From WOOD COUNTY DISTRICT PUBLIC LIBRARY
The community has a chance to say “thank you” to library staff who go the extra mile for them when they visit the library. Individuals may nominate a staff member for the John M. Gibson award, a tradition which the library’s board of trustees began in 2005 to recognize excellence in customer service.
Any Wood County District Public Library employee – with the exceptions of the library director, deputy director, and any previous Gibson award-winner – may be nominated for the 2026 Gibson award. The board of trustees selects the recipient from nominations submitted by both library users and WCDPL staff members, and then recognizes all nominees when the award is presented on Friday, Aug. 21.
Since being established in 2005, the Gibson award has been presented to: Mandy Hackley (2005), Mary Boone (2006), AJ Heilman and Donna Mertz (2007), Debra Born (2008), Kristin Wetzel (2009), Linda Conrad (2010), Maria Simon (2011), Nancy Weiland (2012), Katherine Lawn (2013), Anne Render (2014), Matt Mehling (2015), Victoria Forgette (2016), Tara Bahnsen (2017), JJ Hofner (2018), Kevin Puffer (2019), the Children’s Place staff (2020), Angie Babcock (2022), Daniel Hergert (2023), Lauren Canaday Johnson (2024), and Ali Hultz (2025).
Nomination forms are available at the main library in Bowling Green, at the Walbridge library, and on the bookmobile. Nominations may also be submitted online at wcdpl.org/john-gibson-award. All nominations are due by Friday, July 24, at 5 p.m. Each person may nominate one staff member for the award.
For additional information about the John M. Gibson award, visit wcdpl.org/john-gibson-award or call 419-352-5104.
