I am ALICIA TIMM, current Trustee for the Ela Area Public Library Board. Thank you for your confidence and your vote. It is my pleasure and privilege to serve our wonderful library!
Current Leadership Roles
Board of Directors and Volunteer Chair, Ancient Oaks Foundation (2018 – present)
Chair of Habitat Corridors program and Committee Member of Community Education program, Citizens for Conservation (volunteer 2018 – present, Chair 2021 – 2023)
Biography
I have been serving the community since I moved to Lake Zurich in 2014. At Seth Paine Elementary School, I spent time volunteering at PTO events and in the school library. While raising my children full time, I worked for many years at Trader Joe’s in Lake Zurich. The store serves as a community hub where regulars shop, and I got to know residents while doing what I love, serving the public. I transitioned that love of customer service to volunteerism in the area. Serving as Volunteer Chair of the Ancient Oaks Foundation, I coordinate and lead habitat restoration workdays with scouts, high school students, church groups, and dedicated volunteers. Additionally, I help our nonprofit with social media marketing, fundraising, strategic planning, budgeting, writing, and community outreach. As former Chair of Citizens for Conservation of Barrington, I lead a program that offers visits to private properties for homeowners interested in eradicating invasive species like buckthorn from their yards. Our program offers numerous educational resources so homeowners can make ecologically-friendly changes to their own green spaces.
I earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Latin American Studies from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois. As part of my degree and to hone my Spanish skills I spent a semester abroad in Costa Rica. The library became a home away from the dorm while I wrote my senior paper for which I received the David Arnold Prize for independent research. This year I will complete Morton Arboretum’s Natural Areas Conservation Training certificate.
My love for the library started well before my college research days. I even lived right behind the public library in my hometown of Oak Park. It was a safe space to spend time after school and before my mother returned from work. Libraries always brought a sense of calm and community. Whether researching for a school paper or trying to finish a crossword puzzle, the library had staff who were ready to help me find the answers I needed. Picking out my first chapter book was a real thrill, “Ballet Shoes” by Noel Streatfield.
My love for libraries was reignited when I became a mom. The first trips to the library with a new baby are so fun. You see life again through your children’s eyes and ears. The books of my childhood became the books of motherhood. I would visit the play area and relax and watch my kids play with other kids. The hands-on discovery classes, musical performances, and story times kept us entertained. We would bring home board books and picture books by the bag-full. On long drives we enjoyed audio books. An especially happy memory is listening to Chris Colfer’s “Land of Stories” series with my kids.
At Ela Library, as my children got older, they started completing the weekly crafts offered by the librarians. They would participate in the summer reading clubs. Forge, the Makerspace, was a fun destination for Lego robotics classes. These days my kids use the library for their school projects. I “rent” the study rooms at the library for Zoom calls or meetings with my local organizations. I like the free scanner to send multi-page PDF emails. The $20 for copies given to each cardholder is a nice perk. Personalized recommendations for our book club are so appreciated. We just got our kids their passports from the library!
The resources at the library are endless. I’m lucky to have the chance to spend more time in the library as a way to give back after all these years of using and loving public libraries.