A large number of visitors gathered at the Perry Public Library at midday Friday to thank retiring Perry Public Library Director Mary Murphy for service to Perry’s mental culture over the last 13 years.
Murphy is retiring from the directorship position she has held since September 2010, when she came to Perry from the De Soto Public Library, which she directed from 2006.
Murphy earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a master’s in ag econ from Rutgers University and a Ph.D. in business from Lehigh University.
Among the numerous well wishers were longtime Perry Public Library Children’s Librarian Suzanne Kestel and longtime Perry Public Library Adult Services Librarian Jill Cook, both of whom retired last year after working with Murphy during her tenure in Perry.
