Join Your TownBooks 
Mrs. T. closes book on career
By Jillian Lazzaro
Thu Jul 05, 2007, 12:51 PM EDT
It doesn't take long to figure out why Mary Lou Twiraga is retiring.
Twiraga, Richards Memorial Library's circulation director, is only too eager to show you a picture of her new grandchild. And though she claims that for the last ten years she's been planning to retire while she still has the energy and ambition to live a very active life, it's obvious that the arrival of a grandchild this past April was, as she put it, "certainly the frosting."
Twiraga has been a North Attleborough fixture for the entirety of her 31 years at Richards Memorial. "She's the public face of the library," says Library Director Francis Ward. As circulation director she is often the first one to greet visitors and constantly a generous source for research or book recommendations.
She started at Richards Memorial Library in 1976 when her son and daughter were just entering kindergarten. She'd been looking for a position that would offer her time with her children, though her retired in-laws always volunteered to watch them, and an opportunity to familiarize herself with the community.
Back then they used rubber stamps attached to pencils to stamp the books. Over her three decades there, she's watched as card catalogs became computers and shelves filled with audio books. After only a short time there, she found that she couldn't leave home without encountering around town one of the familiar and grateful faces of a library regular.
She has come to know many of the library's patrons as friends, even watching as their children grew into adults.
Once her kids were grown, and the convenience of this particular job was no longer necessary, the thought occurred to her: "Oh heck, might as well stay."
She enrolled in classes at URI and received a certificate in Library Science. At Richards Memorial she was promoted to circulation director. In that position she has overseen the growth of the library's volunteer program from a small laid-back group to an active team of students, educators, and retirees.
Twiraga is looking forward to free time. And though she doesn't deny that she might find herself working again in the future, right now she's ready to get off her feet.
"I was 5'7" when I started here," she says. "After 30 years being on my feet, I'm now 5'1". I've worked my feet down to nubs." She's ready to garden, bicycle and canoe. She's excited to finally have the time to have company over for dinner. She's even gearing up to volunteer for an AARP Convention in Boston this summer.
And most of all, she's excited about her new job: grandma. "There's something about being a grandmother that I'm certain all grandmothers know. It's different from when you're a mother. It's the most intense puppy love."
