Friends of the Michael Schwartz Library

Professor William Shorrock, Friends of the Library President, passed away on Saturday, November 17, 2007 after a brief battle with cancer. Dr. Shorrock assumed responsibilities as President of the CSU Friends of the Library in April 2005 after retiring from a distinguished career at Cleveland State University. Dr. Shorrock took a genuine interest in the Friends and immediately searched for programs that would interest faculty, students, and the general public to attract favorable attention for the Library and interest in its activities.

In 2006, he launched a new initiative focused on the achievements of local northeast Ohio writers and authors. The programs were held each spring and included local authors Thrity Umrigar, who read from her book, The Space Between Us, and led a wide-ranging discussion with a spirited audience and Sarah Willis, who discussed four of her popular books, Some Things that Stay, The Rehearsal, A Good Distance, and The Sound of Us. Dr. Shorrock also recruited Richard Fox, Head of the Popular Library at Cleveland Public Library, to lead book discussions on such titles as On Bullshit by Harry G. Frankfurt, The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion, Our Endangered Values by Jimmy Carter, Mysteries of Pittsburgh by Michael Chabon and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer.

His duties as the President of the Friends were many, but he accomplished them all in his usual gracious, thoughtful style—along with a good measure of humor. Dr. Glenda Thornton, Director of the Michael Schwartz Library from 1998-2019 wrote, “Dr. Shorrock was a natural as President of the Friends of the Michael Schwartz Library. He loved people, books, and intellectual engagement. The role of Friends President tapped all of these attributes and made this post one that was fun for him and for all of the Friends’ members. Dr. Shorrock will be missed by his many friends and colleagues.”