For many years, television viewers saw Diane Atwood at a desk reporting on health and wellness issues. Now library patrons will find her at the circulation desk of the North Gorham Public Library. In her new position as library director, Diane brings the skills developed in a career of public service to a library that has served North Gorham and Standish since 1897.

For the past year Diane was the assistant librarian to Lea Sutton, who retired this summer. In that position she created a monthly newsletter, managed the website, and communicated with patrons in the library and on social media. As director, she will be responsible for library administration with the help of a library assistant and a group of dedicated volunteers.

Diane says she “was always in the right place at the right time,” and open to change and new opportunities. An “army brat” who was born in Germany, she lived in many places before her father served in Vietnam and the family settled in Portland. After graduation from Portland High School, she was a radiation therapist for ten years, but left to get a bachelor’s degree from St. Joseph’s College. She backpacked through Europe, returning to Maine to work for the Consumer Protection Agency. This led to a 24-year career in television, first as a consumer reporter and later as the health reporter for Channel 6.

After nine years in marketing and public relations at Mercy Hospital, Diane decided on another career change. Her blog, Catching Health with Diane Atwood, and work as a freelance writer led her to take advantage of the University of Southern Maine’s free tuition program for Mainers over 65 and to a degree in art. She continues to paint and take classes.

Diane has lived in North Gorham with her husband Barry for more than 30 years. She took her two daughters to the North Gorham Public Library across the street from their home. In high school she was a library volunteer. She was an avid reader of juvenile biographies as a child and of contemporary fiction as an adult. Skills developed from years of research and writing will be useful in her new career, but NGPL patrons will benefit most from her experience with a wide variety of people in many settings and her desire to maintain a welcoming space that has been the library’s community role for more than 125 years.