Lori Cochran knows as well as anyone how welcoming libraries are to families.

The new director of Powers Library in Moravia would bring her son, Joshua, there during her shifts as a clerk and, later, assistant director. She encouraged him to read frequently and credits the time they spent among the stacks for cultivating his current love of books.

“That's the atmosphere we strive for,” Cochran said. “It's a family meeting place.”

In her new position, which she assumed on July 7, Cochran hopes to recreate this atmosphere for every visitor to Powers Library. In addition to monitoring popular books and making sure they're available to all readers, Cochran plans to offer knitting classes and organized trips to historical destinations like New York City and Gettysburg.

“She has good knowledge about the people living in Moravia,” said Library Specialist Mary Donovan, who also works at Powers. “And she's willing to do all aspects of things here.”

The library will also soon host a college information session with a representative of Cayuga Community College, which Cochran would like to see gain ground in the southern part of the county through a steady schedule of such programs.

Cochran is also a graduate of the college and serves on the board of directors of its alumni association. She studied liberal arts both there and at Keuka Community College, and later spent some time away from Powers working in campus services at Cayuga.

“I definitely have a passion for the place,” Cochran said.

As a student she lamented the loss of much of her leisure time in which she could read. But in the classroom, Cochran put to use a skill engendered by her extensive reading: writing. In her private time, she often composed journal entries, short stories, poetry and other works of non-fiction as a therapeutic means of expression.

“I saw the way certain authors used symbolism, like John Steinbeck,” she said. “Seeing the different styles those authors use helped me find my own way.”

Cochran traces her love of the written word to her childhood, when she would visit her grandmother in Moravia. Whenever Cochran's grandmother used a word the child didn't know, her grandmother would send Cochran to look it up in a dictionary. For the rest of her life, Cochran would occupy the bulk of her free time with books. Whether it was classics like “Little Women” and “Where the Red Fern Grows” as a child or more crime and true life books recently, Cochran consistently finished about one a week.

“I love this place,” Cochran said. “This is where I feel most comfortable.”

That love of the library first took Cochran to Powers in 1999 as a clerk. A few years prior, the Auburn native had moved back to the area from Fort Polk, La., where her husband, Sean, was stationed in the Army. At Powers, Cochran went out of her way to learn the inner workings of the library. She credits the then-director, Dolores Fleckenstein, with similarly going out of her own way to teach Cochran what she wanted to know.

“I owe a lot to her,” Cochran said. “She's one of the mots amazing people I know.”

The day Cochran took Fleckenstein's old position, the former director was the first through the door of Powers.

Because of her two-year hiatus from Powers, Cochran is not only relearning her way around the library as its recently appointed director, she is acquainting herself with its newest visitors - and making them feel welcome too.

“I'm always sidetracked to say 'hello' to people,” she said. “I have to know what they like to read.”

Staff writer David Wilcox can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 245 or david.wilcox@lee.net