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02/07/2023 01:17 PMYou could say that Killingworth Library’s new director, Ben Sodergren, had been biding his time to land what he describes as his “dream job.”
“I went to Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont, originally and got a degree in computer digital forensics. That is sort of an investigative job where you work with police to find evidence on people’s computers,” Ben says. “It’s an interesting field.”
Ultimately, no matter how interesting, Ben says that it wasn’t the career path he wanted.
“There are only two real options: going into law enforcement work and work with local police or state departments or into federal work with the FBI or NSA,” says Ben. “The other option is going into private cyber security work, but neither of those really appealed to me. I’d liked doing what I did in school, but I just didn’t see myself making a career of it.”
Thankfully, his dad is the one who asked the big question that set him on his path to the Killingworth Library.
“I couldn’t see myself working my way up from a traffic cop. It’s just not the sort of work I saw myself doing. And frankly, when I thought about doing private cyber security companies, it made me terribly depressed,” Ben laughs. “I just didn’t have the passion for it, so I sort of spun my wheels for a brief time trying to figure out what I wanted to do, and then eventually my dad asked me, ‘If you could pick one thing to do in life, what would your dream job be?’ So, I said, ‘It’s kind of ridiculous, but I’d like to be a librarian.’”
That admission got Ben thinking about returning to his studies, this time to obtain his master’s degree in library science from Southern Connecticut State University.
“I got my degree in December of 2021. I landed a job at the Waterbury Republican American newspaper as their librarian. It is a very different experience than working in a public library. It is more working with the public and journalists. It’s more like an information-gathering job, more reference work,” Ben explains. “It was gratifying working with both the public and with the paper’s journalists. It was interesting work. But ultimately, I knew it was something I wouldn’t be doing forever. I really liked it while I was there, but happy to be back in Killingworth.”
Ben says being back in his hometown and serving his neighbors and friends is an incredible feeling. He says familiarity is one of the most important things to his return to Killingworth.
“I’ve been here in varying capacities, and I know people here. I worked on the desk for a long time, and so I think I’ve gotten to know our volunteers and our regulars throughout my time here,” Ben says. “I like knowing what people in the community are interested in and being able to make recommendations. It’s such a beautiful small-town library. You might be able to make more money in a larger city library, but that’s not the sort of work that interests me. I like being here in town, being in a small town, and knowing everyone.”
Not surprisingly, Ben loves to read. His tastes run to science fiction and fantasy reader. Ben also loves to take advantage of the local trails and spend time outdoors when he can.
“I like to read a number of subjects, but I like classic sci-fi, Arthur C. Clarke,” he says.
Ben also says he is interested in several new ideas and designs for the library once the Library Board gives him the ok.
“We have a number of spring and summer programs that we are in the process of planning and have a lot of exciting programming coming. This summer, our theme, which is part of the national summer reading theme, is ‘Finding Your Voice.’ So, we are doing a lot of programs that explore nontraditional takes on communication and expressing one’s self,” Ben says. “As part of that, we are doing music programs, art programs. We are also having Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center [of Mystic] coming to do something that will be like an animal voices program, where we will present sounds that animals make. We’ve had them before and it is always a great and successful program. So, that is exciting.”
Ben says he’s also excited to follow the direction of other local libraries, possibly branching out to include more nontraditional collections, like the Library of Things.
“That is tentative, but we hope to find the space to be able to provide that for the library,” says Ben. “We also would like to work at upgrading our outdoor services [and] upgrading the Wi-Fi. We would like to have more amenities out in our backyard to better utilize this space.”
Ben says that the volunteers, of which he was one as well, are the most critical component of the library. Without their help, operations at the library would be near impossible.
“I was really lucky. Things kind of lined up for me perfectly. I feel very lucky,” says Ben. “I didn’t really want to let myself believe that this would happen; it was something that I dreamed about. I did sort of dare to hope it would happen one day, but this certainly happened much sooner than I thought it would,” says Ben. “I am so lucky to be there that I think I’ll be here for a long time.”
While Ben settles into his new role as director, he heaps praise and thanks on the library’s staff and Board of Directors.
“I would like to thank [former Library Director] Laurie [West Prichard] definitely. She has been a great resource in the time that we have cross-trained together, and also Tammy [Eustis] as well. Tammy is assistant director and was previously the director for a long time as well, and she knows everything about the job and is going to be an excellent person to work with moving forward,” Ben says. “Everyone in this library, the volunteers, the board, and the staff are so great at their jobs and have been just wonderful people to work with. We’re unique in that our circulation desk is manned almost entirely by volunteers, and we really couldn’t do it without them. They are all wonderful people.”