Library News

Boro's Books Boss Shares Her Life Story

By JOYCE SHELBY DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
Sunday, May 9th 2004, 7:21AM

For the last 15 months, Ginnie Cooper has been executive director of the Brooklyn Public Library, the country's fifth-largest independent system, with 60 branches serving the borough's 2.5 million residents.

But don't think of Cooper as a woman lost in a world of books. She's a theater lover, the owner of a 100-pound black Bouvier dog named Binka and a whiz in math and science who once had her sights set on medical school.

She taught Native American high school students in South Dakota and inner-city students in St. Paul before accepting a scholarship to study library science at the University of Minnesota.

Here are 10 things you probably don't know about Cooper, who grew up in Worthington, Minn., and was director of the Multnomah County Library System in Portland, Ore., before moving to Prospect Heights:

1 She is a member of the One-More-Time-Around-Again Marching Band, which has nearly 600 members and bills itself as the largest band in the world.

A clarinet player in high school, Cooper is practicing "Louie, Louie" for the band's upcoming appearance in the Portland Rose Festival's Starlight Parade.

2 She reads more children's books than books for adults. "It's the best way to get my mind out of this world and into another relaxing place," she said.

Her current favorite is "The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread," by Kate DiCamillo, which won the 2004 Newbery Medal for best children's book.

3 The best thing about her job? "My office. I have the best office in all of library land," said Cooper.

4 As head of the Brooklyn Public Library system, Cooper wants to see people make greater use of libraries than ever before.

"We also want to make an even greater difference in the lives of children," she said. "I think of that as our most important work."

5 Her heroine is her 91-year-old mother, Ione Cooper. "She's the most amazing person in the world. She still drives, pays all her own bills and is smarter than I am on almost every level. I'm hoping to grow up to be my mother - and I think I will," said Cooper, who is in her 50s.

6 She loves bright colors. Fuchsia tops her list.

7 Her favorite television show: "The West Wing."

8 She's been a vegetarian for more than 25 years, and her favorite food is a special Greek, low-sugar, plain yogurt. "Doesn't that sound awful?" she said. Her favorite beverage? "Diet Coke all the way."

9 Her husband, Rick Bauman, is an events manager who owns a business in Portland. He flies to New York almost every weekend.

10 Cooper enjoys going to Germany to visit her only child - who's in the military - his wife and "the two cutest grandsons in the world."

"When they run to you and say, 'Nana!' and you scoop them up in your arms, that's the best," said Cooper.

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