Dell Hewey

She was active in the Oklahoma Library Association and the American Library Association throughout her career, serving in many important ways. Dell believes that she learned much more from libraries in the state than she contributed, but many would disagree. She recounted the main things she learned from Oklahoma libraries this way:

I learned not to judge people by how they look because the strangest among us can turn out to be the smartest and most well informed. I learned to be patient with people who seem upset. Very often librarians find out that the person is enduring unbelievable hardships and has turned to the library for help. I learned how grateful people are when you try to help them. Many return to tell you they solved the problem or made an A on the paper, and then give you the credit for their success. I learned from working in a community college that the next generation will make us proud And I learned that librarians are special people who are hard working and willing to stand up for our right to information.