For years, 94-year-old Lillian Taylor has dreamed of returning to work at a Georgia public library. Thanks to the Cobb County Public Library System (CCPLS) and Second Wind Dreams, a Roswell-based nonprofit, Taylor’s dream became a reality on June 2.

A retired librarian now living in Marietta, Taylor served on the staff of the Griffin-Spalding County Library,
now part of the Flint River Regional Library System (FRRLS), for 28 years. Natalie Marshall, executive director
of FRRLS, said her colleagues at the central library in Griffin remember Taylor, who retired 25 years ago, as
highly accurate in her work and as a charming, impeccably dressed woman known for her willingness to share recipes — including her famous peach cobbler.

Library Branch Manager Patricia Ball and the rest of the staff of CCPLS’s Stratton Library received that same charm and kindness from Taylor, who recalled the early days of computers in the library workplace as she examined some of the latest technology available at Georgia’s public libraries.

When library automation began in Griffin, Taylor and former co-worker Yvonne Brooks made a pact that if anything went wrong, they were going to protect each other by blaming it on the new computers. “I had to learn to work on a computer,” Taylor said with a laugh, “and I nearly lost my mind during that!”

She was thrilled, however, with her second chance to serve as a librarian. “I liked the people that came in,” she noted. As part of her day at the Stratton Library, she especially enjoyed watching as a 3-D printer created a Yoda figurine whose color matched the sweater she was wearing.

“Miss Lillian was very gracious to us,” said Ball, “and she was very much consuming all the information we gave her about how libraries have changed. She was impressed with our 3-D prints and by seeing how the catalog is now online. She also enjoyed sitting at the reference desk and watching and listening to the interactions between library staff and the public once again. She seemed right at home.”

Taylor was accompanied at the library by her son Edward Taylor and daughter-in-law Lois James, and by June
Rondinone, community relations coordinator for Second Wind Dreams. “It was great to see Miss Lillian smile, to
listen to her share some of her experiences as a librarian and to watch her be amazed by all the advances and new technologies,” said Rondinone.

Founded in 1997 by geriatric specialist P.K. Beville, Second Wind Dreams (www.secondwind.org) is the first U.S. organization to focus on enhancing the quality of life for elders and changing society’s perception of aging by making elder dreams come true.