Main Street in Hartford isn’t exactly Ventura Highway in the sunshine, but it does have an alluring library.
Where the Ventura Highway is, “a great place to visit, but I didn’t really want to live there,” said John Weedon, newly appointed deputy chief librarian for administrative services at the Hartford Public Library. Weedon, who moved here from San Bernardino, Calif., east of Los Angeles, wasn’t thrilled with the topography or congestion there. “Too brown, too hot, too crowded,” he added.
Weedon, 44, has seen much of the country in hot pursuit of a pinnacle library appointment. An Ohio native, Weedon has traipsed through his home state (several times), California, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and now Connecticut.
“It was a way to move up the ladder,” said Weedon, who is also a member of the American Library Association and Society of Organizational Learning.
Aside from ladder rungs, it’s branches that Weedon swings from. The number of community branches the Hartford Public Library has to offer its neighborhoods is what makes the organization shine in his eyes, particularly because they are in walking distance for many regulars.
From his home-base branch, Weedon will be responsible for business, human resource and facility services. In addition to his new role, he is also interested in using his empathy and ability to see unique potential in individuals to develop a coaching program to help people realize their purpose and destiny.
Weedon took an unlikely route to library science. He completed his undergrad degree in philosophy in 1984 at the University of Michigan. After graduation he went into insurance. “I sold insurance for a month. It was not for John,” he said. After that, he felt it was time to harness his love for reading, so he went back to Michigan to complete his master’s in library science in 1986.
Today, Weedon, his wife and two children are settled in lush and grassy Manchester.
Amanda Blaszyk is a staff writer for the Hartford Business Journal.
