Meet the team! Check back each month to learn more about the people who help the Ontario Library Service provide seamless access to programs and services that strengthen all public libraries in Ontario.
Name: Linda Langedijk
Position: Helpdesk Representative
I’ve worked in the library field for many years, first at Toronto Reference Library (7 years) then Toronto Public Library (2 years) and now OLS for 25 years! I love books and customer service, so OLS was a perfect fit for me. My job here has always been interlibrary loan, first processing requests, then moving on to Helpdesk and VDX admin. It’s always interesting… often quite fun and I really enjoy the relationships I’ve built with ILL staff across Ontario and Canada.
If you could become a character from any book who would you pick and why?
I read broadly but am drawn to speculative fiction and mysteries. The characters are always in trouble, so I probably don’t want to be any of them, but I enjoy living vicariously through them.
My favourite meal is…
My all-time favourite – must have it as my birthday meal every year – is Vietnamese Bun Ga Nuong (grilled chicken with vermicelli salad). I had the best version ever while visiting Vietnam in 2019 – on my birthday!
My favourite desert island book is…
Well, I can’t fall asleep without a cozy mystery so I’m going to need one of those. I’m loving the Mrs. Jeffries series right now.
A random and seldom known fact about me is…
Years ago we visited a vintage aviation museum in Rhinebeck, NY and took a flight over the Hudson River Valley in an open cockpit 1929 biplane, complete with leather helmet and goggles and a handsome young pilot! Such a thrill to be able to experience living history, I will never forget it.
Do you have a favourite task or project in your OLS work role? Tell us a bit about it…
I do what I love every day and that is connecting people with information and books. Interlibrary loan allows me to have that connection to library staff and patrons that really energized me when working in the public library system. Every request or query that comes across my desk has a patron on the other side and trying to track down that odd copy of a book that someone is looking for and then actually finding it brings me great joy. It also allows me to combine customer service with my love of solving puzzles – troubleshooting VDX request issues and helping ILL staff resolve procedural or technical difficulties is always satisfying.