programs, and helps to build collections, among other things.
Important to Elkhart is the Genealogy Center. She and her colleagues work there to put on programs and displays, and bring in speakers. As there are other genealogy-focused groups in SL, she tries to work with them whenever possible, and the target audience for the Genealogy Center is hardly restricted to the library community – its goal is to reach anyone with an interest in genealogy.
Rachelville is the program closest to Elkhart’s heart. She assists in putting on programs and displays; the programs focus on book talks and children’s literature in particular.
In real life, Elkhart works in Acquisitions at the Topeka- Shawnee County System in Kansas. That library system has a SL presence, and she is involved in publicizing SL in real life. The attempt is to illustrate in SL what the real life library is like, with its resources, collections and staff.
Elkhart enjoys arts and crafts, both in SL and in real life. She particularly enjoys needlepoint and knitting, as well as the genealogy interest that is reflected in her activities in SL. With several grown children out of the house, she has a cat and a dog. Of course, with Vallejo, she has two houses – one in SL and one in real life!
For Elkhart, the significance of SL is “Meeting the people and working with them…You get to make friends and work with people from all over the world. It is a great place to learn new things from each other.” She very much enjoys being part of the SL library community, and has many friends here. Clearly, that feeling is reciprocated!!
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by BOOKIE BALOGH
September’s Volunteer of the Month is none other than the peripatetic Rocky Vallejo – the SL resident and librarian without whose presence and efforts Second Life would be much the poorer.
As one of the nominators said, "Rocky always steps into help when he sees a need in Second Life, whether it is for a newcomer who appears lost or to help out a colleague. Rocky's congenial personality makes everyone feel welcome without ever appearing condescending (even though he is so knowledgeable in SL skills). Rocky's enthusiasm is contagious and the Alliance Virtual Library has benefited from countless hours of commitment from this amazing volunteer."
Photo by Bookie Balogh
Rocky’s journey in SL began in 2006, when the State Librarian of Kansas, Christie Brandau, spent some time in SL and returned enthusiastic about the potential of SL for the library. She very aptly turned to Vallejo (RL: Bill Sowers), whose primary responsibility in SL became that of librarian at the State Library of Kansas Virtual Branch on Cybrary City II. He said, “That is my primary raison d’être in SL... to represent my library and promote my state.” This task, for many people, would be enough. However, not for Vallejo, who is also manager of Cybrary City II under ALS, will be one of the triumvirate who will manage the Community Virtual Library (CVL) after the end of the year (see article about the CVL elsewhere in this issue); co-manager of Mythica and Rachelville on Imagination Island; head of collections and co-manager of Stonewall Learning Center on Information Island; and supervisory of the AVL catalog. In his spare time, Vallejo also serves on the reference desk.
In his role as librarian of the Kansas Virtual Library branch, after building a small building and "blowing it up two times, or was it three?," he acquired a larger parcel on Cybrary City II and built a building that accommodates a sizable information resource about Kansas, agriculture, business, tourism, and anything that relates in any way to Kansas and Kansan interests. The library enjoys visits of from 5-20 people per day, and expects that number to increase over time.
In real life, Rocky is married to Cindy Elkhart (RL: Diana Sowers), with whom he shares both a real-life and an SL home. They have four children. Rachel died of leukemia when she was seven years old, and Rachelville is named in her memory.
When asked about what is of primary importance to him in SL, Vallejo said “the people – we have met so many wonderful people here, and have met them in real life as well, librarians and non-librarians alike.”
Marimar Berchot, AVL Volunteer Coordinator says “We all know how much Rocky does for all of us and how much he contributes to our efforts at AVL. He is always willing to help out without any hesitation and is available to guide us towards new efforts and out of the box solutions. I am very proud to be able to know Rocky and I am very grateful for all his help and enthusiasm.”
Dulcie Mills, RezLibris Publisher and owner of Rainbow Gardens Pet Memorial Center added, "Rocky is always helpful to everyone. I am particularly thankful for the assistance he gave me in opening Rainbow Gardens. When he heard that I had an idea for starting a pet memorial center in Second Life, he stepped in and helped me find a place for one on Cybrary City II and he, Cindy, and friend BrianA Corleone donated and built several items there, too. He's the type of guy who enjoys helping people. I consider him a friend as well as a colleague, and I know lots of others do, as well."
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Text and photo by BOOKIE BALOGH
 August's Volunteer of the Month comes as no surprise to those who know her. Leeorie Alter (RL: Lorie Hyten) a dedicated, talented and warm resident of SL, whose recognition as VOM is well-deserved. A highly-regarded librarian with many friends and colleagues throughout both SL and RL, Alter's contributions as a volunteer have been many and varied.
When asked how she began her life in SL, and especially in volunteering, Alter said "I didn't do anything for a number of months; I wanted to see what SL was all about and then decide where to focus my attention." Having examined SL and what the library profession is doing here, she has left all preliminary doubts far behind.
Beginning as a volunteer on the reference desk, Alter has found roles in event-planning, as news editor of RezLibris, and as one of the stimulating forces behind the Innovation Infoisland. Always open to new ideas and different ways of offering library services to patrons, she has concentrated on the role of the public library, both in SL and real life. Her contributions as a writer, editor and proofreader for RezLibris were critically important in the early days of the journal, as were her successful efforts to bring new people into the endeavor.
