Staff Snapshots | Annette Haldeman.

Annette Haldeman

Hometown: Hooversville, Penn., a small town in western Pennsylvania with fewer than 1,000 residents and no stoplights. It was a wonderful little town to grow up in.

Role: Library director, Maryland Department of Legislative Services

Years of legislative service: 14 and a half

The skill or talent she's proudest of: "My ability to stay calm, cool and collected under pressure, which I think serves me well in my work with the Legislature."

Why did you choose to work at the legislature?

I was looking for a more specialized and niche library opportunity. I was working in public libraries at the start of my career and realized I wanted to do something a bit different. A colleague at my public library encouraged me to apply for the position I was hired for at the Legislature, which was that of reference librarian. I am grateful that they did because I found out that it was the perfect environment for the type of library work that I wanted to do.

What's the best advice you were ever given?

The best piece of advice that I've ever been given was from one of my graduate school professors. She mentioned to me one day that it was always important to treat everyone equally, no matter whether it was the person picking up the trash or the dean of the school. I took the advice to mean that everyone is important and no one person is better than anyone else. I try to embody this in the way that I interact with others each day.

Who or what inspires you?

I am always inspired when I see anyone put forth extra effort to help someone out, whether it is at work or out in public, and when it is truly coming from an altruistic place and not for self-serving purposes. It is sadly quite rare to see this these days, but I am always inspired when I see these caring and conscientious gestures in action.

What's one thing you love about your state?

It is somewhat of a cliche that Maryland is "America in Miniature," but it truly is. We have mountains in the west, urban areas in the center, and farms and the beach on the shore. It helps that my...