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Conservation & Collections Care News

Category: Disaster response

Oct 23 2019

Kraft Retires as Head of Preservation & Conservation

Posted on October 23, 2019October 23, 2019 by Anna Magaña

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Nancy E. Kraft, Head of Preservation & Conservation, has retired after serving 18 years at the University of Iowa Libraries. Her career has been fruitful, and she plans to stay involved in preservation efforts on a local state level. Nancy has served as a board member for the US Committee of the Blue Shield since 2013, and a member of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) since 2015. In 2018, she was awarded the Paul Banks and Carolyn Harris Award for excellence in Library Preservation.

Prior to coming to the University of Iowa, Nancy had several different positions that built up her understanding of how a library functions.

“I had a preservation background that made me a good fit here and helped me come up to speed fairly quickly because I had dealt with a disaster within the State Historical Society, so I had real life experience with that. When I first became a librarian, I thought I wanted to be a rare book cataloger so I was a cataloger for a couple years, which I think is really helpful to understand if you’re in preservation.”

Her experience with disaster emergencies proved to be incredibly helpful during the local 2008 floods. Nancy worked to preserve materials in both Cedar Rapids and Iowa City and described the experience as one she’ll never forget. She recalled the way the community came together in Cedar Rapids.

“We weren’t expecting these 200 volunteers to come and help us move stuff out of the basement. No amount of training prepares you for dealing with that… People for years after were still talking about it.” She remembered the jarring visual after the water rose. “We were one of the first ones led into the area and it looked like a war zone. I don’t know how you even get your brains and emotions around that; it was very intense.”

Nancy commented that she felt her biggest contribution during the process was being on site quickly to advise about what could be salvaged; this led to another contribution.

“[Getting there right away] was major and that was the reason that I recommended to the Iowa Preservation and Conservation Consortium that we establish a formalized trained Iowa response group. I realized that if we get there right away we can really make an impact.”

As part of her work with the ISO, she traveled to Berlin early this year to head the U.S. delegation in developing the international standard for emergency preparedness and response.

“I had been the American Libraries Association representative for the US for the National Information Standards Organization that works into the ISO. And I had been on that for four years. When the call came out for volunteers to work on international standards for a disaster response document, I volunteered and was selected… It was really interesting to get to see how different countries are organized to respond to disasters. It was a really good learning experience.”

While her career has involved many large-scale projects, Nancy noted that what she’ll miss the most about the day-to-day of her job is the people. People are what she’s always been passionate about.

“I feel that I really built up a nice conservation lab and we’ve got a nice digitization workflow going. But none of that could happen without staff. So I really like finding ways that staff can be successful and “own” a piece of the department…I’ve always tried to do that. The people make the day-to-day. That’s what made it hard to retire; I can’t take them with me.” [/ezcol_2third][ezcol_1third_end]

Portrait of Nancy E. Kraft
Nancy E. Kraft has retired from the University of Iowa Libraries
Kraft and museum employee wearing face masks, lab coats and gloves rehouse photographs
Kraft assists with separating and rehousing damaged photographs

Kraft and others rinse textiles
Kraft [lower right corner in mask] and others salvage collections after a disaster
Kraft and ISO group members gather to have a conversation
Kraft [center] with ISO group
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Posted in Disaster response, Flood Recovery, Main library, staff
Seven IMALERT members pause for a group photo in front of the Pacific Junction Railroad Museum.
May 02 2019

IMALERT members assist in disaster recovery

Posted on May 2, 2019May 6, 2019 by Abigail Evans

By Nancy E Kraft

Seven IMALERT members pause for a group photo in front of the Pacific Junction Railroad Museum.
IMALERT members take a group photo in front of the Pacific Junction Railroad Museum.

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Cindy Opitz holds binder over a bucket of water and uses a brush to clean the pages.
Cindy Opitz cleans a flood-damaged binder
Chairs and various objects covered in mud from the flood waters sit in sorted piles.
Flood-damaged collections sorted by material type

 

 

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On Monday, April 22, Iowa Museums, Archives, Libraries Emergency Response Team (IMALERT) members assisted with the retrieval and salvage of collection items in the flood-damaged Pacific Junction Railroad Museum (PJRM). We could not have had a more “perfect” flood recovery experience. The Mills County Historical Museum Director Steve Hunt from nearby Glenwood had everything well organized.

While the building was still underwater, he assembled a team of a few people available to bring their trucks and assist with rescue efforts. He also obtained supplies and cleared an area in a Mills County Historical Museum building where collections could be stored. Once the water receded, he worked with others to clear out the debris (fallen ceiling tiles, upended office furniture, etc.) so we would be able to get to the collections. He retrieved as many of the photographs as he could and a couple uniforms from the PJRM and City Hall, rinsed and laid them out. He also gave us the go ahead to provide assistance on April 22.