Alter's RL library has a presence in SL as well. Alter loves her job, and is particularly concerned about the ways in which public libraries can use SL to better serve their communities. She recognizes this goal as an unusually difficult one, since unlike academic libraries, public library clienteles are not in a position to be readily encouraged to use SL for educational or other purposes, unlike college and university students. She works with other librarians both in SL and RL to push forward the mission of the public library.
Alter's favorite extracurricular activity, aside from reading, is caring for her horses. Googling her will show you images of her with her favorite animals.
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Last Updated on Tuesday, 01 September 2009 18:50 |
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Photos and Text by BOOKIE BALOGH
Since we were not able to include a volunteer of the month in our last issue, we are doubly honored this month to cover profiles of both the June and July VOM’s: Alice Burgess and Adra Letov. Alice Burgess: A Pillar of the Community
Alice Burgess’ resume of Second Life activities is reminiscent of a Who’s Who of Second Life – her experience includes the Main Grid, Teen Grid, the Alliance Virtual Library (AVL), the University of Kentucky (UK) sim, the Caledon Library…. And one can go on and on!
Aptly described in the press release announcing her selection as Volunteer of the Month as a ‘behind-the-scenes’ person, Burgess first volunteered for several AVL projects, and in particular, started out with the Caledon Library and Eye4You on the teen grid, experiences that she described as invaluable for a librarian starting out in SL. She has also been active in the college fair on the teen grid, held both in 2008 and 2009, and has worked with admissions people who have visited the fair, as well as non-admissions people who are the SL liaisons at their institutions. Putting up displays and making contact with attendees were major contributions Burgess made to the success of the college fairs.
Focusing on supporting events, Burgess explores the potential of machinima to bring information to SL residents. As she says, an exhibit can be extended long after the occasion for the exhibit has ended by creating a machinima of it and making it available within SL and on YouTube.
UK now has an island in SL, and Burgess spends much of her time there, both in the library and elsewhere. She uses her experience with AVL and the Caledon Library to create exhibits at the UK library, and then make machinima of the exhibits before they are dismantled. She works with faculty, some of whom are using SL to teach credit courses. UK obviously appreciates her skills; she has just completed a six-month SL sabbatical. She was able to explore, read and learn more about SL, without the normal burden of job responsibilities. Now that she’s back, Burgess says “I try to balance my institutional work with AVL and librarianship in SL generally. Involvement with the broader community is important.” And involved with the broader community she is! She is working with the Education track for the August Second Life Community Convention (SLCC), soliciting proposals and putting the program together for an exciting meeting.
In real life, Burgess is on the web administration group at the UK Library and is also responsible for electronic theses and dissertations. In her spare time she enjoys being ‘crafty’ – knitting and other handiwork appeals to her. With two teenage daughters (one in college and the other in high school), she is trying to persuade them that her participation in SL is ‘cool’ rather than ‘geeky.’ A recent news program about SL helped to persuade her daughters that this world is something special.
According to Burgess, “Virtual worlds are growing and becoming more useful.” It’s obvious that with volunteers such as Burgess, this trend will not only continue but accelerate!
Adra Letov: A Thoughtful Scholar
Choosing a Volunteer of the Month for July wasn’t a difficult task. Adra Letov (Diane Nahl in real life) is a constant and prolific contributor to the growth and activity of the library world in Second Life, particularly focusing on library school students and their support. Her original entry into SL came about because she was writing an encyclopedia article on the 'user-center revolution,’ updating an article published in the Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science. She had read about ALA's island and decided that she must discover how that worked. It took her several tries before she realized that she needed to join SL, download the appropriate software, and create an avatar. Then, as she says, “When I finally logged in, I spent weeks pinned against a railing on the landing island, unable to move, so I thought.” But she persisted, finally attended an ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) meeting on the ALA Island, and discovered a revelation: “that real librarians are dong real library work in a virtual world!”
Letov's primary project in SL is the LIS student union, designed to be a place open to all LIS and related fields, and created to form a synergy between LIS programs, librarians and educators. Although she says that the student union is still in its infancy, it’s located just behind the Information Island reference desk and is worth a visit.
Adra has been a mainstay of many SL library activities. She joined many groups and some committees for events and projects, such as the LIS Career Fair, VWLEM orientations, the ASIST Island for SIG USE, the silent auction fundraiser, Innovation Info Island development, and also the summer picnics. As a faculty member at the University of Hawaii, she also works on the University’s island coordinating events.
Letov came into librarianship in real life as a reference/instruction librarian. Following the acquisition of her Ph.D. at the University of Hawaii with an interdisciplinary degree in Communication and Information Science, she became a faculty member at that school, focusing on information literacy. Having discovered SL, she is now bringing students in regularly, trying to build a virtual world area in her program.
In her spare time - in real life – Letov enjoys swimming, walking the beach at dawn, and hanging out with her neighbors. In SL, she and her husband have a house on the water to which they enjoy making improvement. She also frequents the Jazz Cat and enjoys being with her friends in various sims. Letov says that there is “still so much to learn. ‘I am only an egg’ in SL (taken from Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land). Being in SL with the AVL members has been so inspiring, and I've made wonderful friends and met so many new colleagues. There is a feeling of continuous growth and expansion. I'm proud that our field has so many innovators working at the forefront of virtual world education and honored to be among them.”
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Waldron Rhino, (real life: Walter Giesbrecht), Volunteer of the Month for November, is initially hard pressed to explain why this honor has been bestowed on him. According to him, he joined Second Life long before he actually became active, just to see what it was like. Then, in early 2008, a colleague from a nearby university came to his library to give a talk about SL and libraries, and his interest was piqued.
