The Milford Town Library welcomes new director Harmony Birch, a Massachusetts native, who comes from the Canarsie Library, a branch of the Brooklyn, New York Public Library. 

Longtime library director Susan Edmonds retired in June. 

Birch grew up in Worcester County, earning her bachelor's degree from the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and her master’s degree in information science from Rutger’s University in 2022. She has been the Assistant Branch Manager, Brooklyn Public Library, Canarsie since 2023, twice serving as Acting Branch Manager. Previously, she was a Senior Young Adult Librarian at Canarsie. She has also worked as a school librarian, and while in graduate school served as a Graduate Assistant at the New Brunswick, New Jersey, Public Library.

As acting Branch Manager at Canarsie, Birch fulfilled the administrative duties of the position and oversaw the closing of the branch in preparation for demolition and construction of a new building. While her staff was relocated to several other branch libraries, she coordinated their schedules while maintaining outreach and community service programming. She instituted a strong young adult service program to address behavior issues, increased community partnerships, developed and expanded programs, and sought and received grants to fund them.

As Birch prepared for her position, she said, "I'm from Worcester County, I'm excited to return, and I'm happy to join such a vibrant library community. I aim to continue Sue's stewardship of a welcoming library environment that reflects the needs of the Milford community. I'm also excited to meet everyone!”     

Submitted by Milford Town Library