Celebrating safely: Juneau Public Libraries Director Robert Barr

Juneau Public Libraries Director Robert Barr has spent the greater part of 2020 as the CBJ Emergency Operations Center planning chief, putting him at the center of Juneau’s response to the pandemic. Normally at this time of the year, he would be traveling to visit family or hosting out-of-state family here. But he’s adjusting those plans for now.

“We’re foregoing the travel this year, which is of course a disappointment — especially for our kids (pictured above). In some ways the saying, ‘Absence makes the heart grow fonder,’ is true, and we suspect that travel will be all the sweeter once that is an option again. The current data out there on vaccines looks very promising. I don’t think it is overly optimistic to say that a couple of highly effective vaccines will be widely available around summer. We still don’t really know much about how long the vaccines will be effective, but early indications are promising. I fully expect we’ll be back to traveling (or welcoming visiting family up to Juneau) this time next year. I’d also guess we’ll fit in an extra trip much sooner than that.”

Read the Alaska Health and Social Services Play Every Day blog for ideas and guidance on celebrating the holidays safely.