Sheila M. Stevenson, 89, died at home in Oak Park on Feb. 28, 2024. In her three decades working at the Oak Park Public Library, the tall, slender lady with the British accent, dressed in Liberty prints and Ferragamo shoes, made an indelible impression on both her coworkers and the public she delighted in serving. Always in motion, always helpful, always dedicated to OPPL’s mission, her energy and passion for her work set an example for her co-workers. She was a mentor to many young library employees, encouraging them to work toward advanced degrees in library science. And she became a great personal friend, not only to many of her coworkers but to many library patrons as well.
Born in Paddington, London, on Aug. 26, 1934, she was evacuated from London and sent to live with a host family in Wales during the Blitz in World War II. After the war, her family settled in Sussex. She first came to the U.S. in the late 1950s to work at the Baltimore Public Library, then returned to England in the 1960s to further her education in librarianship and to earn a degree in history from the University of Leicester. In 1973, she returned to the U.S. to begin her career at the Oak Park Public Library, first as head of the Readers Services Department and later as the head of Collection Development, before retiring in 2002.
She loved opera, theater, and literature in all their forms. A longtime Lyric Opera season ticket holder, she also traveled to the Stratford Festival in Ontario for 40 straight years and never missed a single Shakespeare production. Her other love was fine dining. She made a mean trifle and loved a good single malt Scotch (neat, water on the side please!).
In her final years her nephew, Tim Smith, came to Oak Park to care for her. She was preceded in death by her parents, Henry and Winifred (Worley) Stevenson and her sister, Gillian (Henry) Stevenson Smith. She is survived by her nephews Tim Smith of London and Christopher Smith of Amsterdam.
