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Marge Custis --
2007 Helen Everett Award Recipient
 The members of the Humboldt Library Foundation (HLF) are pleased to
announce that they have selected HLF Vice-President Marge Custis to
receive this year’s Helen Everett Award.
Marge and Max Custis moved to Eureka in June 1966 with their children Guy
and Kay. Soon after arriving, Max was promoted to Assistant Mill Manager
at Crown Simpson. He was told that part of the job was community
involvement. Max was a little on the shy side and did not relish the
idea. He asked if his wife could take on that responsibility and Marge
began a 40-year devotion to community service.
Marge began her community work with United Way. She soon became
involved in the local American Red Cross chapter. At the time, the
National Red Cross was threatening to close the local office. Marge
organized other spouses at Crown Simpson to step in and volunteer at
the local office for two years to keep it open.
On any given day, Marge can be found in one of three arenas -- golfing
at Baywood Golf and Country Club, participating in activities or
worship at Eureka First United Methodist Church or serving our
community through involvement in a long list of organizations --
Hospice, Six Rivers Planned Parenthood, CASA, KEET TV, Salvation Army,
Redwoods United, Easter Seals, the Heart Association, Beta Sigma Phi,
PTA, Camp Fire, Boy Scouts and Muscular Dystrophy.
Marge was a member of the Library Construction Advisory Committee and a
founding member of the HLF in 1996. The foundation has raised more than a million dollars and given away more than $500,000 in grants to support the Humboldt County Library.
Marge believes in the ability of libraries to positively impact the
lives of children and young adults by providing them with a place to
read and find knowledge and offering programs such as story telling
hours.
Born and raised in Belle Fourche, South Dakota, Marge went to business
school in Rapid City and took her first job at the First National Bank
of the Black Hills.
Fortunately for the community of Humboldt County, Marge has been a
tireless advocate for the good of our community.
The Helen Everett Award was established to recognize individuals or
organizations whose contributions improve the quality of public library
services in Humboldt County. Custis is the ninth recipient.
FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK 
by Elizabeth Murguia
"Wordstruck”
My tread-mill at home is right next to the upstairs book case. It’s an odd collection of books, not strictly ‘catalogued’ like at the library, but generally grouped together – this one holds some history, literary biography, essays, travel, and novels. The other night I was walking in place, and listening to old rock n’ roll to raise my heart rate, when I finally picked up a book my eye had landed on several nights running: Robin MacNeil’s memoir, “Wordstruck” (yes, of the MacNeil/Lehrer News Hour). I read the book many years ago and have recommended it many times. It is one of those books: you dip in and don’t want to look up or turn the last page. MacNeil shares the journey of his life through the magic of language and the magic of books - the books his mother read to him, the books and poems he read and memorized, the books his father had read. (His father would record the date on the inside cover so his children could track his literary journey.)
When I turned the slim volume over, there was Eudora Welty, recommending the pleasures of Robin MacNeil’s memoir. It was a serendipitous connection. Just a few nights before, plowing through a stack of papers, I came across Welty’s obituary. She is an excellent storyteller, known for exploring the human condition through her vivid creation of southern, rural characters and finely tuned dialogue. It turns out, she also treasured MacNeil’s memoir, and, coincidentally, there on my bookshelf, leaning against MacNeil’s “Wordstruck” was Welty’s “One Writer’s Beginnings.”
Last Saturday, I dropped by the Main Library to bask in the wonder and excitement of the Humboldt County Children’s Author Festival. The place was packed with gaggles of kids and parents swooping up books, listening to stories and talking with authors. These kids were wordstruck, by the magic of words and the magic of language. They are just beginning their own literary journey. Exercising their imagination and curiosity, they have just a glimmer of the glories that lie ahead.
On behalf of the Humboldt Library Foundation, thank you to the organizers and librarians who made this premier literary experience possible for Humboldt County children and library patrons. You are
preparing the next generation of writers who will delight and enlighten. You have our deepest appreciation.
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