Lumen Summer 2016 - Flipbook - Page 17
story by Genevieve Sanchez
A life of
books, music
and travel
The late Kerstin Lillemor Andersen had a long a昀케liation
with the University of Adelaide – 昀椀rst as a graduate
earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1934, then as
an employee of Barr Smith Library for over 40 years.
K
nown as Miss Andersen in the
library and Lillemor to her friends,
she was remembered by some as
a stern staff member but by others as a
lifelong, faithful and adventurous friend.
She was also extremely generous,
leaving half of her estate to the Barr Smith
Library and the Elder Conservatorium –
ensuring others would continue to enjoy
the things she was most passionate
about in her life. Her bequest helped the
library acquire numerous titles, including
reference works in art and architecture,
while the Elder Conservatorium has used
the funds to support orchestral concerts.
Lillemor came to Australia with her
parents from Sweden when she was seven
and the temporary stay became permanent.
After graduating Lillemor joined the Barr
Smith Library in 1938 where she worked for
the next 42 years before retiring in 1978.
It was during a sabbatical that she
returned to her native Sweden for the
first time in more than 30 years and
stayed for nearly a year working at a
university library in Stockholm.
Lillemor was known to say “reading is
my drug” and she was an avid reader in
English, Swedish, French, German, Italian
and Spanish, devouring biographies,
poetry, novels and journals. The hall of
her small city cottage was lined with
books and she was a regular visitor at
the Central Market Book Exchange and
Adelaide and Burnside libraries.
She had a wide circle of friends with
shared interests in theatre, music,
literature and film, and enjoyed walking
in the Adelaide hills and at the beach
where she could follow her interest in
wild flowers, bird watching and geology.
Every summer, Lillemor and friends,
Elfriede Muetzelfeldt and Barbara Stodart,
went on walking holidays in the Australian
Alps and the Flinders Ranges.
“As a travelling companion you felt
you were travelling with a library – she
had such a zest for knowledge and
information, a wonderful memory and
grasp of languages,” says Barbara.
After retiring, she continued to volunteer
at the Art Gallery and the Adelaide High
School library until well into her seventies.
Lillemor remained active despite being
plagued by an inherited vascular problem
which resulted in four leg by-passes and
eventually a below-knee amputation.
She continued travelling and concertgoing until almost her 90th year before frail
health forced her to retire from public life.
After her death in 2006 at the age
of 92, friends remembered Lillemor in
the most appropriate way possible –
music, refreshment and conversation
in the Barr Smith Library.
Above: Lillemor (front right) with library staff
Inset: Lillemor with Sir Mark Oliphant, Owen Slight
(Deputy Librarian) and Ira Raymond (Librarian)
Left: Lillemor with the limited edition book,
Birds of the Australian Swamps by Frank T. Morris
Photos: Barr Smith Library, Special Collections
For further information about bequests or to arrange a confidential
discussion please visit www.adelaide.edu.au/give/how/bequests/
or contact Sue Fox on +61 8 8313 3234 or email development@adelaide.edu.au
The University of Adelaide | Alumni Magazine 15
