Joseph R. Dionne, director of the Nashua Public Library since 2002, is retiring on June 30, 2009.

Joe started his library career thirty seven years ago as a reference librarian at the Nashua Public Library. During his initial seven years at NPL, Joe also worked in the Art and Music Department and served as Assistant Director. Subsequently, Joe served as the director of both the Lawrence and Haverhill, MA libraries.

As Nashua's library director, Joe has worked to improve library services, more than doubling circulation to a projected 800,000 items this year! He also oversaw the creation of a separate department and room for teenagers, the implementation of online database services that library customers can use from home, and the launching of free computer training. That was while he wasn't busy revitalizing the long dormant Friends of the Library group, replacing the Bookmobile with an outreach service van for the homebound, fashioning a new front entryway, and introducing self-checkout systems.

Joe leaves at the beginning of summer, a perfect time of year for long visits with family and friends on Cape Cod, where he will be making his home.

Please join me in wishing Joe all the best in this new phase of life, when he'll have the opportunity to stop and smell, or perhaps even grow, the roses.