Siegfried (Fred) Ruschin

The Board of Trustees and staff of the Linda Hall Library are saddened
by the loss of long-time colleague and friend, Siegfried (Fred) Ruschin.

Fred passed away Sunday, October 19, 2008 at the age of 83.  He
graduated from Washburn University in Topeka with a B.S. in Physics and
later received a Master's in Library Science from Emporia State College.
His first library position was with the Topeka Public Library as a
reference librarian. Upon completion of his Master's degree he accepted
a position as Serials Librarian at the Linda Hall Library and served in
that role from 1959 until early 1978 when he was named Librarian for
Collection Development, a position he held until his retirement in 1993.
During most of his career at Linda Hall he also spent many hours
assisting patrons at the reference desk. His interest in science, his
fluency in German, Spanish, and English and his knowledge of history and
geography allowed Fred to play a significant role in the development of
a world class science library. Motivated by a profound sense of fairness
and a penchant for details, he was one of the first in the library
community to document and call attention to discriminatory pricing of
serials. Following retirement he continued to use his considerable
writing skills in English, his third self taught language, as an active
contributor to the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education Memory
Project. He is remembered for the breadth of his knowledge, his
intellectual curiosity, his tenacity, his vast capacity for empathy and
a wonderful self-effacing sense of humor.  Personal remembrances and
tributes may be sent to dayn@lindahall.org <mailto:dayn@lindahall.org> .
These will be gathered and passed to his family who will appreciate
reflections on Fred's professional life.

The family suggests contributions in his memory to the Midwest Center
for Holocaust Education Memory Project, 5801 W. 115th St., Suite #106,
Overland Park, KS 66211 or to the Linda Hall Library, 5109 Cherry,
Kansas City, MO 64110.

Posted on behalf of Nancy Day, Information Resources Officer, Linda Hall
Library.

Thank you.

Anne Liebst
Head of Technical Services
Linda Hall Library of Science, Engineering and Technology
5109 Cherry St.
Kansas City, MO  64110-2498
(816) 926-8784
(816) 926-8790 (fax)
liebsta@lindahall.org