Thelma Teeter stood behind the imposing, white-marble directional desk at the Harold Washington Library Center one recent Monday afternoon. As a succession of visitors walked across the lobby and came up to the 10-foot wide desk, she greeted each with the same words: “Can I help you?”
A variety of questions came back: A messenger asked where to deliver a couple of videos. A young woman wanted to know the location of the nearest ladies room. Others inquired as to where to find various collections of books.
“Does the library have Internet access?” asked one woman, voicing one of the most frequent questions. “Yes, on floors three, four and five,” Teeter responded.
This scene is repeated between 1 and 3 p.m. each Monday and Thursday afternoon, which is when Teeter volunteers at the directional desk.
Teeter begins each shift in the Office of Events and Marketing on the Chicago public library’s lower level.
“That’s where we sign in, sign out and get our jackets,” she said, referring to the wine-colored jackets that the volunteers wear.
After signing in and donning her jacket, she goes immediately to the directional desk, where she dispenses directions and information to library patrons for the next two hours.
She always relieves a volunteer and in turn is usually relieved by another volunteer at 3 p.m. If no volunteer is scheduled to come in after her shift, she puts up a sign on the desk that refers those with inquiries to the reference librarian on the third floor.
After drawing a smile or laugh from each visitor, Teeter asks what subject he or she is seeking. She then gives the patron a map of the library and shows how the library is organized by subject area.
“For instance, if someone is interested in music, they have to go to the 8th floor. I tell them they start with the up escalator (on the opposite side of the lobby) and can switch to the elevator on the third floor.”
Not all questions are about the location of books, however.
“They say, `I hear you have free passes to the museums.’ And I say, `Yes, we do. You have to go down on the corridor on my right to Film & Video, and ask them for the museum passes you’re interested in.’ “
Perhaps the most common question regards the location of the nearest restroom. Teeter often responds by asking if the patrons are entering or leaving the library. If they’re entering, she refers them to the washrooms on the upper floor where they’re going; if they’re leaving, she refers them to the lower level.
“Unfortunately, there are no bathrooms on the main floor, but there are on every other floor,” Teeter said. She directs them down the corridor to Film & Video, where they’ll find escalators to the lower level.
To aid visitors, Teeter freely hands out an array of printed material. One is the library map; one side shows subject areas by floor while the other offers a variety of facts about the library. Another is a self-guided tour, which introduces visitors to the building’s exterior, lobby and each floor.
Other handouts include a monthly calendar of events at the library, as well as similar event calendars for the Cultural Center and Daley Center.
Teeter finds her work rewarding in many ways. “I like being around books and people,” she said. “We get the whole range of people, from all walks of life. And that’s also interesting. Some people come in on their lunch hours, and they’re in a hurry. `Just tell me how I can get to blank.’ Other people want to talk a lot. Unfortunately, when they’re at the desk, there often are also people there who need information.”
At these times, she tries to diplomatically accommodate everyone, but those needing directions or having questions about the library have to be given priority.
Teeter, who lives in the Dearborn Park community, also derives gratification from feeling she is giving something back to the community.
“Chicago has been good to me,” she said. “And I’m proud to be a native of this city.
“To be able to work in a library as outstanding as this one is gives me pleasure. And it does matter to me that I can be of assistance in helping people make their way around the library.”
Teeter has volunteered since October 1991, the month the library opened. As a prospective volunteer, she interviewed with a librarian.
During the interview, she mentioned that for most of her career she had worked for textbook publisher Scott Foresman, a division of Pearson Education.
“That made a big difference to her (the librarian),” Teeter said. “She had heard of the company and she knew it was an education publisher, so she thought I’d be a good candidate to be a volunteer.”
After being selected, she and other new volunteers went through a three-week orientation. The course helped orient the volunteers to the layout of the library.
Teeter is a dependable and conscientious volunteer, said Mario Alonso, director of events and marketing.
“She’s very active and has a dynamic personality,” Alonso said. “She’s always very proactive in offering comments on improving volunteer services. She’s always here; you can always count on her to lend a hand.”
The center, 400 S. State St., is considered to be the largest public library building in the world. It has 756,640 square feet and more than 70 miles of shelving. Its collection contains more than 6 million books and periodicals.
Approximately 50 volunteers work at the center. “Volunteers provide directional assistance to visitors and lead the architectural tours of the library,” Alonso said. “They also help with special events.”
Teeter grew up in the Hyde Park community on the South Side and graduated from Hyde Park High School. She attended Wilson Junior College (now Kennedy King College), on the South Side for a year, then transferred to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She left the university after a year and returned to Chicago, where she enrolled in a business college in the Loop.
“It was a five-month course, where I learned shorthand,” she said. “I already knew typing from high school but I sharpened my skills. They had an employment office, and that’s how I got hired at Scott Foresman.”
She worked as a customer-service representative, first downtown and then in Glenview after it moved, for 29 years. After leaving the company, she worked as a secretary for a couple of other companies based in Chicago until her retirement at 62.
Teeter intends to volunteer at the library for several more years.
“I enjoy it,” she said. “I like to keep in touch with people.”
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For more information about the Harold Washington Library Center, call the events and marketing department at 312-747-4130.
