Holli Van Nest, chair of the Wareham Free Library Board of Trustees since July 2022, shares the Library conference room with a giant rubber duck. 

The duck is a fixture of the Library’s annual rubber duck races, and a symbol of Van Nest’s belief that libraries are about more than just books.

“A library is an integral part of any community,” she said. “It’s a place where everybody in the community is welcome and has a place to be.”

As a girl, Van Nest loved reading about Nancy Drew and Harriet the Spy. Like her literary heroines, she is tasked with solving complex problems and using logic to come to the right conclusion. Nowadays, however, she prefers history and historical fiction to mysteries  — on the rare occasion that she has time to read. 

Growing up in the small town of Wormleysburg, Pennsylvania, Van Nest went to her local library every Saturday with her mother and sister.

“You might not be able to leave your little part of the world,” she said, “but many of the things you can do in the library open a window to that world.”

Van Nest graduated from Penn State in 1978 with a degree in social work. She moved to Onset with her partner in 2016. After decades of city life, she craved the slower pace of a small town.

“I wanted to know how I could participate in this wonderful community,” she said. 

At first, she volunteered as a citizen scientist with the Buzzards Bay Coalition. In 2019, she volunteered with the Charter Review Committee, reviewing and updating the Town Charter. When that was over, she needed something to do. The Library seemed like the right place. 

In 2021, she applied for the Board of Trustees, and both the Board of Trustees and the Select Board voted to let her join. 

“I have a lot of experience working in groups and making things happen,” she said. “I’ve gotten to a point in my life where I’ve learned a lot about how to do these things, and I wanted to put those skills in use with the Library.”

Van Nest and her fellow trustees have created several goals for the Library’s future. The Library must improve its relationship with town government and increase community outreach. Van Nest considers herself “a cheerleader for the Library.”

“The biggest thing is getting the word out to the community about what the Library has to offer,” she said. 

She thinks the Library needs consistent content for teens and preteens, two groups she doesn’t see there often. 

“Is that something those age groups of the town are interested in?” She asked. “And if so, what would make them consider the Library a place to support them and their journey in life, and the struggles and challenges that they face?”

The Library must also increase the membership and diversity of the Board of Trustees, which can have up to nine members but currently has only six. 

“People are just very busy,” Van Nest said. “People might not feel like they have something to offer. I think it’s a lot of different reasons… There’s usually much more need in the world than people coming to help with it.”

As chair, Van Nest created a subcommittee focused on increasing Board membership. In November 2022, the Board of Trustees appointed a new member, Peter Gold.

“We have started to see some results from the work we have been doing,” Van Nest said. 

The Library must strengthen communication between what Van Nest calls “the three-legged stool” — the Board of Trustees, the Friends of the Wareham Free Library and the Wareham Library Foundation. 

Finally, the Library must review and update its policies. Van Nest wants to hear from members of the community, especially those who don’t go to the Library often, in order to learn what the Library can do to make them frequent visitors. 

Above all, she wants to make the Library “a center for everybody.”