Bonnie Ledbetter

Mrs. Bonnie M. Ledbetter, of Birmingham, Alabama, passed away on Tuesday, the 31st of August 2021. She was 78 years of age. Born in Wisconsin on the 14th of December 1942, Bonnie was the daughter of Noble Meyer and Irene Schmidt Meyer.

Bonnie received her undergraduate degree from Beloit College (Wisconsin) in 1965 followed by a Master of Library Science Degree from Florida State University. Her first professional position was at the Air University Library, Montgomery, Alabama. In 1973, Bonnie was the first Reference Bibliographer hired by Dr. Paul Spence when he came to UAB’s University College Library. Dr. Spence’s goal was to hire reference librarians that were subject specialists. Bonnie understood the philosophy and provided the foundation for the development of the department. Her background was well suited for the role in the social and behavioral sciences. She helped Dr. Spence realize the vision of subject bibliographers (specialists) by providing leadership and counseling new reference librarians in their role. She and her husband, Jim both contributed to the growth and development of UAB.

She always had a positive attitude about her assignments and her role as a subject specialist. She worked well with faculty from across the academic community providing guidance in the development of the library collections. She supported faculty with their research endeavors and with the inclusion of library assignments in their teaching. She was a member of several committees and served in leadership positions with the Alabama Library Association and the Southeastern Library Association. Bonnie rose through the academic ranks by recognizing the contributions made by the library and librarians within the academy. She retired as an Associate Professor from the Mervyn H. Sterne Library in 2003.

Bonnie’s colleagues remember her as an independent thinker and true asset to the library, faculty, and students, but also as a friend. On a more personal note, they remembered that she enjoyed collecting Depression glass; and being from Wisconsin, she was an avid Green Bay Packer’s fan. Another recalled, “she knew that I enjoyed the occasional beer. Twice when she returned from a trip to Wisconsin, she brought me a beer from a craft brewery from there. She always extolled the quality of Wisconsin beer. Of course, Bonnie was pretty frugal, so it was just one beer each time, not a whole 6-pack. I appreciated them all the more for their scarcity!” Bonnie will be missed for many reasons.

Bonnie was preceded in death by her husband of 45 years, James Morgan Ledbetter, who worked at UAB’s Department of Psychiatry from 1971 until 2007. She is survived by a cousin, Mary Gease; a niece, Frances Lynne Wilder; and several distant cousins.

Friends are cordially invited to the visitation on Thursday, the 30th of September, from four o’clock in the afternoon until six o’clock in the evening at Ridout’s Valley Chapel in Homewood. A private burial will commence at eleven o’clock in the morning on Friday, the 1st of October, at Montgomery Memorial Cemetery in Montgomery, Alabama. Memorials honoring the life of Bonnie Ledbetter may be directed to the Mervyn H. Sterne Library located at 917 13th Street South, Birmingham, Alabama 35294 or to a favorite charity. Friends may visit www.RidoutsValleyChapel.com to leave condolences and memories online. Services are under the direction of Ridout’s Valley Chapel (205-879-3401) in Homewood.