As the founder of nationwide The Footpath Library, Sarah Garnett has helped provide books to thousands of homeless Australians. But a job this big isn’t achieved alone. Today, we’d like to acquaint you with Sarah’s two right-hand women at Sydney HQ: operations manager Kattrin Gloeckler and administration assistant Sarah McDonald.
Operations manager Kattrin Gloeckler has always worked in the not-for-profit sector. In 2013, when she was looking for a part-time role, the opportunity to work at The Footpath Library came up and immediately spoke to her love of books.
“My earliest memories include my dad reading to me, and I cannot remember a time from the moment I was able to read myself that I was not at least reading a few pages of a book every day,” she says.
Kattrin says just because homeless people have no home, their love of reading –which is often an integral part of their life – does not need to be lost thanks to The Footpath Library.
Being such a small organisation, her role at TFL stretches across a variety of tasks, ranging from volunteers management, board and sponsor liaison, project coordination, and administration and accounting support.
What Kattrin finds most rewarding in this position is seeing TFL volunteers at Branch meetings.
“All of them are so enthusiastic and committed to our cause; and all of them bring fantastic skills to the organisation that they are more than willing to share, “ she says. “It is extremely motivating to work with such wonderful people and a great learning opportunity.”
What Kattrin is reading: historic novels
“It satisfies both my interest in history and getting lost in captivating stories. My favourite author would be John Irving. I admire his skill to put the, often bizarre, life-story of so many characters into one book without creating the sense that he is getting off track.” She is currently reading People of the Book by Geraldine Brooks.
Sarah McDonald (Sarah M) was appointed as TFL’s admin assistant in early 2015 and given the mammoth task of developing a centralised database that will help TFL keep track of volunteers, donors and clients. She is constantly looking for opportunities to improve and challenge the way TFL is run.
“The highlight for me has been forming relationships with both Kattrin and Sarah G,” she says. “These two women work tirelessly to really make a difference to the lives of others and I am learning a lot from them.”
For Sarah M, providing books to homeless people matters because life, quite simply, is better with a book.
“Perhaps what I love most about reading is the immersion – of being so drawn in to a story and its characters that hours can go by without the outside world getting in the way.”
A myth that about homelessness that has been dispelled for Sarah M is that only Australian men are suffering. Women and children make up a large proportion of homeless people in this country and, unfortunately, this is mostly due to family violence.
For people wanting to make a difference, she offers the following advice:
“If you are thinking of getting involved with TFL then a good place to start would be to visit the Promise or Pay website [where] you can pledge to fulfil a promise and have your friends and family sponsor your efforts. All of the proceeds go directly to helping TFL.”
Subscribers can discover more about the Promise or Pay initiative in this newsletter.
What Sarah is reading: young adult fiction
Despite being an adult “who is far from young”, Sarah M says Young Adult stories are fast paced and full of unlikely heroes.
The Red Wind by Isobel Carmody – a stunning read perfect for children aged 6-10 years; My Life as a Fake by Peter Carey; and, Last Child in the Woods, an influential work by Richard Louv about reconnecting children with nature.