New business offers research and reference services
Annette Lutnesky Perry has long taught people how to trace their
roots. For more than 20 years she has taught genealogy at
libraries, community colleges and through private lessons. But this
year, she decided to expand the number of research resources she
offers in the community through her business venture Le
Librarian.
New business offers research and reference services
Annette Lutnesky Perry has long taught people how to trace their roots. For more than 20 years she has taught genealogy at libraries, community colleges and through private lessons. But this year, she decided to expand the number of research resources she offers in the community through her business venture Le Librarian.
“It’s a need the community has,” she said. “As a professional librarian, I recognized it immediately when I came [to Hollister] in 1994.”
Coming from a background in libraries, with a bachelor’s in history and a master’s in library and information science, she first started working for a library in Southern California in the 1970s.
“Reference services are usually defined by a person picking up the telephone and saying I need these statistics or percentages,” Perry said, and then a librarian would look up the information.
Through Le Librarian, Perry offers a variety of services, including genealogy lessons; editorial and research assistance; scholarship searches; adult literacy classes and school library management.
“It’s more defined in that it goes way beyond genealogy,” she said. “I guess it has something for everybody.”
Her adult literacy classes are for people who already speak English, “but want to improve their literacy for job opportunities.”
“They may be able to apply for a job,” she said, “or help with their kids’ homework.”
With the scholarship searches, which start at $150, she interviews the students about their background, educational plans and other things that can help her find matching scholarships.
“It’s up to them to the take the initiative” to apply for the scholarships she identifies, she said. “But it saves a lot of time for them.”
As a member of the California Library Association and the Association of Independent Information Professionals, Perry has access to some databases and resources that are available only to professionals, but she uses many sources.
“A lot are in book form. A lot are online,” she said. “Librarians use subscription-based services … Information services are never cookie cutter.”
Editorial services start at $50 a document, and include both editing – a review of the writing for structure, content, grammar, length and relevancy – and proofreading. She has worked on magazine articles, book copy, college papers, resumes and many other items for clients.
“I’ve worked with students and businesses,” she said, but stressed, “I will proof high school papers, but I won’t edit them.”
Perry is also offering up help to school libraries that may have suffered staff and budget cuts. She can be hired to help libraries with collection development, material selection and policy writing.
“My area would definitely be grade school [libraries],” she said. “This is a heads up for principals to make the budget stretch and get materials. They can stay current … with a sensible program and an affordable one.”
With Le Librarian, Perry still has a strong offering of genealogy services. She offers three course levels – beginner’s, intermediate and advanced – for $125 a person for private lessons and $95 for groups of three or more. The classes are six weeks, and Perry stressed that it is important to take them in order, or important documents can be missed.
Perry first started with genealogy when she traced her own roots and she earned a special certification in genealogical research in the 1970s. She is the author of “Branch to Branch: A Manual for Teachers of Genealogy,” and was a contributing editor for the-then titled “Heritage Quest Magazine,” now titled “Genealogical Helper.”
“It offers a sense of connectivity,” she said. “I think that’s what brought my interest and I got involved as a child. Kids have a smaller frame of reference. I remember once my mother said my grandparents had parents.” It was shock to Perry to realize that as a child, she said.
“My specialty is American records,” she said. “I take people up to the point of landing in this country.”
She teaches people how to use computer sources as well as historical – paper-based – research, in case computers fail.
What Perry finds most rewarding is “success for them [clients]. When someone is tracing their roots and hits pay dirt, it is really personal – or when a school kid is successful and won a scholarship.”
Le Librarian is owned and operated by Annette Lutensky Perry. For more information about services and pricing, call 636-5302 or visit www.le-librarian.vpweb.com.
