Susie McIntyre

Activist, Concerned citizen, Explorer, Idea generator, Public servant

I am a fourth generation Montanan. I was born and raised in Great Falls. I played basketball and volleyball for the Bison and got my Bachelors of Science from the University of Montana. I spent ten years in Seattle getting my Master's degree in Library and Information Science and helping to run the AIDS Resource Center for the Public Health Department. I also spent almost 3 years as a volunteer self-defense instructor for the Seattle nonprofit Home Alive. After moving back to Montana eleven years ago, I worked for Voices of Hope (a small non-profit that works on mental health, suicide, and anti-violence issues) before getting my current job as Head of Information Services for the Great Falls Public Library. I love being a librarian and believe that public libraries are the cornerstone of democracy. I have volunteered four mornings a week at Lincoln Elementary since my daughter started there in 2002. Once a month for over ten years, seven of my best girlfriends and I have gotten together to laugh and cry and support each other at Gab Club. I have a fabulous 18-year-old daughter who is in college at CU Boulder, a wonderful 40-year-old boyfriend and a devoted 6 year-old dog. Most days at lunch I go to karate class and in the evenings my family and I alternate watching movies, reading books, and training for triathlons.

I am passionate about family, friends, social justice and joy. All of us have a spark of the sacred and we ALL deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.

Literacy changes lives. Neil Gaiman recently gave a talk sponsored by The Reading Agency entitled: “Why our future depends on libraries, reading and daydreaming.” The mission of The Reading Agency is an idea worth spreading: “to give everyone an equal chance in life by helping people become confident and enthusiastic readers ... nakedly and wantonly encourages the act of reading. Because, they tell us, everything changes when we read.”

libraries, reading

I love my job at the Great Falls Public Library. The Library serves as a connection point; we empower the community and enhance the quality of life by providing individuals access to information and social, cultural, and recreational resources. I love TED. I love learning. I listen to TED talks most mornings as I get eat breakfast and get ready for work. My daughter and I obsessively send each other our favorite talks. My love of TED talks and my love of public libraries is a wonderful match. TEDxGreatFallsLibrary brings together learning and community. I am so excited for TEDxGreatFallsLibrary to start and expand community conversations.

Whistling through my teeth