Twisting Topeka (15 page)

Q. Would you, please, Dr.
Putnam, describe the inner working of the Library Board before the
Bond Issue Vote?

Putnam:
We, as the Library Board, were a conspiratorial
group.

Q. Really?

Putnam:
Oh! Please, don’t be too shocked! Most boards have an agenda,
as did the city council and mayor’s office.

Q. What was your vision
for the library?

Putnam:
We envisioned an expanded and larger library. Yes, an
ostentatious “Anchor” of that blasted corridor—and before the Bond
Issue Vote, we had already begun soliciting architectural bids and
ideas of how our “showcase” of a library would look. We were
confident that the citizens of our fair city would want a rotunda
with beautiful murals, an art gallery, cafeteria, expanded stacks
to accommodate the books and music we just had no room to put on
shelves—plus computers were the wave of the future.

Q. That seems like quite
an aggressive agenda. Could you elaborate, please?

Putnam:
We needed expansion to bring all this to fruition; and that,
of course, requires money. A bond vote seemed the necessary and
prudent next step. It would have been better—even now I believe
that—but…
[Dr. Putnam stopped, unable to go
further. When he looked up, his eyes held tears. His wife and son
closed ranks, moved protectively closer on either side of him. He
shakily lifted his left hand, and with effort, said…]
No…not in the way you think. I would have been
seen as the one who “carried this off,” you see. I yearned for
that.

Q. You wanted to be seen
to be a visionary leader?

Putnam:
Again, please, don’t be shocked. To be told, “No”, by the
people who voted, pierced me and caused my stroke that I’ve yet to
fully recover from. It was deeply disappointing, but my eyes were
opened, and continue to be, in what transpired afterward. I say it
would have been better—but only for the short term. What was given
to us, and I had months to think about this in the recovery from my
stroke, was best. Someone, as it turned out, was better.

LAKE SHERWOOD---April 12,
2016

[Modern home, overlooking
Lake Sherwood. Susan Albright is a slim redhead with graying
highlights. She sits in a wing-back chair and tucks her legs up and
under her, resting her chin on her right hand.]

Q. How long have you been
a Friend of the Library—or Libraries—as you are known
now?

Albright:
Well, I’d say, 30 years, probably closer to 35.
Where does the time go? It seems hard to imagine that I could have
been a Friend of the Libraries all these years.

Q. What kind of things
have you done as a Friend?

Albright:
I’ve done most of the jobs surrounding The Annual
Library Book Sale that takes place in the fall. It’s a major
fundraiser—always will be, I suppose. I’ve crunched calculator
buttons, written prices on paper pads, circulated to keep books
neat, boxed books, loaded books, inspected books.

Q. It was one of those
inspection and Annual Book Sale times that led to the Great
Discovery, right?

Albright:
Ah, yes! I was on that squad of volunteers the
year it happened.

Q. Tell me
more.

Albright:
I mean, really, all of us were trained. We’ve all
sprained our brains—then, and over the years—to explain how we
missed it. Some of my dear friends felt so guilty, or miffed, that
they’d been derelict in their duty, that they just couldn’t
volunteer anymore.

Q. But not you?

Albright:
Me? I see an overarching Presence or Hand that
orchestrated events.

Q. Will you tell us what
transpired?

Albright:
None of us even remembers seeing THE Volume. It’s
just a nondescript book with some fascinating illustrations and
larger-than-ordinary font. The binding is fairly sturdy; but of
course, it had to be. No one would have guessed, to look at it,
that it held the answer not only to what to do about an aging
library that needed upgrading and remodeling—hence, the Bond Issue
Vote—but what to do about our whole country. Yes, as I’m sure you
know, the way was circuitous but so profound~~as most miracles are.
I mean, it was a kid, just a little boy, who made the discovery;
and that changed everything.

