News Reporter
“Her gray hair is beautiful and she implements the law - the library law, that is,” describes sixth former Teddie Townsend. Three to four times a week, this remarkable woman arrives on campus to work a hard, but rewarding, ten-hour day in our very own Andrew Mellon Library. Gail Morse is a woman who contributes a great deal to Choate through her persistent efforts and creativity.
Morse has worked in the Choate Rosemary Hall Library for almost twenty years, and has involved with libraries in some way for the majority of her life. For about five years, before she heard of the opening here at Choate, she kept books for a small family business and enjoyed volunteering at various elementary school libraries. Morse grew up in North Haven, briefly resided in New York State, and now lives in Wallingford to lessen her commute to work here. In her spare time, she loves to garden and to spend time outdoors. She is eager and thrilled that spring is finally beginning. Morse has two children and three grandchildren, as well as a pet cat. Here at Choate, students can attest to her motherly qualities. Sixth former Alexa Lawrence stated “Gail is my second grandmother, and I love her with all my heart and soul. She’s my soul mate, really.”
Morse’s efforts reach far beyond what her job requires as staff in the Choate Library. She can frequently be seen running the circulation desk, putting books on shelves, or offering assistance to students. She also uses her unique, creative talent to make many other beneficial contributions to our school. She is responsible for all the thoughtful book displays that add character to our library. She often receives posters that might seem useless to the ordinary eye. But to Morse, each is the next perfect addition to a display she has been working on. When student clubs seek help arranging displays or books related to their organization, she is an obvious and tireless resource. She has used her artistic talent to design bookplates and bookmarks of great use in the library and highly appreciated for the expense they save the school.
In addition, Ms. Morse plays an important role in the complex technical issues facing the Choate library. The DVD collection processing system was her clever work of. Her colleague Dianne Langlois explained that Ms. Morse is always thinking of new ways to solve problems. She stated, “The library wouldn’t work well without her.” Another talent, according to Langlois, is Ms. Morse’s unbelievable skill for finding lost books. The ultimate step before the library staff formally declares any book missing is to call for her help. She seems to have the unique ability always to find any item that has been misplaced.
According to Gail, her favorite part of her job is working with students and helping them with research. She is very thankful she is not stuck in an office, unable to interact with students and colleagues.
