Dee Kramer
I’ve worked in libraries as a
media specialist for over twenty-three years, and I can’t think of a more pleasant
place to spend one’s time. There is a constant stream of books, magazines, databases, and visual material to review. I love reading all sorts of books: classics,
nonfiction, fiction, mysteries, or historical novels. I can vividly recall when
I learned to read by myself as a child. Finally, I no longer had to rely on
someone to read me a story.
The public library was my
favorite place as a child. The sense of orderliness and peace seeped into my
being and has not left me to this day. Each week I would check out as many
books as the librarian allowed.
The book Heidi by Johanna Spyri instilled a longing in me to visit
far away places. While living on the plains of Iowa, I dreamed of seeing the
Alps in Switzerland. That dream did come true on one of my visits to Europe.
But, I didn’t see Heidi or the grandfather!
I attended Calvin College in
Grand Rapids, Michigan and earned a B. A. degree from the University of Sioux
Falls in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
I live in Orange City, Iowa
with my husband Henry. We are the parents of three adult children, and we have
six grandchildren, who are the joy of my life. My hobbies include traveling,
biking, photography, genealogy, art and reading. I conduct trolley tours during
the annual Tulip Festival.
This is a favorite quote by
Katherine Paterson: "The wonderful thing about books is that they allow
us to enter imaginatively into someone else's life. And when we do that, we
learn to sympathize with other people. But the real surprise is that we also
learn truths about ourselves, about our own lives, that somehow we hadn't been
able to see before.