87-year-old Toddington library assistant retires after 45 years

Mary Twelvetrees, 87, began working at Toddington Library in 1981 after moving to the village from Harlington two years earlier.

To begin with, she worked on a casual basis, providing cover for staff who were off sick or on holiday.

Being close to the library meant Mary could take on work while fitting her hours around her family life and raising her children.

Over the 45 years, she became a familiar face to generations of people visiting the library and witnessed major changes in the way the service operates.

When Mary first started, library staff relied on rubber stamps, paper tickets and physical trays to keep track of books.

Today, much of the process is computerised, with self-service machines allowing people to borrow and return books themselves.

But while the technology has changed, Mary said the role of the library in the community has also evolved – going from a place where people were expected to keep their voices down to a much livelier community hub.

“It’s a different thing altogether, where everybody knows everybody,” she said.

Mary has also been involved in activities for children, including helping Brownies work towards their Book Lovers badge and supporting the nationwide Reading Challenge.

The library has also hosted walking groups and author talks, while Mary has found herself helping residents with much more than books.

Staff can be called on for advice about everything from travel and maps to finding something suitable to read.

Mary has also seen village children grow up through her time at the library, including her own children and grandchildren.

Her daughter, Helen Heal, said: “My boys were in there within days of their birth, you know, because mum was there, so they’ve seen my children grow up.”

Although she is retiring from her official role, Mary does not intend to disappear from the library altogether.

She said: “I shall find plenty to do. I go out to lunch quite a lot with groups, so I should keep busy and I should go up there quite a lot to see them all.

“Even just the exercise, walking up there it’s a 10–15 minute walk from here.”

Mary's career has also taken her beyond Toddington.

“Although I was based at Toddington, if other libraries were short, they could call on people like me,” she explained.

She regularly travelled to Wotton in the early part of her career, sometimes working until 7pm.

But eventually, Mary decided she was no longer prepared to drive around different libraries and chose to remain at Toddington.

After four and a half decades at the library, Mary has worked under just four managers.

And she had this advice for new starters: “If you were starting now, I’d just say to somebody: enjoy it; it is such a pleasant place to be.”

Mary will retire at the end of September, officially closing the book on her 45 years of service at Toddington Library.