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ISSN 1443-0568 | no. 38 | April 1999


NLA at work

Farewell Averill Edwards

Averill Edwards

On 29 January this year we said farewell to Averill Edwards, director of the Information Services Section, who retired after 30 years at the National Library. Averill's retirement was marked by a dinner at the Lobby restaurant that was attended by past and present colleagues, and by a morning tea at the Library.

During her time here Averill worked in a number of areas including interlibrary loans, selection, the Policy Secretariat, and reference. She managed the Information Services Section from 1989. A highlight of her career was a term as chief liaison librarian in North America when she represented the Library from her location at the Australian Embassy in Washington.

Averill was a loyal and active supporter of ALIA throughout her career, serving as national president in 1989. She also served on several committees and assisted with the planning of a number of national conferences.

As director of the Information Services Section, Averill played a critical role in the transition of the Library's reference services from their `collections' base to an additional range of electronic information services that involve wide-scale use of the Library's Web server to accommodate the needs of remote users. Averill was particularly concerned about the national role of the Library and about services provided to researchers, and she was successful in developing and implementing effective policies in both of these areas. During the period just before her retirement, she was responsible for managing a complex project aimed at developing a simplified Web-based pathway for users to follow when accessing information in print and electronic sources.

Averill was respected for her unwavering commitment and loyalty to the work of the National Library and to librarianship generally. She could be a fierce advocate for issues and ideas she felt strongly about but was always ready to listen to and consider the views of others. Averill's management style was characterised by good humour and friendliness.

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Please address any comments and enquiries to The Editor, Gateways: lkirwan@nla.gov.au

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