Sally Bulthuis, president of the board of the Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association and owner of Pooh’s Corner Books in Grand Rapids, Mich., announced Wednesday that the GLiBA board has hired Deborah Leonard to be the organization’s new executive director, replacing Jim Dana, who is joining the Peace Corps Oct. 15. Leonard will be assisting Dana on Oct. 1, inventorying books being shipped to the trade show to be held in Dearborn, Mich. Oct. 8-10. Officially, Leonard’s first day in her new position will be Monday, Oct. 4, when she will begin a two-week training session with Dana and associate director Joan Jandernoa at GLiBA’s headquarters in Grand Haven, Mich.

Leonard, most recently a sales manager at Cengage Learning, lives in Ann Arbor, Mich. She began her career in the book industry as a bookseller at Zibart’s in Nashville, Tenn., where she served as bookstore manager for seven years before becoming a children’s book buyer for Waldenbooks. Leonard has also worked as a national account manager at Scholastic and for Simon & Schuster.

Bulthuis, who said that the board interviewed a total of nine candidates for the position by phone, before narrowing it down and interviewing three candidates in person, told PW that Leonard brings a varied background to the position. “She’s worked in publishing and also as a bookseller,” Bulthuis said, “She understood us and we understood her. And she’s passionate about independent bookselling, which is key.”

The board’s intention is that GLiBA will continue to serve its 147 bookstore members from its current offices in Grand Haven, and that Jondernoa will remain in her position as associate director. Leonard will telecommute from her home office in Ann Arbor, which is 165 miles from Grand Haven.

“We love Joan and we cannot picture the organization going on without her,” Bulthuis said, while Dana added that “most communication is done electronically; a few details have to be worked out regarding shipping things, but for the most part, it’s not an issue.”

Both Dana and Leonard will attend the GLiBA trade show.