Thanks to Rhonda (Noel) Thornburrow’s dedication to the Talmage community, the Talmage Library and Event Center hosted another successful summer reading program during June and July.
“I volunteered to do the reading camp because I felt it was a way to support the activities and library of the Talmage Library and Event Center,” said Thornburrow. “My entire life has been spent with K-12 students, and it is what I have loved doing for years.”
Thornburrow, who is the Anthony Middle School librarian for the Manhattan, Kansas school district, enjoys middle school children and the role she plays in their lives each day.
“It may sound sappy,” Thornburrow said, “but what I most enjoy are the children of all ages that attend the program. The Talmage community of children are not any different than my students at Anthony Middle School…the smiles, the hard to reach, the challenges to make their day extra special and guide them toward a love of reading…that’s what makes my day.”
Judging by the enthusiasm of both the children and adults who enjoyed Summer Reading Camp 2019, Thornburrow reached her target audience and more.
“I most enjoyed watching the enthusiasm between Rhonda and the children,” said Library Board Vice President Barbara Wuthnow, who assisted. “My grandchildren and others who attended were so excited to come to the reading camp every day.”
Thornburrow, the daughter of the late Loren and Alberta Noel, credits her mother with her early and ongoing love of reading. She fondly remembers trips to the Abilene Public Library and attending their summer reading program each summer.
Thornburrow was a classroom teacher for fifteen years before she received her Master’s in Library Science while at St. George Elementary. She has been a librarian in the Manhattan School District for fourteen years.
If you see Rhonda, thank her. She touched the lives of many in our community through her time in Talmage.
Young readers pick prizes. 
Rhonda Thornburrow helps readers use the new computer purchased with a grant from Community Foundatio of Dickinson County.