It’s obvious that libraries hold a special place in my heart. Growing up — and even now — some of the most special experiences of my life have involved libraries, and I tip my hat to all librarians that continue to make libraries some of the most important places in any community.

One such librarian is Jessamyn West. West isn’t just a librarian: she’s a visionary. She understands that libraries need to evolve to embrace new technologies and new types of interaction, and she has been doing a lot over time to help make that change happen. While many on the web are calling libraries obsolete institutions, West has been evaluating the role of libraries and librarians in our current context and helping make them even more relevant.

Today, I want to thank Jessamyn West for being inspirational.

Jessamyn West’s vision and relentless pursuit of freedom of expression is something I admire. I strongly encourage you all to check out librarian.net where she writes about libraries and their evolving roles, and her personal blog as well. They have been, and continue to be, and inspiration to me.

Every Sunday for the next little while, I’ll be writing one or two paragraphs about people that inspire me as a kind of thank you for making me want to do and be better. Who inspires you?