Roger Gingrich, President
Roger has lived in Barrington since 2012, having moved here from Iowa City, IA following retirement in 2011. Barrington is the home of his middle child and her family and has a lake which made good on a promise to his wife Patty who was born in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes”. Grandchildren, reading, spending time on Swains Lake, garden projects, helping with End 68 Hours of Hunger, working with his son-in-law, a good movie once in a while, and the Foundation fill out most days and offer a great deal of contentment and joy.
Roger grew up on a farm near Peoria, Ill. Reading was a big deal at bedtime for him and his 5 siblings. His fourth grade room had a bookcase with many Augusta Stevenson biographies of Americans. Roger read over 40 of these during that year. When the farm’s owner – who had a college degree – died, the family was allowed to move into home which had a small but very nice library that contained the Lincoln Library of Essential Information. Taking “Essential” literally, he began to devour this 2000+ page text. Countless hours were subsequently spent in libraries in college, medical school, residency and fellowship training, research training in Oxford, UK, and in the care of patients at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. Roger believes that being the best spouse, parent, and grandparent, attaining one’s highest potential in life, begins and ends with the love of reading
“Working toward having an attractive, inviting, comfortable town library for our entire community is a big part of my bucket list!”
Cindy Hoisington, Vice President & Treasurer
Cindy Hoisington is a local veterinarian, mother of two teen boys, hiker and bookworm.
She joined the Foundation last year to help get the new library done!
Elizabeth (Beth) Brockett
Sarah Pfistner
Sarah has lived in Barrington since early 2020 with her husband and two young children. Sarah grew up a voracious reader and fondly remembers libraries and their seemingly limitless number of books. “Mom life” has allowed her the joy of introducing her children to the many wonderful resources, social opportunities and fun the library holds. Sarah and her kids love spending rainy afternoons at various local libraries. She joined the foundation because she wants her children to have a library in town they can be proud to call their own.
The library is a community within our wonderful community and it’s a joy to walk through the doors and feel like it’s a home away from home.
Diane St. Jean
Diane has lived in Barrington since 1976. She recently retired after 20 years of teaching at Barrington Middle School, the last 5 years as school librarian. Diane enjoys reading, printmaking, hiking, biking, and kayaking. On a typical Friday night she might be visiting Seacoast area art galleries with her husband Ron or watching a movie with him at home.
Barrington had 3,300 residents when my husband and I moved here, and now there are around 9,400 residents. As a town we just marked our Tricentennial, and this past year of celebration convinced me that despite big changes, a town can hold on to its sense of community. But it takes work.
We need to work to maintain community connection just as we do to maintain our personal friendships. I joined the Barrington Library Foundation because I believe that a new library is an investment in the sense of community for Barrington’s future.