Episode 32: John Light Jr. on Storytelling, Genealogy, and Empowerment

LibVoices

John Light, Jr. is a Librarian from Richmond, Virginia. "Mister John" started his Librarian journey when he worked in Perry Library at Old Dominion University. Mister John graduated from ODU and then went to work at Virginia Beach Central Library. He worked in the Circulation Department for 7 years. Mister John then relocated and left the library profession altogether for 7 years. Fortunately for Mister John, a trip to the Dale City Branch of Prince William Public Libraries helped him rediscover his love for the work. Mister John began work at Potomac Community Library in PWPL in October 2015 in the Youth Services department. Mister John's experience at Potomac Library was awesomely beneficial. While there, Mister John learned the art of Storytelling. He has shared stories with the old and young, in schools, community centers, and senior centers. He also found a passion for genealogy. As a result, he was able to discover new family members and restore the family tree. In December of 2019, Mister John graduated from the iSchool of Syracuse University with an MLIS degree. His time at Syracuse was rewarding and taught him how to be a real Librarian. In 2020, Mister John published 3 picture books "The Adventures of Joshua and Pip", "The Adventures of Joshua and Pip: Calvin the Catfish" and "Las Aventuras de Joshua y Pip". In 2021, he published the picture book "My Mother's Wildest Dreams". Mister John is currently a Youth Librarian at Islands Library, a branch in Savannah, GA's Live Oak Public Library system. He is married to Deidre Light, his wife of 20 years, and has 13-year-old twins, Joshua and Jeremiah.