OAKLAND---April 13, 2016

[Ranch-style, tidy home in
Oakland area, often called, “Little Mexico”, from the immigrants
who poured in from south of the border to take advantage of the
Santa Fe Apprentice School that enrolled hundreds to become railmen
in 1946. Alicia Hernandez, a short, stout lady in her 70’s, was one
of the leading opponents to the Bond Issue. She gestures excitedly
with as she speaks.]

Q. You were involved in
the Library Bond Issue before the discovery of The
Volume?

Hernandez:
Si, Senorita.

Q. What was the atmosphere
and why were you against it?

Hernandez:
Madre de Dios! Not fair, not at all! Always the
western half, always, who have tried to get us on the north and
eastern ends of the city to support their agendas! The issue with
The Bond—to have a library improvement--on the surface, seemed so
reasonable; but I ask you, where is the library?  Si! On the
south side of the bridge! It is completely far, out of reach, from
all the ninos y ninas of the whole north, the east, the Oakland
area, not to mention the southeast. How were the whole grupo de
ninos to get to the library? What was the sense of that when so
many of us worked?!!

Q. Your solution was
branch libraries?

Hernandez:
Si! Small but within walking distance—for every
nino. In fact, that became our slogan: “A Biblioteca, a Library,
for EVERY Child!” We were up in arms, willing to go to battle, to
the voting booths, to make our voices heard. As it was, gracias a
Dios! He had clemencia (mercy) on us all, especially the
ninos!

CENTRAL CITY---April 14-15,
2016

[Central Topeka, 2-story
house with shutters and painted picket fence with front trellis,
approximately 6 blocks from the Main Public Library. Zane Thomas
was a young boy—and central figure—when the historic Library Bond
Issue was being decided. He sits in the living room of his parents’
modest, remodeled, turn-of-the-century home, having come from
Kansas City for this interview. His mother, Sheryl, 66 years old
with graying brunette hair, pulled back into a ponytail, joins him;
and together, they reminisce about the library’s history of the
last 24 years and the part they played in it.]

Q. Thank you, Zane, for
journeying to meet with us today for this interview. Please, tell
us a little about yourself and, as you remember, your part in this
historic library event.

Zane:
You are most welcome. I live in the Kansas City area and work
for the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Kansas City, KS. My
supervisors know about these events and my involvement with them
and have given me flex-time for interviews, as they come up. Topeka
is my hometown, and I grew up in this neighborhood from the time I
was 3 years old. Because my parents home-schooled us
[Zane looks across to his mother, who returns his
smile]
, we were often in the library and
checked out, literally, boxes of books at a time. I was a voracious
reader, wasn’t I, Mom?

Sheryl:
Yes, Zane was very bright and precocious. I remember him at 3
years old, wailing in this room, “Who? Who? Who will teach me to
read?!” By the time he was 5, he had taught himself to read—a
rather amazing and easy-to-teach child and home-school student. He
always had a book in his hand and just seemed to love them, more
than about anything.

Zane:
One of the BIG events of our school year was the Annual
Library Book Sale; and I’d save up for it. It was in the fall of
1989 that we decided to become Friends of the Library which meant
we could go early to the sale on a Friday night instead of waiting
until Saturday morning. That was a BIG deal for a 7 year old kid.
I, of course, made a beeline for the kids’ section, with my parents
and about 50 more kids and parents right behind me, when they
opened the doors. At first, it was crowded; and after awhile of
looking, I had my stack of books.

But then, a funny thing happened. I
remember that the crowd had disappeared, and I was standing at one
of the tables where the books had been fairly picked over and
cleared; and well, there it was, just lying there—The Volume, as it
came to be called. I thought to myself, “Wow! Look at this!” I
opened it. It seemed ancient but inviting, like opening a door to
another world; and it made my stack pale in comparison. I liked the
print—large--and the illustrations were, honestly, heart-catching.
Again, all I could think was, “Wow! This is for me!” Mom came over
at that moment; and do you remember, Mom, what you said?

