— Daily Freeman-Journal photo by Anne Blankenship Kerry Kurtz, the new reference librarian at Kendall Young Library, has traveled the world for education and career. She said this is the first time she’s settled in a position in the Midwest

Kerry Kurtz said she’s looking forward to seeing snow in Webster City this winter, something the West Coast native may not have seen often.

“This won’t be my first snow, but I’m looking forward to it,” she said.“I wasn’t really prepared for the cooler weather here.”

The colder temperatures had just started to move into the state when she talked with the Daily Freeman-Journal last week.

She just moved to Webster City from California to take the reference librarian position at Kendall Young Library. She grew up in the Bay Area and received her undergraduate degree in Las Vegas, and then took a year of law school in New York.

“But I decided I didn’t really want to be a lawyer,” Kurtz said.

She then moved to Germany and worked on a U.S. military base. There, she met many of the soldiers coming back for R and R from Afghanistan. She decided she’d like to see that country, so she took a job there.

She just completed graduate school at the University of Strathclyde in Glasglow, Scotland. The university has reciprocity with the American Library Association.

“I went over there because I’ll take any opportunity to travel and live in another country,” she said. She’s lived in three different countries as well as nine different states.

Though she’s traveled extensively, this is the first time she’s lived in the Midwest. She said the posted library position was the first she had seen with everything she wanted in a job.

“There’s cataloging, combined with reference and then there’s some genealogy mixed in, too,” she said. The variety and opportunities to interact with the public were also appealing.

“Half of my time, I spend here at the reference desk, helping people find materials and books, and or helping them with computer issues,” she said.

“And I have the privilege of having every book that comes into the library pass by my desk and I make sure they are in our system,” she said. “My reading list is getting ridiculously long.”

Kurtz said she’s found Webster City to be a welcoming town.

“It’s true what you see on TV shows about small towns — everybody really does know everyone or have a connection,” she said chuckling.“Everybody has been so nice and I’m starting to get to know the community.”

She encouraged the public to stop by the reference desk to introduce themselves.

“I want people to come in and say hello. Bring your questions about books or share a favorite recipe with me,” Kurtz said.