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Today's Featured Biography

Amando Alvarez Alvarez

I guess I'm a bit lazy. This is an old bio I had to write for library school. I hope it will do. I left out the high school probation, gang fight, etc. I have redeemed myself!...I think.
...........
Intellectual History of Amando Álvarez

The cornerstone of my intellectual life began at an early age and was based on a steady, persistent, and insatiable search for knowledge. This inquisitiveness was and will continue to be the mainstay of my education. It is the fuel that fed the fires of my learning and has guided me throughout life. All other factors involved in framing my intellectual life were secondary in comparison. I was ignorant of libraries in the first years of my life, and this lack of accessibility to information resulted in periods of anxiety.

Although I received a disciplined but humane upbringing, my parents did not have the intellectual equipment to answer common—and not so common—questions that children ask about history, astronomy, gravity, light, heat, etc. Neither of my parents had studied for over two years in grade school. Consequently, there were too many questions left unanswered for me, a child of migrant, uneducated parents from Mexico.

Fortunately, when I entered grade school, teachers became aware of my eternal search for knowledge due to my enthusiastic participation in class and the wonderment that books instilled in me. My teachers knew I was an incurable bibliophile. Fortunately, when I began grade school, doors started opening for me. These doors didn't lead to material riches—I had never known about wealth—but to extended and boundless horizons of knowledge. Books and teacher guidance were feeding my intellectual hunger for knowledge.

I still remember the first books we ever got at home were the World Book Encyclopedia. My older sister had saved her money for a Christmas present that she knew would benefit the family. I immediately started reading volume A and finished with the WXYZ volume a few days later. When my neighbor (a teacher!) heard from my sister about my "eccentric" activity, she invited me to her house to see her library. It was the most extensive library I had ever seen at that time. I was amazed at the variety of books on her shelves: Plato, Aristotle, encyclopedias, American history, Mark Twain, etc. She inspired me greatly and offered support through volunteer tutoring at her home. Before she passed on, she gave me a gift I will always treasure: her library. I still have her books and our World Book Encyclopedia. Although they aren't worth much money to a book buyer, they are priceless gems to me.

I became very dependent on public libraries when I entered my teenage years. I began seeking out libraries in which to study. Libraries taught me things my parents could not impart because of their limited education; libraries had become a home away from home.

When I joined the U.S. Navy in 1971, my interest in libraries did not diminish. Libraries became a vital part of my studies in electronics and military science. Without libraries, my research would have been much more difficult. You might say that I was immersed in a four-year course in politics, political science, and ethnic studies. My intellectual horizons expanded considerably. I became politically aware of the Vietnam War controversy, race relations, and the struggles between the haves and have-nots. When I left the U.S. Navy in 1975, its make-up was more than 50% Black, Hispanic, and Filipino. This was indicative of the poverty minorities were experiencing in the United States, and the college deferments given to well-to-do draft-age students, the majority of whom were white. I became aware of the importance of education in saving humanity from the worst of all social diseases: ignorance. Education was a ticket out of poverty.

Fortunately, libraries were accessible when I was in the U.S. Navy. Every naval base I visited had a library; even our ship had a small recreational library that could take us out of the monotony of being on a dull gray ship surrounded by miles and miles of endless sea. These libraries helped me study for the CLEP exam, which I took shortly before leaving the Navy. By the time I was discharged in August 1975, I had already accumulated 40 hours of college credit. I owe much of my success in the exam to my library studies. Thanks to this college credit, I entered undergraduate school in 1975 as a sophomore and was able to place most of my educational emphasis on my majors.

In undergraduate school, I acquired double majors in Spanish and History, although my official transcripts only show the degree in History. Because I had 40 credit hours when I started college, I was able to pursue my studies in a Spanish graduate program at CU in Boulder. University life refined my library investigative techniques. During this time, I learned in-depth about libraries and how they function. Thanks to the education I got about those media centers, I was better able to enter the world of libraries as an actual employee in 1980.

During my years as an employee at the Denver Public Library, I've realized that I can’t work anywhere other than in a library setting. My intellectual curiosity has not diminished. While I may not possess an encyclopedic knowledge of the world, I have an encyclopedic inquisitiveness. My eternal quest for knowledge focuses on libraries, which provide endless waters that quench my thirst for understanding. As a librarian, I hope to successfully guide library patrons in their search for that intellectual elixir that will eradicate the social disease of ignorance. I expect to have the same positive impact on my customers as other librarians had on me. The comforting voices of my past mentors inspire me to advance in my quest for truth and knowledge!

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