Walking into the Orland Park Public Library each day feels less like a job and more like a calling for Jackie Boyd.
Boyd, who serves as the library’s communications manager, is celebrating 10 years in a role that has grown alongside her. What began as a position called public information coordinator has evolved into a multifaceted job that includes managing staff, overseeing social media, writing press releases, organizing community events and, sometimes, even helping a child find a book about sea turtles.
“When you work in a public library, you wear a lot of hats,” Boyd said. “No two days are the same.”
Boyd grew up in Naperville and graduated from Neuqua Valley High School. She studied journalism and political science at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, where she worked the city beat for the student paper, the Northern Star. That early reporting career led her to the Frankfort Times in Indiana, where she covered education and spent hours in school board meetings.
“I spent time at the Frankfort Community Public Library interviewing people for ‘meet your neighbor’ articles,” she said. “They had a little café in the basement, and people from the community would congregate there. That’s where I started to see the library as more than just a place for books.”
Boyd later shifted her career path after her first child was born, choosing to step away from chasing deadlines to focus on helping people in a different way. That choice eventually led her back to libraries, this time in a communications role.
“Having my daughter changed the trajectory of my life,” Boyd said. “I no longer wanted to chase stories for a newspaper. I wanted to help people. Becoming a mother grew my heart and capacity for empathy.”
In her decade at Orland Park, Boyd has not only shaped the library’s public image but also deepened her own professional roots. Inspired by mentors such as Library Director Mary Adamowski, she pursued a master’s degree in library and information science from Indiana University–Indianapolis, preparing her to understand the many roles within a library.
She now manages a small creative team — two graphic artists and an information coordinator — and also chairs the library’s Strategic Planning Committee and Land Acknowledgement Task Force.
“These positions are reserved for staff who are trusted to follow the library’s mission and vision well,” Boyd said. “I am honored to serve.”
Boyd balances her professional life with a busy family schedule. She lives in Naperville with her husband, Andy, their three children, a golden retriever named Jif, and five backyard chickens — Bella, Maci, Cheese, Big T, and “Hennifer” Aniston.
Most mornings begin with a workout at the Orland Park Health & Fitness Center, which she calls her “second happy place, after the library of course.”
Through it all, Boyd says her favorite part of the job hasn’t changed: connecting people to resources.
“My favorite thing about working at the library is helping people find resources and learn about programs and books,” she said. “Another favorite thing is reassuring people from all different backgrounds that they will find something for them at the library. The library is for everyone.”
Looking back, Boyd says she feels grateful to be part of an institution that has continually evolved to meet community needs, from e-books to blood drives to caroling at senior living facilities.
“I feel very lucky to celebrate ten years with the library,” she said. “I feel very lucky to work with such a great group of people.”