Before a room full of well-wishers, Martha Catt, retired director of Hussey-Mayfield Memorial Public Library, was recently presented with the Governor’s Distinguished Hoosier Award.
“Receiving the Distinguished Hoosier Award from Governor Daniels was an unexpected and very much appreciated honor,” Catt said.
Presented at the discretion of Gov. Mitch Daniels, the award is one of the highest honors bestowed on an Indiana resident. Given in recognition of the recipient’s accomplishments and character, Catt’s award noted her significant contributions to her community and the state.
Catt began her tenure at the Zionsville library by overseeing the construction of a new library building and expanding the collection. Over the years, she strove to maintain a library dedicated to life-long learning that also pursued excellence in everything it offered to the community. That dedication helped push the library into the top 98th percentile of public libraries throughout the nation that serve between 10,000 and 24,999 residents, according to the 2008 Hennen Public Library Ratings Index.
Catt also helped lead the change to the new Evergreen Indiana Consortium, becoming the first Indiana library to use the new internet-based catalog system and agreeing to share materials with other member libraries. The consortium now includes over 60 libraries across the state and provides patrons access to over 5.5 million items.
“It is rewarding to be acknowledged as a leader in a profession that I have been engaged in for 40 years, and a joy to serve the residents of Indiana,” she said.


