Although we know him as Charlie Remy, his family’s nickname for him is EK (Edward Kennedy.) As a youngster back in Maine, Charlie was always leaving his wallet behind. His dad had grown up with a kid nicknamed Eddie No Wallet, and, well, you’ll just have to ask Charlie how the whole EK thing got started.
Charlie is the new Electronic Resources and Serials Librarian. He is responsible for the care and feeding of about 20,000 electronic journal subscriptions and 140+ online databases. He moved here from a similar position at Western State College of Colorado in Gunnison where he had a lot of experience with Goldrush, the electronic resource management system used here at UTC. He and Katie Gohn, the new Digital Integration Librarian, are working side by side (almost literally!) to make the digital experience smooth and trouble-free for our patrons. Behind the scenes, Charlie spends a lot of his time on the phone with vendors – negotiating prices, demanding fixes, and sleuthing problems.
One of Charlie’s heroes is the late Steve Jobs of Apple. Reminiscent of a country and western song, Charlie says that he loved Apple before Apple was cool. He has had Apple computers for 15 years, and he bought Apple stock in 1998 when the company was nearly ready to go under. He admires the quality of their products, their customer service, and the brand loyalty they inspire. He says he is looking forward to reading the new biography, Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson.
As an undergraduate at Elon University in North Carolina, Charlie majored in both Spanish and Gender Studies. He spent his junior year in Chile, becoming even more fluent in Spanish. He lived with two different families, took all his classes in Spanish, and really immersed himself in the culture. He said that the experience broadened his horizons and made him grateful for the opportunity.
Since moving here in October, Charlie has been actively immersing himself in Chattanooga culture. He volunteers at a food pantry, has been attending a local church, and is making friends on campus. Outside of work, Charlie loves to bake (he makes a mean bran muffin!) and is learning to cook meals too. Most nights he hits Crossroads for dinner before heading home, but he is looking forward to doing more cooking for himself as he gets more experience. Politically liberal, his favorite podcast is Democracy Now! with Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez, an independent national public television and radio daily news program. Charlie likes to listen when he’s cooking, walking or driving.
Welcome to UTC and Lupton Library, Charlie! (Or should we call you EK?)