Former Rhinelander library director to be inducted into Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame

The Wisconsin Heritage Center, an initiative of the Wisconsin Library Association Foundation, announced last week that Kristine “Kris” Adams Wendt, former Executive Director of the Rhinelander District Library, has been selected for the 2024 Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame.

“Induction into the Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame is granted to individuals who have made an exceptional contribution to the statewide improvement of library service in Wisconsin over a sustained period,” according to a press release announcing the honor. “Wendt has served and supported Wisconsin’s libraries for more than 50 years. Her leadership and ability to unite people for a common cause was evidenced early in her career while working at the Rhinelander District Library from 1974 to 2008. As Children’s Librarian, Kris collaborated with Headwaters Reading Council, Rhinelander School District and three northern Wisconsin library systems to launch the Rhinelander Children’s Book Fest in 1987 — an event that drew 300 participants at its peak and marked its 35th year in 2023. Under her leadership as Executive Director, the Rhinelander District Library was selected as Wisconsin Library Association (WLA) Library of the Year in 2005.

Since 2011, Wendt has served as local and state advocacy consultant to Wisconsin Valley Library Service in Wausau. As a specialist on legislative matters impacting northcentral Wisconsin’s public libraries, she guides advocacy and communication strategies with elected policymakers at municipal, county and state levels, the release states.

An active member of the Wisconsin Library Association since 1974, Wendt has held various leadership roles within the organization, including WLA Secretary, Chair of the Children’s & Young Adult Services Section (now the Youth Services Section), Director at Large on the public library division board, and has served on the Nominations Committee, the Long-Range Planning Committee, and the Intellectual Freedom Committee. A long-time member of the WLA Library Development and Legislation Committee, she also plays a key role in planning and implementing the annual Library Legislative Day, an event which draws hundreds of librarians, library staff, and supporters to the State Capitol; creates budget briefs, background papers, and talking points on new legislation; and has helped craft political strategies that have secured millions in state funding for Wisconsin’s regional public library systems. She was named the WLA Librarian of the Year in 1993.

Wendt has been a member of the Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) Advisory Board since 1995.  She was appointed to the Wisconsin Humanities Council in 2004 by Governor Doyle and reappointed by Governor Evers in 2019. 

She was also appointed by Governor Doyle to the Council on Library and Network Development (COLAND) from 2004-2012; and served on the State Superintendent’s Advisory Council on Rural Schools, Libraries and Communities from 2004 – 2011.  Other past awards and honors include the International Reading Association Award for Exemplary Service in the Promotion of Literacy in 1995 and the State Superintendent’s Friend of Education Award in 2004.

The official Wisconsin Library Hall of Fame induction will take place at a special ceremony on Thursday, November 7 during the Wisconsin Library Association’s Annual Conference at the KI Convention Center in Green Bay. For more information about the past and present Hall of Fame honorees, visit heritage.wisconsinlibraries.org.