Open Books :: About


Executive

Stacy Ratner Founder & President Thirtysomething years ago, Stacy learned to read. This life-changing experience led to degrees in law and literature, allowed her to help take 3 startup companies from idea through a combined total of $30 million in committed venture funding, and finally inspired her to start Open Books in her basement in 2006. She is delighted to have received an Emerging Leader Fellowship from the Chicago Community Trust, a place on NewCity's Lit 50 List, the Social Enterprise Alliance's Innovation award, and recognition on the White House's official blog for "spreading the infinite and awesome power of books," but is most proud just to be part of the incredible things that the team, students, volunteers, and supporters of Open Books make happen every day. Stacy writes a novel every year, eats ice cream every day, and is always starting something. And, yes: her hair really is green. Follow Stacy at: @stacyjratner.

Natalie Weiss Executive Director Natalie has spent most of her career dedicated to improving educational outcomes for underserved students. Her time with NewSchools Venture Fund and the Illinois Network of Charter Schools offered insight into the urgent need to transform K-12 public education. She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a bachelor's degree in Economics. Natalie currently serves as the Board Chairperson of Lighthouse Academies and as a Wish Granter for the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois. She reads Jane Eyre annually from one of her many prized copies of the book, and her favorite living authors include Ann Patchett and Richard Russo.
Programs

Anna Piepmeyer Program Director Anna recently graduated from the University of Chicago with her MA in English. She was raised in Park City, Utah, and although she misses the mountains, she's excited about life in Chicago's urban metropolis. When she's not at Open Books, Anna can be found reading, writing, or hauling her giant camera around the streets of Chicago, taking blurry pictures and chasing rabbits. Her favorite authors are Haruki Murakami, Milan Kundera, Vladimir Nabokov, and WG Sebald.

Cary Mele Program Manager Cary was born and raised in Chicago and is happy to have found her home at Open Books, slowly weaseling her way in to the Open Books family -- first as a VWrite mentor, then as an Associate Board member, and finally as a staff member. She holds a BA in Elementary Education from Augustana College and a Masters Degree in literacy from DePaul University. She loves to travel, is obsessed with all things Irish, and is always starting up some new hobby or project. She also loves to read, but please don’t ask her what her favorite book is – it’s just too hard to pick!

Rebecca Witheridge Program Manager Rebecca is a proud graduate of Oberlin College with a B.A. in Anthropology and a minor in Sociology. She grew up in Minnesota, but with one parent in St. Paul and another in St. Louis, Missouri, she's used to the confines of cars and airplanes. She's obsessed with her cat, Blossom, and in her spare time she can be found reading, doing art, and exploring Chicago with her beloved friends and family.
Bookstore

Kevin Elliott Bookstore Manager Kevin began his reading life at two years old when his father would read him his favorite book before bedtime. When his father was particularly tired and would skip words, Kevin insisted upon re-reading the story in its entirety. This enthusiasm and care for the written word and the people who read it carries him through his days. On most of these days, you can find him in the Open Books Store, locating the perfect book for you. Other days, he is probably wandering Chicago in search of decent conversation, hidden culinary gems and the perfect addition to his record collection. He has worked as a library page, printer, research assistant and event coordinator. He also once worked in a clothing factory where he organized jeans in order by size for eight hours a day, so he knows something or other about numbers too.

Lizzy Boden Bookstore Assistant Manager Lizzy started as a volunteer in the Open Books store when it opened in November 2009. Stealthily worming her way into deeper involvement with them ever since, she now proudly claims the title of Bookstore Assistant Manager. Lizzy graduated from DePaul University with a degree in history in 2009. She wrote her honors thesis on llamas, and can discourse at length upon them. Did you know that llamas run a secret cabal that rules the earth? Lizzy can tell you about it (though she may have to kill you)! Her favorite authors are too many to name, but she collects Neil Gaiman memorabilia. In a shocking twist of fate, she got a tattoo of an open book on her foot in 2008; thus, it is proven that her involvement with Open Books was meant to be. The book remains untitled because her favorite book changes so often... and tattoos hurt. Lizzy is attempting (and currently failing) to learn to play the banjo. Most importantly, Lizzy loves reading more than any other thing (even breathing!) and is incredibly lucky to discuss books with Open Books customers all day!

Maddie Haller Bookseller Maddie is a recent graduate of Boston College. While studying English and history at BC, Maddie learned that she would have to incorporate reading and writing into her post-grad life in a BIG way in order to find any sort of fulfillment. Fortunately, fate has led her to Open Books, where she constantly struggles to stay on task amidst the tempting merchandise. When she’s not getting lost in the stacks, Maddie (a Seattle native) can usually be found exploring (i.e. getting lost in) Chicago. She loves bargain shopping, baking, camping, watching old episodes of Friday Night Lights and Downton Abbey on Netflix, and taking funny pictures of her dog, Henry Matisse.
Books

Aaron Lippelt Book Director Aaron recently graduated from the extremely dirty world of industrial manufacturing. He previously attended Purdue University, where he graduated with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering. He lived and worked in Belgium for a time, but couldn't learn to enjoy warm Coke Cola. As a result, he returned to the U.S. of A to dedicate his life to kindness.

