GROVELAND — The common denominator in Deborah Hoadley's life has been education.
She earned a master's degree in education from the University of New Hampshire in 1986, then ran a preschool and kindergarten in Plaistow, N.H.
Now she's taking her mission a bit farther south, looking to help with the ongoing education of an entire community. She is the new director of Groveland's expanding Langley-Adams Library, where she plans to increase the high-technology services available to residents. Among her plans is providing patrons with a new collection of movies on DVD, including popular documentaries such as "The War," a Ken Burns film.
She also has plans to create an area where teenagers can study and do their homework.
Hoadley, 43, of Plaistow has taken over the library from former director "Mim" Mary Ann Burbridge, who retired after 30 years there.
Hoadley has been married 18 years to Jon Hoadley. They have one daughter, Kate, age 10. Hoadley's father, Warren Gerety, works for Pentucket Bank and is well-known in the Haverhill business community.
For years, Hoadley operated A to Z Educational Center, a preschool and kindergarten in Plaistow. She closed the kindergarten to start a family, and later did volunteer work at the Plaistow Public Library. She worked her way up to head of youth services, then assistant director.
Library work appealed to her so much that she returned to school and obtained a master's degree in library science.
"One of the things I love about a public library is that it's part of the whole community," she said. "You're reaching all ages, from children to senior citizens, and you get to work with local businesses in the community."
She says the Langley-Adams Library has plenty of room for growth.
"There is a lot of potential for technology, and I have some ideas such as creating the library's new Web site," she said. "They didn't have one before, but now they do. People are saying it's great because they don't have to call us for information about what's going on."
Patrons can order or renew books online and can easily find the library's days and hours of operation as well as its calendar of events, which Hoadley says patrons clamored for.
"We really want to reach our remote patrons and have them get used to accessing the library and its services through our Web site," she said.
The library's online services include Overdrive, a service offered through the Merrimack Valley Library Consortium, allowing patrons to download audio books.
"We'll also be offering music CDs covering all genres," Hoadley said.
Armed with a grant for young-adult books, the library created a new so-called "teen space."
"There will be books for teens as well as two public-access computers for use by teens, and hopefully an area where they can study and do their homework," Hoadley said. "And we're starting a teen advisory group, which will meet for the first time on April 14."
She also wants to launch a teen volunteer program and a teen summer reading program.
"We will have six new public-access computers, and we'll offer free computer training," she said.
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What's new at the Langley-Adams Library:
r Web site: www.langleyadamslib.org
r New space for teenagers
r Overdrive service: Allows patrons to download audio books
r Plans for new collection of movies on DVD
r Plans to offer music CDs of various genres
r New computers for public access
r Plans for a teen volunteer program and teen summer reading program
r Volunteer opportunities for senior citizens
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