About

Dan Kelty is a passionate advocate for the North Minneapolis community.  While serving as librarian at Sumner library his patrons were also his neighbors, as he and his family chose to live in the community for which he served. Dan continued the library’s tradition of altering the services and collections to meet the changing needs of the neighborhood with its flux of immigrants and migrants. He focused on youth, increasing library usage, volunteer services, outreach, and the preservation of local history.

Dan Kelty comes from a family of Californians who utilize libraries frequently. His mother took him to the Los Angeles Central library several times a month and to local libraries throughout the week. When Dan was in high school, he wanted to work in his libraries in his school’s library but was not allowed to because of his gender. Library training for Dan began while attending Bemidji State College where he learned from Edith Geyer. She had been a librarian for the Joint Chiefs of Staff during  World War II. Dan said, “She hooked me on service to children as a way to help create a safer and senior world.”  After college he joined the Navy where he worked in the Quality Assurance Library.

In 1974, after attending the University of Michigan’s library school, Kelty began work at the Chase Branch Library in Detroit.  He was the first male children’s librarian in Detroit.  Librarians were assigned to read 40 books quarterly and prepare a purchase list for other librarians. The library did not allow series books in the collection but Dan successfully pushed for Frank Brom, Nancy Drew and others. Later, after serving as a research librarian for a private company, he joined the staff of the public library in Crookston Minnesota.

Dan and his family moved to Minneapolis in 1986 as he accepted a position at the North Regional Library, a branch of the Minneapolis Public Library. He and Grace Belton, librarian at Sumner Library, did a position swap in the early 1990s, three days a week for six months. He became Sumner’s librarian in 1999 upon Belton’s retirement. He continued the mantle of his predecessor, saying, ” To me, it was my heart and soul to keep building the mission started by Grace Belton to have the Gary Sudduth African American History and Cultural Collection kept in tack.

Dan Kelty was phenomenal in reaching out to individuals and organizations in North Minneapolis, creating partnerships to better serve the community of Sumner Library. These collaborations included PICA Headstart, AmeriCorps VISTA, Harrison School, Minneapolis and St. Paul Home Tour, and the Minnesota Literacy Council among others. Under his leadership over 100 deposit collections were created for seniors, parks, and educational groups, an historical file for North Minneapolis was grown and the Sumner Friends Group thrived. In 2003, Dan was involved with the plans to renovate Sumner Library. The library closed for a year during which he worked on the bookmobile. Kelty resumed his position at the expanded and restored Sumner Library in 2005.

A tireless advocate for youth Kelty helped start state library services for teens. He was co-pilot of servicing Minneapolis daycare centers with bookmobiles. Over 3,000 youth participated in programs at Sumner in 2002. Dan served as president of the board of WISE for 21 years, an organization that coordinates the services of over 300 volunteers a year for youth of the Minneapolis Public School District. Additionally, Dan is a children’s puppeteer and brought approximately 100 puppets with him to Sumner Library.

Dan is now a librarian in the History and Social Science Department at the Minneapolis Central Library.  An ordained elder, Dan performs prison ministry and works on extending civil rights of felons who have served their time. He enjoys writing poetry and has published journal articles. As for changes in the use of libraries, Dan states, “Every new invention or device (movie, TV, iPods,etc.) promises the death of libraries but they only make libraries more valuable. First of all, libraries offer something free for everyone, so the device is made equal.”

Written and researched by Susan Breedlove, Friends of Sumner Library