Christina Brown Book Coordinator Christina began volunteering at Open Books in the summer of 2011 and she’s thrilled to have infiltrated the staff. She graduated from Roosevelt University with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and enjoys having a good rant whenever correlation is confused with causation or whenever writers lie about how the brain works. Her passion for reading and writing manifested early in life. As a toddler she would scribble neat rows of gibberish next to her drawings and wander the house crying, “I want to read!” Once she did become literate, her love of the written word only became stronger. Although she is trying to read more stories set in the real world (or at least constrained by real-world physics), she prefers plots that feature zombies, time travel, or screwball comedy (ideally all three). In her spare time she writes fiction that she refuses to share with anyone.
Social Enterprise

Dustin Walsh Director of Social Enterprise Dustin comes to Open Books as a graduate of Columbia College, where he majored in Marketing Communications and minored in Product Design. Dustin spent much of his time growing up volunteering with numerous organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Big Brothers Big Sisters, PADS, and Students of Service. He is an outdoor enthusiast as well as an avid cyclist who enjoys spending his time camping and kayaking.
Volunteers

Ava Zeligson Volunteer Manager Ava hails from the East Coast but has gotten quite comfortable claiming to be a Midwesterner in the past few years. She received her B.A. in French and Comparative Literature with a focus on Trauma Studies from Oberlin College (the first of two Oberlin grads at Open Books!). Ava is a first-generation Romanian who spent most of her childhood traveling the globe, collecting embarrassing stories at each stop. Seriously, just ask. When she is not organizing the wonderful volunteer corps that makes Open Books possible, she is likely reading, cooking, or hanging out with her new best friend, Loomis the dog.
Marketing & Events

Erica Hawkinson Director of External Relations Erica is delighted to add Open Books to the eclectic list of positions where she has garnered work (and life!) experience. Equipped with a degree in Spanish Literature and Language from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, she's been a bilingual 2nd grade classroom teacher, an elementary and middle school Spanish instructor, and is now proud to call Open Books home. She has a passion for crafty projects, loves a good pun, prefers public transportation to finding parking, and wonders why "quite a few" and "quite a lot" mean the same thing.
Finance & Operations

