A world traveler settles in: meet Magdalena’s new librarian

When Jeri Hurd arrived in Magdalena last fall, she expected a quiet retirement after more than two decades teaching and working in school libraries around the world. Instead, she found herself stepping into a role that felt, in her words, “meant to be.”

Hurd, originally from the Tacoma area of Washington state, is the new director of the Magdalena Public Library. Her path to the small New Mexico village winds through Turkey, Egypt, Mongolia, Beijing and South Korea; a 25-year stretch of international teaching and librarianship that shaped both her career and her philosophy about what a library can be.

“I started out as an English teacher for 20 years,” she said. “But when I was overseas, I watched this amazing school librarian and thought, ‘She has the best job in the school. Why am I not doing that?’”

Hurd eventually earned her library degree and continued teaching abroad, working in schools from the Middle East to East Asia. Her favorite country, she said, was Turkey, though her favorite school was in Beijing. “I loved that school,” she said. “I stayed overseas much longer than I ever expected.”

When she turned 65, the logistics of international work visas became more complicated. Her sister, who lives in Magdalena, encouraged her to move closer to family. Not long after, the library director position opened.

“It just seemed like everything lined up,” Hurd said. “So I applied, got the job, and here I am.”

Despite the dramatic shift from global cities to a village of about 900 residents, Hurd said Magdalena feels familiar. Earlier in her career, she taught in a remote logging community in Washington where the entire K‑12 school had 160 students.

“Magdalena is a booming metropolis compared to that,” she joked. “But what really struck me was how warm everyone was. On my first day, people kept stopping by to say hello and welcome me.”

One of her early surprises was how much she enjoyed the Festival of Lights parade. The library staff built a cardboard train around a golf cart, a nod to the building’s history as a train depot, and joined the procession.

“I am not crafty at all,” she said, laughing. “But it was so much fun. I didn’t expect to love it as much as I did.”

The library had been without a director for several months before Hurd arrived, and she is now focused on rebuilding programming and drawing families back into the space.

“We really want to build our children’s programming,” she said. “And I want to start a teen advisory board so teens can tell us what would make the library a place they want to hang out.”

Several new clubs are already underway, including a photography club led by a professional photographer, Steve Schaefer, and a Spanish club. Hurd is also exploring interest from local craft groups and other hobbyists.

Summer programming is next on her list. After speaking with the state youth librarian, she plans to develop a more robust Summer Reading Program, not just for children, but potentially for teens and adults as well.

“We struggle to get kids into the library, and being closed for a few months didn’t help,” she said. “So we want to make summer a big draw.”

One of Hurd’s biggest goals is to launch a “library of things,” a growing trend in rural and urban libraries alike. The idea is simple: lend out useful items that people may need only occasionally.

“Say you need a drill once a year, you shouldn’t have to buy one,” she said. “Or maybe you need a cake pan, or a camera for a trip. We want to start building a collection of things people can check out, just like books.”

She plans to introduce the idea at the upcoming Friends of the Library meeting and hopes to begin collecting donated items soon.

For Hurd, the library’s potential goes far beyond its shelves.

“I think of a library as an ecosystem,” she said. “Yes, it’s a physical space, but it can also reach out into the community and build connections. Especially in a small town, a library can be a hub.”

After a career spent crossing continents, Hurd said she’s ready to put down roots and help the library grow new ones.

“There are so many interesting people here,” she said. “I’m really enjoying it. And we have big plans.”

The next upcoming event is a reading and book signing by Pie Town author Uncle River. This will take place on Feb. 7 at 11 am in the library.