William Smith
Community Editor
After 15 years as director of the Burlington Public Library, Rhonda Frevert is leaving Burlington. She will be moving at the end of the month to work in the Des Moines Public Library.
“It’s a hard place to leave. We have such a great time at the library,” Frevert said. Rhonda will be joining her husband Steve Frevert, the former executive director of Downtown Partners in Burlington. She presented her final annual library report during the Burlington City Council meeting Monday night, Aug. 15.
“I’m just in awe of everything you and your staff do. I will miss you,” councilwoman Lynda Graham-Murray said during the meeting.
Mayor Jon Billups also made sure to let Frevert know how valuable she has been to the community.
“This is a labor of love for you, and it comes across every time you make a presentation,” Billups said. “You’ve made progress when they’ve taken money away… You have made a huge stamp on this community. I sure as hell wouldn’t want to follow you.”
Rhonda just celebrated her 20th year at the library (15 years as director) and had the unique experience of working at the library when it was still located in the now Des Moines County Heritage Center Museum.
“The old building, when I first started here, there was just a couple of computers jammed into a corner. The teen area was under the stairs,” Frevert said. “There was always a waiting list for the computers.”
The library had a single meeting room on the top floor back then, but it was a shared space that included Rhonda’s office and the desk of another employee. Quarters were tight in every corner of the building. But the old library was unique. And gorgeous.
“I loved that I got to work in that building, It’s a beautiful building,” Frevert said.
The current Burlington Public Library was built in 2006 – roughly four years after Frevert started at the library. Kay Weiss was the library director at the time, and Frevert helped her and other staff through the transition, moving massive amounts of material from one building to another. Weiss retired shortly after the new library opened, and Frevert became director, helping foster the library’s growth.
Library usage started to skyrocket with the more accessible building, and the number of programs and events expanded exponentially. Frevert said there were 144 programs in June and July – everything from the “Specifically for Seniors” presentations to zoo animals and genealogy workshops.
The summer reading program has been a staple of the library since it was located in the previous building, The Burlington Public Library is in the process of becoming the second library in the state to be sensory-inclusive, making it more comfortable for those with autism, dementia, PTSD, and similar conditions.
“We already have some sensory kits that people can come and ask for and have a positive experience at the library,” Frevert said. It’s one of many ongoing projects that Frevert hates to leave, even though she knows they will be in good hands.
“I’m really excited about the future of the library,” Frevert said.
A native of Rockford, Ill., Frevert had previously worked in the genealogy department at Newberry Library in Chicago — an independent research library specializing in the humanities. Before that, Frevert worked for a few years as the director of the Beloit Historical Society in Wisconsin.
“It was a very small staff there, so we got to do everything: planning events, leading school tours,” Frevert said. She was able to indulge her passion for history and discovered a deep interest in genealogy as well. She ended up teaching a genealogy course for eight weeks.
“It was so interesting and something I really enjoyed,” Frevert said. In the summer of 2002, Frevert took the job as head of reference materials for the Burlington Public Library. She and her family were looking for a change of pace.
“I loved living in the city,” she said. “But we wanted to buy a house and wanted something a little more affordable. We didn’t want to live in a third-floor walk-up anymore. It was a lifestyle choice.”
Two years later, in 2004, the ground was broken on the current Burlington Public Library. Two years after that, the building was complete. For Frevert, that building has been home. After her presentation during Monday’s council meeting, Frevert left the podium to a standing ovation from the council.
“I will miss the people that I’ve gotten to work with all over the years. Board of Trustee members, the Friends of the Library group, the Community Foundation,” she said. “After 20 years, there’s a lot of people I have gotten to know. We have our regulars, and you get to know them by name. You get invested in them.”