MS. MARGARET WOLFE
Commissioner
Michigan Commission for the Blind
Margaret Wolfe was the librarian coordinator of the Washtenaw County Library for the Blind and Physically Disabled (LBPD) in
Ann Arbor from 1995 to 2008 and the regional librarian for the Library of Michigan Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped in
Lansing from 1983 to 1995.
Throughout her career of nearly 40 years, Margaret provided and expanded library services for people who are blind and have other physical disabilities at the national, state, regional, and local levels. She was instrumental in establishing
Michigan's network of subregional libraries, and she has served on two committees at the national level, planning audio cassette tape machine and Braille services.
In 1995, she became Librarian Coordinator of the LBPD, where she continued to find ways to enhance services. These included the very popular LBPD Book Lovers Club established in 1997, the Many Ways of Seeing workshops that brought University of Michigan ceramics students together with library patrons to create art with clay, and the biennial VISIONS Vendor Fair, sponsored by LBPD and MCB since 2002 with an average of 1,200 participants.
Margaret holds a bachelor of arts degree from
Northern Michigan University and a master's degree in library science from Western Michigan University. She is a recipient of the New York Times Librarian Award (2003), the 2006 Library of Michigan's State Librarians Excellence Award, the Michigan Commission for the Blind 2006 Community Partner Achievement Honor Roll Award, and the 2006 Network Subregional Library of the Year Award (National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, Library of Congress).
Margaret is married to Charles Wolfe, who works for
Washtenaw County as Web Content Coordinator for the Information Technology department. They live in Ann Arbor and have a son, Patrick, who lives in
Grand Rapids,
Michigan.
In her role as a Commissioner on the Michigan Commission for the Blind board, Margaret looks forward to supporting innovative services and programs that sustain the social, emotional, and intellectual health of
Michigan citizens who are blind or visually impaired.