Our Thanks to Those Who've Lead the Way

A simple thank you is never enough, but it often is the best way to express our gratitude to the individuals who shouldered the responsibility of operating This House of Books and the Billings Bookstore Cooperative.

Julie Linderman (2017-2018)

Julie Linderman co-owns and manages the online sticker company Sticker Robot. When not helping customers, modifying sticker art, and plotting the future of the sticker world, she enjoys cooking, travel, art, movies and especially reading. One of her favorite things in life is choosing her next book.

Before returning to her home state of Montana, she lived in San Francisco, and spent her 20’s surviving earthquakes, navigating the temp industry, and getting a degree at the University of California Berkeley. Life in Montana has brought her close to family, and the opportunity to be involved in the community. She has volunteered for the MSU-Billings Wine and Food Festival for 15 years, serving 2 years as a co-chair of the event. Further, as a CASA Advocate, she is moved to help our most helpless.

Believing strongly in the healing powers of a good book and a good cup of tea, she relishes the opportunity to nourish a literary community in downtown Billings.

Julie was elected to the board in 2017 but stepped down after the 2018 General Meeting for personal reasons.

 

 

Nina Hernandez (2016)

Nina Hernandez works in business development for a Montana-based non-profit. Her background is in fundraising, where she has campaigned for large nonprofits in Texas and Montana, such as the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in Dallas, Texas. Her Montana roots brought her back to Billings after she and her husband adopted their first child. She worked as the Executive Director for the American Heart Association before taking her position for Youth Dynamics, a Montana-based nonprofit focusing on children’s mental and behavioral healthcare. With an emphasis on philanthropy and sustainability, she oversees business development, marketing and communications, and community education for the state.

By serving on This House of Books’ board of directors, Nina is able to exercise one of her favorite out-of-office pastimes, as a bookworm and literature enthusiast. She and her husband have two children and believe in small houses, downtown communities, and cultural growth for Billings.

Nina served as the first Treasurer to the Board from 2016–2018.

 

 

Carrie La Seur (2016)

Carrie practices energy and environmental law on behalf of farmers, ranchers, and Native Americans—and does a little writing—from an office in Billings, Montana. Her ancestors homesteaded in Montana in 1864 and survived every sort of calamity and absurdity, so the book industry seems pretty tame to her by comparison.

Carrie’s improbable but apparently nonfiction résumé includes a degree in English and French from Bryn Mawr College, a Rhodes Scholarship, a doctorate in modern languages from Oxford University, and a Yale law degree. She is the author of the novels,  The Home Place and The Weight of an Infinite Sky.

A licensed private pilot and committed introvert, Carrie hikes, skis, and fishes the Montana wilderness with her family in her spare time. Her writing has appeared in such diverse media as Daily Beast, Grist, Guardian, Harvard Law and Policy Review, High Country News, Huffington Post, Kenyon Review Online, Mother Jones, and Salon.

Carrie served as the first President of the Board from 2016–2018.

For more information, see Carrie's author page.

 

Dave Schumway, Vice President (2018-2021)

When he is not busy as the Director of Communications for Volunteers of America, Northern Rockies, or as an adjunct professor of photography at Rocky Mountain Colge, Dave M. Shumway is a professional photographer. Currently based in Red Lodge, Montana, Dave was raised in the western suburbs of Chicago, Illinois. He moved to the western U.S. when he was 20 years old, and he “is never looking back.”

Dave has two passions, one for the outdoors and one for photography. To this end he spends much of his time in fragile places the world over, always looking for ways to share the natural world through his lens. To this end, he averages 150 days per year in wild and fragile places the world over. Working as a photographer, Dave’s assignments include everything from wildlife and landscape photography to journalism and commercial work. His extensive time in the field shows through in online galleries, which are loaded with images of the fragile places to which he travels.

Dave also harbors a certain fondness for community-owned, independent bookstores.

For more information about Dave, please check out his website and his photography site.

 

 

 

Jaclyn S. Laferriere, Secretary (2017-2021)

Jaclyn S. Laferriere practices law in Billings, Montana, representing personal injury victims. A Bozeman native, she graduated with highest honors from Montana State University in 2007 with a B.S. in Sociology. She then moved to South Royalton, Vermont, to attend Vermont Law School. After graduating cum laude in 2010, Jaclyn returned to Montana to practice law in Billings.

Jaclyn feels that one of the best activities is picking up a random book by an unknown author and discovering a new favorite book. There is a book out there for everyone at every phase in life, and helping him or her to find it is an art. While there is nothing quite like the freedom of expression and exploration that works of fiction offer to both the reader and the writer, Jaclyn also loves a well-researched history or social science book. Her favorite type of prose is the short story.'

Jaclyn served briefly as President before returning to her role as the first Secretary to the board, a role she's filled since 2016.

For more information, see Jaclyn's book recommendations

 

Erica Hartman, Member-at-large (2019-2020)

Writing about yourself can be difficult, especially if you are a generally private person. My name is Erica Hartman and I am delighted to be a part of This House of Books.

Billings has been my home for more years than I care to admit. As a Senior High School graduate, I love that I now teach English there. My husband and I believe in our downtown neighborhood and are pleased our children attend the same elementary and middle school I attended.

Reading seems to be something I have done forever and is now just a part of me. Ask my mother about me telling my 1st-grade teacher and principal I was not happy with their book selection. Ask my children about the words we read together. Ask my husband about the piles of books in our home.

Joining this downtown bookstore community was an easy decision for me to make. I have enjoyed learning about the store and look forward to the future. Please, join us sometime downtown and become a part of this community!

By the way, did I mention I like fish?

Check out Erica's book recommendations.