Team members from the University of Iowa – Nancy E Kraft, Cindy Opitz, Tiffany Adrain – joined team member Joy Stortvedt in Shenandoah and caravanned to Glenwood to join Steve and his team. Steve led the way to Pacific Junction as there was only one way in and it was hard to find. We loaded the collections into the trucks and hauled everything to Glenwood where we unloaded, sorted, and laid out the collections by material type. We spent the rest of the day rinsing material as needed. There were several notebooks of research material. Although we think the research material is on a server, we rinsed, wrapped, and stored the notebooks in a freezer. Once Steve has time, he’ll check the online files to identify those that really need to be salvaged

Everything is now stabilized. Material can be worked on as time and resources are available. We’re discussing a possible return for further assistance. The IMALERT has a 24/7 hotline that anyone can call for advice and assistance with collections damaged by disaster large and small. The number is 319-384-3673.

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Posted in Disaster recovery, Disaster response, Flood Recovery, Materials, equipment and procedures, staff
Pictured is a blue bag containing tools with items set out in front of it including a wrench, mallet, hammer, screwdriver, pliers, caution tape, and wire (left to right).
Apr 02 2019

Part Two: A Librarian’s Disaster Response Gear

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Abigail Evans

By Nancy E Kraft

Originally printed in The Gristmill, A Publication of the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association, March 2019, p. 45.

Check out part one of this blog post.

Pictured is a blue bag containing tools with items set out in front of it including a wrench, mallet, hammer, screwdriver, pliers, caution tape, and wire (left to right).
This trunk kit contains useful items for disaster response including a hammer, mallet, caution tape, screwdrivers and many other tools.

My Trunk Kit has expanded from a flashlight and a screw driver to include pliers, wrenches, screwdrivers, a hammer, mallet, crowbar, string, twine, utility knives, caution tape, duct tape, gloves, scissors, flash lights, a “head” light, and hiking boots. The crowbar is handy for prying swollen doors and drawers open. Wet books swell, become jammed into shelves, and often need to be tapped out with a mallet. Ideally, all items will have wood or rubber handles to protect from electrical conductivity. In addition to the trunk kit, I utilize whatever I can find at hand. Window screens are handy for drying out fabrics, thin paper and photographs. String or rope can be strung up between trees and CDs, DVDs, slides, and photographs can be hung up to dry.

Conservation recovery tools have also evolved over the last 25 years. We have multiple types of erasers, brushes, bone and Teflon tools, spatulas, tweezers, and knives for cleaning. We have learned to rinse off the mud and gunk, let material dry and then gently clean the remaining dirt and mud by erasing, scraping, separating pages with the use of multiple tools. I am always amazed at what can be repaired and returned to the library or museum for continued use.

Posted in Community, outreach, education, and events, Disaster response, Materials, equipment and procedures, staff
Pictures shows a pink backpack with items sitting in front of it. These items are a hard hat, Tyvek suits, gloves, a safety vest, and respiratory masks.
Mar 26 2019

Part One: A Librarian’s Disaster Response Gear

Posted on March 26, 2019 by Abigail Evans

By Nancy E Kraft

Originally printed in The Gristmill, A Publication of the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association, March 2019, p. 45.

Pictures shows a pink backpack with items sitting in front of it. These items are a hard hat, Tyvek suits, gloves, a safety vest, and respiratory masks.
This “go bag” contains a hard hat, Tyvek suits, gloves, a safety vest, and respiratory masks.

With the Mid-West Tool Collectors Association Fall meeting in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and the fact that I assisted in responding to the flood of 2008, I thought it would be interesting to highlight the personal gear I use to respond to disasters to libraries and museums. The gear can be divided into three categories: personal protective equipment, response tools, and recovery tools.

When I became a preservation librarian in 1993, I had training and information on how to respond to a disaster to collections in a library or museum. My training included a list of needed supplies such as sponges and mops and stressed personal safety but did not include a list of response tools, conservation tools, or personal protective equipment.

Over the years, my understanding of the type of protective gear needed in response grew and continues to be refined. My protective gear has evolved from a pair of rubber boots in the office to a “go bag” which includes a wind-up flashlight (in case there is no electricity), hard hat, goggles, Tyvek suit, rain boots, two types of respiratory masks, nitrile & workman gloves. I always add water, a wide brimmed hat, sun screen, and energy bars.

Posted in Community, outreach, education, and events, Disaster response, Materials, equipment and procedures, staff

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