Announcing the January Employees of the Month – Brenda Newman and Jessi Ruge! 

When OC Public Libraries formed an ad-hoc craft committee when library branches shut-down to the public due to the pandemic, Brenda and Jessi volunteered to be part of that committee. Little did they know they’d be asked to take the lead in creating online how-to craft content.  Since the committee’s inception they have directed a group of crafters in creating innovative, professional looking craft tutorials for library patrons of all ages. The craft videos and slides, which are posted on social media and the OCPL website, receive many positive engagements and comments from patrons such as “your craft videos are exemplary.”  By creating take home craft kits, the committee has further offered support for branch back to school nights, outreach events, the Lunch at the Library program and now system wide craft of the month kits, thereby helping OCPL serve the public with excellence.

Brenda and Jessi not only create their own craft videos, they also mentor other staff. They created tutorials and templates to help staff learn graphic software programs and to learn video editing best practices. Under their leadership the committee has been so successful that the ad hoc committee is still in place and quickly becoming an integral part of OCPL programming and outreach.

Brenda and Jessi graciously accepted the leadership role of the committee when asked, despite the large task before them. Though the scope of the committee has unexpectedly expanded, they continue to do a fantastic job with a positive, can-do attitude on top of their regular branch responsibilities.

Congratulations Brenda and Jessi!