In Tribute to Rusty Drugan

On January 22, more than 200 friends and colleagues of Rusty Drugan gathered at the Westford Regency Inn in Westford, Massachusetts, to celebrate the life and work of the former New England Independent Booksellers Association (NEIBA) executive director who died on December 7, 2006.

In a program distributed at the memorial service were reprinted comments that Drugan made in 1992, when he assumed the NEIBA job. He spoke of the pleasure of "associating with other booksellers" and noted that the "rewards, in friendships and sense of shared mission in a vital social function, have been so great that I wanted to do it full time."

What became clear as his colleagues and friends spoke, was their profound sense of gratitude for what Drugan had accomplished on behalf of the written word and in defense of cherished ideals. NEIBA President Allan Schmid of Books Etc. in Portland and Falmouth, Maine, described Drugan as a "mentor and a friend," and former NEIBA President Carole Horne of the Harvard Book Store in Cambridge, Massachusetts, aptly summed up Drugan's achievements when she said, "He did so much to build the spirit of the community we have now ... and that is his lasting contribution."

As ABA COO Oren Teicher noted, "To simply say that Rusty was a powerful champion of this region's bookstores would be a gross understatement. He was inalterably convinced that independent bookstores were an indispensable part of the lifeblood of their community and that fighting for their survival was not solely a business endeavor, it was a commitment to both quality of life and conveying important ideas."

That commitment included helping colleagues develop professionally and encouraging them to contribute to the community of the book. Ruth Liebmann, Random House's director of independent bookselling, said, "Rusty's only agenda was to do the best for the booksellers and the books.... [He] was a teacher at heart and his classroom was wherever you happened to be."

Suzanne Sigman, past NEIBA president and former owner of The Little Bookroom, remembered that Drugan was always "bringing out the best in his colleagues." And John Netzer of the Concord Bookshop, Concord, Massachusetts -- who had worked with Drugan at Cambridge's Reading International -- remembered him as "smart, caring, and a great listener. He made you feel valued and appreciated, supported."

Many spoke of Drugan's vigorous support of the First Amendment. Teicher said, "[Rusty] believed strongly that the words of the First Amendment, 'that Congress shall make no law abridging the free speech' of its citizens, meant what it said -- and, that no law enacted by government to restrict free speech was acceptable."

Drugan was a Board member of the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE). ABFFE President Chris Finan noted, "Rusty was one of the most militant defenders of free speech on the ABFFE Board.... [and] I speak for the entire ABFFE Board when I tell you how sad we are that we've lost a comrade in arms and a friend."

The comments of all who spoke at the memorial left a vivid portrait of complex person: an industry figure who was smart, literate, dedicated, and fully engaged while retaining a clear sense of personal privacy.

Teicher noted, "Rusty was a fiercely private fellow, and, in the many difficult days as his illness progressed this summer and fall, we know that respecting his privacy was paramount. And those of you closest to him were true and abiding friends in fulfilling and honoring his wishes."

At the conclusion of the memorial service, NEIBA President Schmid announced the creation of a scholarship in Rusty Drugan's name to support attendance at the NEIBA trade show. --Dan Cullen