Lucille Cole Thomas, 97, died June 15. Thomas began her career as a librarian at Brooklyn (N.Y.) Public Library (BPL). She joined the New York City Board of Education as librarian 1956-1968; she served as supervisor of library services 1968-1977 and as assistant director of the office of library, media, and telecommunications 1977-1983. In 1993, she was appointed to the Board of Trustees of BPL. Thomas was an ALA Councilor for 22 years and served on the Executive Board 1985-1991. She was the first African-American president of the New York Library Association and the New York City School Librarians Association. Among her honors are the 1996 US National Commission on Libraries and Information Science Silver Award, the 1988 Grolier Foundation Award, ALA Honorary Membership in 2003, and the 1994 Distinguished Service Award from the American Association of School Librarians. BPL’s Excellence in Librarianship Award was named for her in 2017.