Lismore Library Manager Lucy Kinsley has won the Woman of Distinction Award - Regional/Rural category in the 2023 Ministers’ Awards for Women in Local Government.

The awards were established in 2008 to recognise the outstanding efforts of women at the grassroots level of government in metropolitan and regional/rural councils.

There are countless women across the state playing a vital role in creating stronger local councils and making their local community a better place to live, work and play - and Lucy Kinsley is definitely one of them.

Ms Kinsley said she was humbled by the award, adding that local government gave her life purpose.

“I love my work and my community, and I am so honoured to be nominated,” she said.

“Local government provides so many employment opportunities to work and develop skills in new areas, which gave me the opportunity to do such a range of exciting programs, meet great people and be involved in my community.

“However, it was a team effort, not an individual one.”

Ms Kinsley, who is soon to retire, has dedicated 45 years of her career to public libraries, starting as a library assistant in Casino Public Library in 1971 before joining Lismore Library in 1974.

Under her steady guidance, the Lismore, Goonellabah and the Mobile Library now offer a large range of services to meet the needs of all community members from newborn to seniors.

Some of the popular programs she has helped to develop are Baby Time, Story Time, Indigenous Story Time, Lismore Let’s Read, Teen nights, HSC Help, book clubs, Tech Savvy for Seniors, Law Talks, multicultural events and home library services.

Lismore City Council General Manager Jon Gibbons congratulated Ms Kinsley on her award.

“Lucy is a very deserving winner of this prestigious award which recognises her continued dedicated service to the communities of Lismore, Ballina, Byron and Tweed across the library network, the support, mentorship and guidance Lucy has provided to her work colleagues, and to the four local governments which form the Richmond Tweed Regional Library area,” he said.

“Lucy has ensured that the library service has remained relevant to its many users and adapted to changing times and led the team through natural disasters.”

Chair of the Richmond Tweed Regional Library Committee, Lismore City Councillor Darlene Cook said if you are a book lover, then you probably know and love Lucy.

“It’s hard to overstate the great work Lucy has done at the library and the high esteem she is held by library users,” she said.

“When COVID shut libraries in 2021, Lucy quickly introduced new procedures, like click and collect so that the community could start borrowing books and items again. And then after our city was hit by the worst natural disaster in recorded history, Lucy showed unwavering strength and dedication cleaning out the library and establishing two pop-up libraries.

“It’s hard imagining the Richmond Tweed Regional Library and Lismore Library without her.”

The establishment of the pop-up libraries and the re-imaging of the Mobile Library (delivered in a station wagon after the bus was damaged by flood waters) won the Best Innovation and Outreach category in the 2002 NSW Public Libraries Association Awards.

Ms Kinsley was also awarded the Public Service Medal for Outstanding Public Service to Community Library Services in New South Wales in 2018.