Meet the New Librarians at the Jefferson Branch
Jefferson Branch Librarians, DeAidre “Dee” Jones, and Dan Patton. Image courtesy of Susan Newell
DeAidre “Dee” Jones, Manager of the Jefferson Branch Library, may be new to our neighborhood, but she’s a veteran librarian. Dee found her career niche in library science after working in the non-profit world for 15 years and doing shorter stints in the insurance industry and the tech world.
She began her library career at Wayne State University libraries in 2007 and moved to the Detroit Public Library (DPL) in 2017, first at the Main Library, and later as assistant manager at the Sherwood Forest Branch.
Dee says the best part of being a librarian is “interacting with people.” The most challenging part? “Interacting with people...I see the irony in that,” she says with a laugh.
Dee has always been a strong advocate for librarians – first as Chief Steward in UAW Local 2071 at Wayne State, later as an activist in the DPL system with the Association of Professional Librarians, UAW Local 2200. She has served as a union officer since 2014 and is the current President of the local.
Somehow Dee still finds time for her six adult children and five grandchildren, as well as volunteering at the Parade Company, where she often leads tours. You may also have seen Dee dressed as Kermit the Frog in last year’s Thanksgiving Day parade.
Dan Patton, new Adult Services Librarian, says he enjoys ordering books for the library and takes pleasure in seeing the books he chooses become favorites of the patrons. The most rewarding part of his job, though, is “helping people navigate the modern world by helping them with the (computer) technology…It requires patience and the ability to instill confidence in people…to help them relax.” He says that lack of confidence is often the biggest barrier for people learning their way around the internet.
Dan started his career about ten years ago in the Canton system, then switched to the DPL, working at the Main Library for a little over a year before coming to the Jefferson Branch a few weeks ago.
Dan stays busy in his off-hours by volunteering with Greening of Detroit, a non-profit environmental group, Preservation Detroit, which works to preserve Detroit’s historic places, and the Senate Theater, a theater in Redford and home to the Detroit Theater Organ Society.
Both Dee and Dan grew up on Detroit’s west side. “I had no concept of the east side until becoming an adult,” Dan admits. Please give them both a warm welcome the next time you visit the Jefferson Branch for a good book, internet access, a program, or just some good natured eastside-westside trash talk.
