The passing of EveryLibrary Board member Roberto C. Delgadillo

We are saddened to learn about the passing of EveryLibrary Board member Roberto C. Delgadillo.

Roberto has been a member of the board since 2019 and a dear friend to each of our staff members for many years. He helped to shape our priorities and develop our mission, especially during the COVID crisis. As a board member, his care and attention always brought us to a deeper understanding of how our work impacted and supported library workers, not just the institutions. Roberto’s good humor, keen insights, and straightforward approach will be missed by his EveryLibrary colleagues and professional community.

Roberto was the Student Services Librarian at the Peter J. Shields Library at the University of California, Davis. His areas of responsibility included Chicana/o Studies, English Language and Literatures, Latin American Studies, Military Science, Native American Studies, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Literatures. Born in Managua, Nicaragua, Roberto's family moved to the United States in 1975. He held a BA in Modern German and Russian History from UC Santa Cruz and an MLIS and a Ph.D. in Modern Latin American History from UCLA. In addition to his EveryLibrary Board service, he was the Past-President (2013-14) for SLALM, the Seminar on the Acquisition of Latin American Library Materials, along with being Parliamentarian, Rapporteur General, and a Member-at-Large for that organization. He was a Member-at-Large on the American Library Association’s Council and was a 2012 recipient of The Carnegie Corporation of New York/New York Times “I Love My Librarian” Award.

We extend our deepest sympathies to his wife Robin Gustafson, his family, and his colleagues at UC Davis. Roberto had a unique ability to connect issues across different types of libraries and disciplines within librarianship. His skills, acumen, and empathy were well-known and much needed within our sector. 

We are honored to have had Roberto Delgadillo in our professional community here at EveryLibrary, and he will be missed.