RIP, Liz.
Liz Donovan, former researcher at The Miami Herald, one of the researchers behind The Washington Post’s Watergate story, the infomaniac behind the news, and one of my heros, passed away after battling lung cancer. Liz is one of the many veteran news librarians who welcomed me into news library land. After establishing at least one weblog herself, Liz was the first person who suggested to me that I should start a blog (Wow. That was almost 6 years ago.) and established one called NewsliBlog for the Special Libraries Association News Division. I felt privileged to work with her when she was publications director for the News Division and I was Webmaster. When she retired a few years ago, the profession saw another one of its shining stars dim, but we figured she’d always have her hand in something fun and interesting. We didn’t think anything could stop such a dynamic groundbreaker.
Carolyn shares more details about Liz’ death on NewsliBlog.
RIP, Liz, and my condolences to your family, friends, and colleagues.
Addenda 12/11/08: I finally felt emotionally strong enough to read Liz’ obituary in The Miami Herald. Reading it really brings home to me how stellar she was. There’s a nice selection of photos, too. Thanks, Carolyn, for posting that.
<soapbox & shameless Dad-promotion>After reflecting on Liz’ death and what an appropriate response from me might be, I realized I have a perfect outlet. For years, my Dad has been participating in the Climb for Clean Air, a project of the American Lung Association of the Northwest that raises funds for its activities through sponsorships of hikers climbing Mt. Ranier. I always give my Dad money for the hike because I believe in the cause and I want to support him. The other night, he mentioned to me that he’s worried about fund raising efforts because of the slumping economy and asked if I could give him some more money for his hike in lieu of holiday presents. With Liz’ death from lung cancer, I am even more motivated to give him a little extra this year.
I thought long and hard about whether it is appropriate for me to write my thoughts on this matter in this space because I don’t think this blog should be a fundraising platform and I’m not asking you directly to donate money to my Dad, the climb, and the cause. Liz was such an inspiration to me to start blogging, which has brought a wealth of good things into my life, I want to do something to honor her. I feel like sharing my plans publicly via this blog is appropriate.
12/18: SLA Connections has a blog post about Liz that points to a memorial in The Washington Post. Joel Achenbach highlights the important role Liz and the other researchers played during the Watergate investigation by sharing her words about the movie All the President’s Men and the scene including a librarian. (By the way, I love the graphic at the top of Achenblog. I often feel like the person riding the beast.)