Sheryl:
Oh, yes! I asked you, “What do you have there, Zane?” And you
showed me, and I was amazed at your discovery. The price was
nominal, by today’s standards—a mere $5. I knew that was the amount
you had saved for this sale, and I knew you had to decide—your
stack of other books or this one.

Zane:
That’s right! In my mind I had already decided, but you made
me take time to look through the stack and compare them with The
Volume, to really be sure. I took my time, weighed my choices, and
“budget”
[Zane laughs at this
point]
and made the choice that changed
everything. I picked up the large book and soon paid for
it.

Sheryl:
But that’s not the end of the story, is it?

Zane, grins:
No, not by a long shot. It was hard for me to get
to sleep that night; but even though I tossed and turned with
excitement—remember, I love books!—I was up early poring over the
pages of that tome. I couldn’t believe my good fortune in owning
this “treasure”. It was easy for me to read, and I was in love with
the illustrations. They seemed almost to be connected and like a
puzzle; which, as it turned out, they really were! They led me to
the back cover where the last illustration was. Of course, as you
know, there’s an ancient-looking, arched door in it. I was
imaginative; and the more I looked, the more I was drawn to the
keyhole. So, I bent down over the book and looked in. Whoa!
Something was in there! I just knew I needed to get inside. I kept
searching and running my hands over that book. What I needed,
thought my 7 year old self, was some way to unlock that
door!

Sherl:
Zane’s father and I were amazed, over the days and weeks,
with the quality of The Book and how much delight Zane got out of
it. There did, indeed, seem to be something inside the keyhole; but
while we were curious, Zane was on a doggedly determined mission.
And, then, one day…Zane?

Zane:
On that particular day, I was running my hands along the
spine of The Volume, almost caressing or petting it, and yearning
for it to give up its secret. Then, my index finger felt a small
bump; which turned out to be a button. I pushed on it---once,
twice, three times---and “boink!”, the top third of the spine of
The Book opened up to reveal a tiny key! Well, I was intrigued and
excited, picked up the key, and flipped the back cover open to the
“Garden Door” illustration. Oh yeah! I was also calling my folks.
“Mom! Dad! Come and see!”

Sheryl:
We were absolutely floored! This seemed like some kind of
fairy tale. Zane’s eyes were the size of saucers, and his
excitement was contagious. He looked at us as he plunged the little
key into the lock; which, indeed, opened the garden gate door in
the illustration! We were all stunned.

Zane:
I didn’t know what I was looking at, but it seemed like a
huge golf ball had just landed in my life. As most people know by
now—and who knows how it fit in that cover!—we had just discovered
a treasure, a scarlet ruby…sparkling, brilliant, perfect. Yes, as
it’s called by Topekans, A Gem of Great Price, to the tune of 65
million dollars! Mom, you remember the legalities of the whole
thing better than I do…

Sherl:
Well, we were all shocked, and my husband wanted to make sure
about this whole thing; so he retained a lawyer; and after
researching and investigating by Corbin, Jesson, and Edwards, it
was determined that Zane was the true discoverer, and owner, of
quite a bit of wealth. At that point, contesting by the library and
the city of Topeka came up, and the whole thing—Volume with
treasure—went to court until Zane and, of course, the judge, solved
it.

Zane:
What was aggravating to me, as a 10 year old kid (because
this process was taking years), was that these big adults (not my
parents, who had talked with me beforehand, but the lawyers and the
court system and those associated with the library board and the
city) took my beloved Book, key, illustrations, treasure, and just
hijacked the whole thing! I was so frustrated! I hadn’t even read
it all yet! All I wanted was my Library Sale book! So I asked to
see the judge and, thankfully, he not only granted an interview but
put me in the courtroom to tell what I wanted—so farseeing and
merciful. Again, all I wanted was
my
book! Yes, the gem was neat, and
I understood (as best as a 10 year old could) about the amazing
wealth; but it was The Book with the words, illustrations, binding
that my heart was drawn to. The Ruby, I figured, could easily
belong to everyone; and that’s what I said I wanted.