Lisa Goon of Leesburg works part time in the children’s department at Milford Public Library. She grew up in Syracuse. Photo by Phoebe Muthart.

By Phoebe Muthart
InkFreeNews

MILFORD — When Lisa Goon was a child growing up in Syracuse, she had fond memories of going to Eby Pines in Bristol to get a Christmas tree.

“We were very traditional,” she recalled fondly.

Goon, a Leesburg resident, works part time at Milford Public Library. She graduated from Wawasee High School in 1978. From 1967 to 1980, she grew up on Lake Papakeechie.

“I had the game preserve in my backyard,” she said. “I loved to fish as a child. I love animals and always had dogs and pets.”

That love of animals led her to work at Lake City Animal Clinic in Warsaw for 27 years as a dog groomer. After that, she worked at Paragon for three years before getting a part-time job at Milford Public Library in September.

Now semi-retired, Goon works in the children’s department at the library. She enjoys the children.

“This is my dream job,” she said. “I love working with children. It fits in my schedule, as I work two to three days a week.”

As a children’s librarian, she helps with such activities as hands-on crafts and checking out books.

In her spare time, she enjoys gardening, volunteering and doing yoga.

“Yoga keeps me grounded,” she said, “and yoga keeps my joints limber, and I enjoy the camaraderie.”

She taught Sunday school to pre-school and kindergartner students at a Warsaw church for 10 years.

“They were so much fun,” she said of the children.

She now volunteers at Leesburg Methodist Church, which she started doing this past summer. She has helped with Vacation Bible School and Depending On God, called the D.O.G. House.

“I help with that two times a month,” she said, adding the children are in pre-school through eighth grade.

In the summer, her church has outdoor services at Patona Bay.

“In July, I help coordinate that,” she said.

She has a son, Joshua, and daughter, Ashlie, and son-in-law, Jeremy, and a grandson, Cayden, 16.

“Making new friends and following my passions and volunteering are my interests,” Goon said.

She enjoys canning and freezing food. Her favorite pastime is walking around Syracuse Lake with her brother and her dog, Simon. She also walks near North Webster’s park.