At each year’s Annual Business Meeting, RMSLA sponsors a speaker in a lecture series commemorating past member and chapter president, Shirley Alldredge. The annual Shirley Alldredge Memorial Lecture was established by RMSLA and sponsored by Robert Alldredge in memory of his wife, Shirley, who was a distinguished member of the Rocky Mountain chapter and served on the Executive Board.

Read about programs in the Shirley Alldredge Lecture series.

About Shirley Alldredge

Chapter President Linda Van Wert wrote the following article about Shirley, which appeared in the April 2004 issue of RMSLA’s Columbine newsletter.

“A Most Distinguished Career”

For many years, The Shirley Alldredge Memorial Lecture has been sponsored by Bob Alldredge in memory of his wife Shirley (1919-1980). Many SLA members have had the pleasure of knowing Shirley, but for those of you who did not, here is a brief look at her distinguished career.

In 1942, Shirley was librarian at the Missouri School of Mines and later the George Washington School of Medicine in Washington, DC. Between 1944 and 1946, Shirley and Bob worked in Los Alamos during the Manhattan Project. She worked at the University of Denver 1946-1951, and joined the N.O.A.A. library staff as cataloger in 1967, where she became Head of Public Services in 1970. Shirley was very active in SLA and between 1977-1980 served as Vice President, President, and Executive Board member of the Rocky Mountain Chapter. For ten years, Shirley and Bob Alldredge hosted the RMC-SLA Christmas dinner parties and also offered their place for executive board meetings and other special meetings. Perhaps the best description of Shirley, however, is a personal reminiscence from her friend, and RMC-SLA Past President, Kurt Keely, who wrote about her kindness and patience:

She always spoke to her patrons with such graciousness, kindness, and understanding….If she had a fault, it was in attempting to do everything one hundred percent. No one will ever know how many young people she helped started in their life’s work; because, Shirley was also a one hundred percent, twenty-five hour a day friend.