David Watkins Finance Director David finished college in a year that begins with a two. He spent most of the previous decade as a health insurance actuary in Lake Forest, and the rest of the decade not being an actuary. When not at the store, he can be found avoiding sunlight and ingesting various cold forms of caffeine. At the risk of sounding like the most generic person on the planet -- he's only ninth, since he's under 60 and knows how to play bridge -- he enjoys books, movies, music, word puzzles, games of all sorts, and the occasional animated or odd TV show. His favorite film is Miller’s Crossing, his favorite flavor of Slurpee is banana, and he has the high score on the Ms. Pac-Man machine closest to his apartment. David startles easily if approached in the wild, but if you remain motionless, you might induce him to eat a cheeseburger right out of your hand.
Fellows
	Amanda Bruening Open Books Fellow
As a former intern, Amanda couldn’t be more ecstatic to return and rejoin the Open Books team! Reading and writing has always been an immensely strong part of her, and she loves passing on her passion and enthusiasm for the written word to students. She has a BA from Purdue University in English and history, as well as a MA in secondary education from Roosevelt University. Amanda is an unashamed and self-proclaimed school nerd, which she feels adds to her awesomeness! Born in Rockford, but harnessed the city-pride of a true Chicagoan, Amanda can’t imagine herself anywhere else at the moment. When she is not encouraging Chicago’s students to trust their literary abilities, Amanda is usually working one of her two other jobs, spending time with her fiancée and pets, or looking for some harmless trouble to get into!
Interns
	Virginia Baker Senior Literacy Intern
Virginia is a third-year fiction writing student at Columbia College Chicago. She is from the great land of South Jersey, but has found solace in Chicago, especially in her little Pilsen apartment. Interests include: music, coffee, the environment, trains, thinking, camping and Prague. James Baldwin, Fitzgerald, Jonathan Safran Foer and Bonnie Jo Campbell are a few of her favorite authors. You can usually catch her smiling and laughing at her own jokes, because she is quite funny (at least in her own mind).
	Julia Weed Senior Literacy Intern
Julia Weed is an energetic short stack who recently graduated from Northwestern University with a double major in Theatre and English. She’s into beverages, books and cooking in a big way and is DEFINITELY getting a dog for her birthday. She alphabetized her interests in that sentence. Originally from Virginia, she knew she wanted to be an actress and a teacher of some sort since she was five. At that age she also wanted to be captain of a space ship and a veterinarian. Some of her favorite authors include Dostoyevsky, Murakami and Abraham Verghese.
	Isaac Bloom Literacy Intern
Hello fellow book lovers, storytellers, writers, volunteers, and child advocate extraordinaires! My name is Isaac Bloom and I am absolutely thrilled to be a Literacy Intern here at Open Books. A little bit more about me? Well, how about a super secret fun fact? When I was 13 I filmed a pilot for my very own cooking TV show! It was called Kitchen Magicians, and was all about chocolate. It was perfect, flawless, but was never picked up by a network. As heart broken as I was, you can still find me, most days, happily concocting culinary delights in my mini studio kitchen. Truly looking forward to all things Open Books! Let the adventure begin!
	Kate Borkowski Community Outreach Intern
Kate is in her final semester at Northeastern Illinois University, where she’s majoring in Sociology with a Psychology minor. She grew up in the Chicagoland area, but travels every chance she can get. With a huge passion for reading and working with kids, Kate started as a book buddy at Otis Elementary and loved Open Books so much she decided to fulfill her internship here! There are too many great authors to choose a favorite, but she’s currently working through every Charles Dickens novel she never read as a kid. When she isn’t reading, working, or studying, you can usually find Kate scouring Netflix and YouTube for any BBC television show she can get her hands on with her cat, Bob.
	Claire Hein Literacy Intern
Claire is from the San Francisco Bay. She came here with a BA in Theatre from San Jose State University. She has spent her time after college volunteering at local literacy programs in San Jose, and has grown to love everything about teaching and tutoring. Prior to this, Claire has also been an Intern Dramaturge at San Jose Repertory Theatre. Claire loves rap music, Shakespeare and food. She has indulged in many, many plays and books. Her favorite novel for this week is “I am Legend,” by Richard Matheson. Her favorite play ever is Twelfth Night, by William Shakespeare, of course.
	Kelsey Hoeper Literacy Intern
Kelsey is in her final semester at Lake Forest College, where she is majoring in Communications with minors in English and Sociology/Anthropology. Though originally a small-town Oregonian, she quickly fell in love with the Chicago and its surroundings and hopes to remain in the area after she graduates. Kelsey is cheerful, positive and enjoys working with others. As a student who is passionate about reading and working with children, working as an intern at Open Books was thought to be the perfect opportunity for her to exercise her interests. She enjoys reading, writing, volunteering, drawing, watching movies and laughing. Her teammates on the Lake Forest Swimming and Diving Team don’t call her “Giggles” for nothing!
	Audrey Martin Bookstore Intern
Audrey recently graduated from North Central College with a major in English Writing and minors in History and Speech Communication.She is originally from Paris, France and has also lived in London, England. Her favorite novelists include Richard Yates, D.H. Lawrence, Marguerite Duras and Bret Easton Ellis. When she's not reading the work of depressed writers, Audrey focuses on cultivating new obsessions, the most recent ones being Peter Pan collars and colorful nail lacquers. She is looking forward to getting over her post-graduation confusion at Open Books and meeting new people with similar interests.
	Julia Murphy Literacy Intern
Julia is a recent graduate of Lake Forest College where she studied Spanish and Educational Studies. Julia loves to travel, and she’s lived in exotic locations such as Spain and a self-sustainable farm in Vermont! Julia currently resides in the North Shore where she loves to go on walks with her dog, Penny Lane. Or, Julia is just as happy lying around with Penny by her side and a good book in her lap. She likes to read and re-read the works of Shakespeare, Lorca, Steinbeck, Salinger, Plath and Vonnegut.
	Lydia Wassman Literacy Intern
Lydia is a sophomore at Loyola University Chicago studying history with a minor in journalism and a minor in marketing. She is from the western suburbs of Chicago and she loves going home to see her cute little puppy, Izzy! She enjoys watching movies and television shows, reading, writing, chai tea lattes, going to small coffee shops around the city, poetry, and YouTube. She also LOVES anything British (especially the accents) so don’t be surprised if she randomly switches from her regular voice to her British person voice!
	Clare Zimmerman Literacy Intern
Clare comes from Milwaukee but has been living incognito in Chicago for the last two and a half years. She graduated from University of Wisconsin-Madison with an English Literature and Creative Writing Poetry degree, and wants to put her geeky enthusiasm for books to the test. Favorite authors include Hermann Hesse and Truman Capote. A lover of expressionist art, Netflix’s expansive selection of mediocre independent films, and traveling, she is always bumping into a lot of writing material while in transit to her Andersonville apartment.