Hannah Felsbourg
21 May 2024
Ridley College librarian Ruth Weatherlake has recently retired after 32 years of service.
In her decades at Ridley, Ms Weatherlake has witnessed – and supported – many changes at the college.
She considers it an honour to have contributed to preparing students for Christian life and ministry in her role as librarian.
Ms Weatherlake’s journey with Ridley began in 1986 when she enrolled as a theological student. At first, she was not sure what she wanted to do upon graduating.
Ridley were looking for someone with a theology degree to fill the new role of theological librarian at the college and one of Ms Weatherlake’s friends had been approached about it.
“She said, ‘It’s not the job for me, but I think it’s the job for you, Ruth.’ And something in me just went click,” Ms Weatherlake said.
Ms Weatherlake valued her everyday interactions with the Ridley community, particularly the satisfaction of helping students and faculty find the precise resources they need.
Read more: Ridley’s free study course to help Christians better understand Bible, theology
When she took on the role in 1992, she was the sole librarian managing the library with a card catalogue system.
A couple of years later she assisted in transitioning to an automated library system and the team has grown to have three librarian positions.
“You know, for me it was the best job in the world because it fitted my skills and the training that I had,” she said.
She feels privileged to have played a role to help equip students and others for Christian life and their future ministries.
She shared that a small way she helped make students feel welcome was to encourage them to bring coffee and other drinks into the library which made it a more hospitable place to study.
In retirement, Ms Weatherlake plans to continue her active involvement in her local church, spend time with friends and family including her granddaughter, and explore volunteer opportunities.
She deeply values the connections she made at Ridley and hopes to maintain these relationships into the future.
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