Welcome to the Jefferson County School Media Association Web site. This professional organization is for school media librarians serving parochial, private and public schools in Jefferson County.

As I sat in a workshop at the Summer Refresher this past July, Winston Bennett, Head Basketball Coach for Mid-Continent University, was talking about how his life spun out of control in one quick second and he almost gave up. However, he decided that even though everything he had worked for was now in peril, he would not give up. He would “fight for his life”. It would take every ounce of strength, courage and faith for him to brave the storm. He braved the storm and now his life is different but better than before.

I realized after listening to Winston that he was using those out-of-control life moments to learn and grow from them. Many times we have to “fight for our life” whether it is personal or professional. If you find yourself struggling profes-sionally, I want you to remember
that you are not fighting alone and that your JCSMA colleagues are here to help you brave the storm and to learn and grow.

Whether you know it or not, you have helped me through the storms in my life. Thank you for being such a caring group of dedicated librarians. I look forward to seeing you soon!

If you are not yet a member of JCSMA, think about joining this year. I think you will benefit from the chance to meet and share with other school media librarians.

P.S. If you are interested, Winston Bennett has written about his experiences in a book called “Fight For Your Life”.