Already nostalgic for her Latvian holiday pastries, homemade plum jam, and the bounty of her organic vegetable garden, which she shared generously, we will bid Aija Kanbergs a happy retirement at the end of June.

With two Stanford degrees (BA, MA) and all-but-dissertation from UC Berkeley's German Department under her belt, Aija began her library career in 1972 when she was hired as an LA II in the Romance/ Germanic Languages order unit of the Acquisitions Department. During the 21 years she spent in Acquisitions, Aija became head of the unit into which she was hired and was later promoted to head of the consolidated Order Division. In the 1980s, she served for a time as acting German selector and earned her MLIS from UC Berkeley. She also gave birth to her son, David.

In the early 1990s, Aija began charting a new career course, leaving the behind-the-scenes world of library acquisitions to join Doe Reference and Collections. Over five years, she provided reference service in Doe and managed the busy Doe Library Information Desk, at one time coordinating the schedules of several dozen staff.

In 1998, Aija joined the Teaching Library. Always maintaining a busy schedule of course-related instruction, she has served the unit, and the Library, in various roles: as coordinator of the Library Guides program; liason to the History 101 Honors Thesis Course; coordinator of Cal Day library activities; and liason to the Centers for Transfer, Re-entry, and Student Parents. Among her Teaching Library colleagues she distinguished herself as a master of the intricacies of searching Gladis and Pathfinder, and as a polymath with an appetite for learning that compelled her to prepare her instruction sessions by immersing herself in the subject matter of each course.

In 2005 with a small group of colleagues, Aija was honored with the Chancellor's Outstanding Staff Award for revitalizing UC Berkeley's participation in the AIDS Walk.

Aija, we will miss you. We say farewell with wishes for a long and healthful life in retirement.

-The Teaching Library