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Published in The Seattle Times online on March 13, 2025
and in Pacific NW Magazine of the printed Times on March 16, 2025
Librarian hears 20 years later how ‘her kids’ felt they belonged
By Clay Eals
In some pursuits, you have to trust that you’re having an effect that lasts. Teaching is like that. Journalism, too. So is being a children’s librarian. The kids you engage may never again pass your way.
Not so, however, for Laura Meyer. An educator/entertainer of kids for Seattle Public Library for 35 years, mostly in Lake City, Meyer was known for puppet shows and employing X-ray vision (actually a keen memory) to tell stories while facing a book forward for all to see. She retired at age 58 in 2005. Two years later, she and her husband moved south to Vancouver.
She made periodic trips to Seattle to see relatives. But years passed, and the youths she captivated became adults. Do they remember her?
Enter Casey McNerthney. An ex-newsie who is the spokesperson for the King County prosecutor, he recently pondered his mid-1980s affection for Meyer.
As a tot, he asked Meyer for the in-demand book “A Chair for My Mother.” When it came available, she telephoned him at home.
“I thought it was so cool that she called specifically for me,” he says. “She said she would save it for me. It was like having Taylor Swift play the song you requested.”
A father himself, McNerthney absorbed Meyer’s lesson: “She was the first person I remember meeting, outside of my family, who conveyed to children that they mattered.”
Wouldn’t it be great, he thought, if she could reconnect with “her kids,” whose ages would now be roughly 20 to 65?
He organized a Lake City reunion, spreading word via social media. On the day-of, two-dozen people streamed through the branch door. Scores more sent well-wishes from across the country, even Ireland.
The branch had been renovated twice since she last worked there, but Meyer, it seemed, was no different. Same broad, crinkly-eyed grin. Same bold, expressive voice. Same flower in her hair.
It was Story Time again. Only this time, the grown-ups told as many as did Meyer.
“She was the kindest, most caring person you’d ever want to meet,” said John Desgrosellier. “I still remember a couple of books she shared with us when we were younger — ‘The Boxcar Children’ and ‘The Iron Giant’.”
“She always made me feel like I belonged here,” said Kristine dos Remedios Edens, who brought her daughter Avery to meet Meyer and to convey thanks. “It’s important to tell people like that,” she added. “Usually, you don’t get to tell them the impact that they’ve made.”
Meyer’s response: Tears, smiles and, of course, more stories! Mission accomplished, Casey.
WEB EXTRAS
Big thanks to Laura Meyer, Casey McNerthney and “Mrs. Meyer’s kids” for their invaluable help with this installment!
No 360-degree video this time, but below you will find:
- A half-hour video of the Laura Meyer reunion on Feb. 1, 2025.
- A downloadable pdf of transcripts of 1998 and 2025 interviews of Meyer.
- A selection of 8 additional photos.
- And 7 historical clips from The Seattle Times and Seattle Post-Intelligencer online archive (available via Seattle Public Library), Newspapers.com and Washington Digital Newspapers, all of which were helpful in the preparation of this column.
