Bainbridge Public Library board announces scholarship awards

Published 10:41 am Monday, June 29, 2015

The Bainbridge Public Library board of directors recently announced three winners of the 2015 Cynthia Lord Harrison Library Scholarship.

Carina Langstraat, Meredith Tummeti and Erika Miller were awarded the scholarship.

Established by Bainbridge Public Library in 2008 in honor of Cynthia “Cindy” Harrison, beloved former Bainbridge branch manager, the fund helps aspiring librarians further their professional careers.

Awardees must either volunteer or work for the Kitsap Regional Library and must be accepted or enrolled in an accredited, graduate-level library and information science program.

As a first-time winner, Langstraat, a volunteer at the Bainbridge Library, will receive a $1,000 scholarship.

“I’ve always thought of librarians as being superheroes: defenders of intellectual freedom, providers of powerful information, and passionate community builders,” Langstraat said.

“I’m grateful to the staff of the Bainbridge branch for their generous support and encouragement. I plan to use this scholarship to offset my tuition costs,” she added.

Tummeti and Miller, as second-time awardees, will each receive a $500 scholarship.

“This is the first time in my life I am being educated while actually working in the same field, and it is a new and exciting experience for me,” Tummeti said.

“The things I learn on the job or during lessons seem to flow both ways, and it makes for a much more practical learning environment for me. Being able to work part-time and attend school part-time, still allows me to parent my 5-year-old daughter and navigate life changes,” she said. “This scholarship helps me to realize all of these components.”