Kat Valentine is a long-time resident of the Fairmount neighborhood and a former administrative professional at JPS. An avid reader, averaging 25-30 books a month, she is passionate about literacy and promoting the love of reading for all. Kat is also a vocal activist for the LGBTQIA community and other causes dedicated to ensuring diversity and inclusion. Additionally, she dedicates her time to raising awareness for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, a disease she has been diagnosed with since childhood. When she's not volunteering, she enjoys spending time at home with her partner, child, and animals.
Kat’s favorite book is The Princess Bride by William Goldman.

Christina Brinker fell in love with Fairmount when searching for homes with her husband Andrew, and moved into the 'hood in 2009. She has two active kids, Baxter and Finnley, that keep her very busy along with her full-time job, and other volunteer roles in the community. Growing up she often read on long car trips with her family, and The Green Mile (Stephen King series) was when she recalls becoming a true book enthusiast. Christina agrees wholeheartedly with author Neil Gaiman that "A book is a dream that you hold in your hand", and often finds respite in books from her hectic life.

FCL is seeking a Fundraising Chair to help us meet our financial goals.

Carol Standerfer is a retired school librarian with 32 years of library experience. She is excited about the Fairmount Community Library reopening and has enjoyed volunteering with the dedicated, energetic board. Carol and her husband love to travel to national parks and spend time with their family. Carol also swims on a masters team, crochets, and of course reads. Her favorites are mystery and detective stories where the ending is a total shocker.

Miranda moved to Fairmount in 2020 from Oakland California. She fell in love with the old houses and the sense of community. She believes that it’s a human responsibility to help and give back as much as possible. She previously spent her time in the corporate world bringing brand awareness, and training over a hundred associates in different parts of the U.S. Pulling from her previous career has helped her navigate being our Volunteer Coordinator. In her free time she loves finding new and interesting restaurants, taking long walks with her husband Davis, son Griffin and dog Dudley and enjoying a good book with a glass of wine. Having an inclusive space to learn, play and socialize is so important and she’s extremely excited about what the future holds for our fun, quirky, library.

Her favorite book growing up and remains one of her favorites to this day is The Great Gatsby. She found the double meanings and different interpretations fascinating and believes you can truly find something new every time you read it.

A Fairmount resident since 2011, Karen Kysar is a mom and entrepreneur in Fort Worth who is passionate about the well-being and enrichment of children and families. Karen was previously a Consumer Experience Strategist at dentsu and now owns The First Milestones, a nanny placement agency. In her free time, Karen enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter and dog, reading, gardening, crafting and traveling. The book that solidified Karen's love for reading is The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.

Jeb moved to the neighborhood in 2018 and fell in love with Fairmount. He enjoys the constant learning and challenge that maintaining an old house affords him. A desk bound engineer during the day, the constant tinkering the library needs is a welcomed change of pace.

Jeb mainly reads non-fiction. He credits Quiet by Susan Cain for helping him become more comfortable and confident in who he is.

Becky is a Fort Worth native who moved to the Fairmount neighborhood in 2018. The strong sense of community, eclectic culture, and love for the arts (...and cats) drew her to this area. She is a freelance graphic designer who works with companies and organizations who seek to make the world a better place.

Becky enjoys reading about the human experience. Some books that have left an impact include the Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck), Fathers and Sons (Ivan Turgenev), Peter Pan (J. M. Barrie), Dreamland (Sara Dessen), and Scar Tissue (Anthony Kiedis).

Jessica Henn is an avid reader and book collector. She is a new mom, dog lover, and houseplant enthusiast with a passion for event planning and organization. She has a Little Free Library in the Fairmount Neighborhood, and enjoys filling it with genres inclusive to all ages and backgrounds. She works in pediatrics, and her interests include reading to her son, spending time with her family and 2 dogs, all things Halloween, crafting, and a good mystery novel. The book that rekindled her love for reading is "The Giver of Stars" by Jojo Moyes.