Calling all Rocky Mountain Chapter SLA members – Join in a networking webinar from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., Mountain Standard Time , Thursday, November 8.

Getting to Know Who We Are! Sharing Our Stories, Strengthening Our Community

Have you ever wished you could spend more time getting to know an interesting person you met at an SLA function? Have you wished you could make it to the chapter’s Denver metro events, but you live too far away – perhaps in Grand Junction, Salt Lake City, Cheyenne, or Pierre?

This Webinar will allow just that. It is the first in a quarterly series for Rocky Mountain Chapter members to meet for an informal online hour “away from the office.”  Join the fun and arrive prepared to share:  (1) some personal history, and/or  (2) an anecdote telling something from your past that others may find hard to believe.

CREATIVE OPPORTUNITY – You can prepare a Powerpoint to showcase your work site, job history, family history, and/or an exotic vacation. (An “about me” slideshow is welcome but not required.)

Title:    RMSLA : Getting to Know Who We Are! Sharing Our Stories, Strengthening Our Community
Date:    Thursday, November 8, 2012
Time:   5:30 – 6:30 p.m., Mountain time

Reserve your seat now at:
https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/220585504.

About This Online Event Series

This new online event series is intended to provide a less formal setting in which to share more personally, enjoy and relax, and get to know members from all over our geographically large chapter.

Future chapter-only programs may cover anything from a favorite vendor “just talking to us,” to hearing from members who are having fun and finding big payoffs with new tech discoveries. Unconventional? Yes! But as has been said before, “Well behaved librarians seldom make history.”

System Requirements
PC-based attendees
Required: Windows® 7, Vista, XP or 2003 Server
Macintosh®-based attendees
Required: Mac OS® X 10.5 or newer
Mobile attendees
Required: iPhone®, iPad®, Android™ phone or Android tablet

Thanks to Lisa Wood for hosting this session!

Getting to know: RMSLA member Betsy Herzog

Where do you live?

Basalt, Colorado

Where do you work, and what’s your title?

I am the Librarian and Knowledge Manager at Rocky Mountain Institute.

What’s the mission of your organization?

Rocky Mountain Institute (www.rmi.org) is an independent, entrepreneurial, nonprofit think-and-do-tank, and our mission is to drive the efficient and restorative use of resources.

When did you become an SLA/RMSLA member?

I became an SLA member when I was in graduate school at the University of North Carolina. I moved to Colorado to work at Rocky Mountain Institute in 2008 and joined RMSLA right away.

What drew you into an information career?

I was always drawn to work in an academic setting and so I initially wanted to work at an academic research library. Over time I realized that I can have a tremendous amount of impact working with and for industry, outside of the university setting.

What’s the best thing about being an information professional?

I enjoy supporting the mission and vision of RMI using my unique set of skills. My colleagues and patrons are very appreciative of the work that I do, whether that means conducting research, providing resources, or organizing our intellectual capital. It’s a rewarding position to be in.

What’s the next great thing you want to learn?

I always want to become more proficient in the areas that we work in–engineering, energy, building science, economics, finance, etc. My background is in the humanities, not the technical sciences, so I always have a lot to learn.

Are you a member of any other professional associations?

No.

What do you love to do in your non-work time?

I participate in a lot of the “-ing” sports: running, skiing, biking, hiking.

Tell us something about yourself that we’d never think to ask.

I am a twin.

What’s your favorite thing about SLA and/or the Rocky Mountain Chapter?

Since I live and work in such a remote area, I don’t get to participate in a lot of the RMSLA events in person. However, I do take full advantage of the SLA and RMSLA listservs, asking for advice and support from the SLA communities. It’s extremely valuable to me to know that there is a community of professionals who I can connect with easily over e-mail.

It’s time for the latest installment of RMSLA’s semi-regular feature on getting to know a chapter member.

Name:

Heidi Longaberger

Where do you live?

Englewood, Colorado – the old part, near eclectic South Broadway, where you can buy a tire, visit a myriad of medical establishments and get some good Thai food, all within one block.

Where do you work, and what’s your title?

I am owner and worker at Longaberger InformationWorks. I work out of the house and various coffee shops across the south Denver metro area. I know where to find the good DSL!

What’s the mission of your organization?

Finding, synthesizing, analyzing and presenting the right information for meaningful execution.  I’m the upstream making the downstream more effective.

URL for your organization and/or its information center:

My website is under construction, so I direct everyone to my LinkedIn profile:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/heidilongaberger

How long have you been an SLA/RMSLA member?

Since 1995.

What drew you into an information career?

Researching my projects in school was kind of fun. I’m prone to going off on tangents, and I always ended up surrounded by a stack of books and magazines (remember those?) that were possibly related to my  project, but maybe not. That, and I’m probably a “know-it-all” so I may as well get paid for it.

What’s the best thing about being an information professional?

It’s the perfect combination of catering to my curious and introverted nature, and at the same day feeding the extrovert split personality that emerges on some days. So I get to “play around” on the internet and in databases, write, and talk to real live people.

What’s the next great thing you want to learn?

Time travel.

Are you a member of any other professional associations?

Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP). I would highly recommend this organization to any info pro, even if you are employed with someone else. If you don’t have your own business you can still join as an associate member. The networking and level of expertise in that group is amazing.

What do you love to do in your non-work time?

Heidi and Thomas take a jump

I have a horse, and we play around a bit at things: Dressage, jumping, trails, trying not to kill Heidi. I also like to grow my own things to eat, and have re-taken up painting and drawing lately, which I did a lot of as a kid then inexplicably abandoned for a few years. I just painted the ocean on my bedroom wall, and plan to do a mural on my garage—my neighbor is thrilled

Tell us something about yourself that we’d never think to ask.

Hmm – this could go in a number of directions. I’m not allergic to anything, have never been to Africa, cannot do downward-facing dog or a split (not even as a kid), and inexplicably can’t get through a Jane Austen novel, but I like the movies.

What’s your favorite thing about SLA and/or the Rocky Mountain Chapter?

It’s a very active chapter, with lots of opportunities to volunteer and expand your horizons, such as the webinar program I did last month [follow link to view the slide deck] – thanks for running that!