County of classroom: St. Louis County
Location of classromm: Burkhardt Place & Chesterfield Parkway South, Sachs Branch, St. Louis County Library, Chesterfield
Dedicated: 2017
Created By: St. Louis County Library Foundation
Plaque Text:
The Susan Nagarkatti
Outdoor Classroom
In gratitude to wonderful philanthropist and
avid reader committed to literacy and libraries.
St Louis County Library Foundation, 2017
The Person:
"Susan Nagarkatti is a librarian. Not a typical librarian, mind you, but a reference librarian. She also is a product of the ‘American Dream.’ You may wonder how it is that a reference librarian—with all the stereotypical images that job conjures up—could possibly be an exemplary product of the American Dream. Surely, all reference librarians wear spectacles on the ends of their noses, keep to themselves and constantly clutch books while saying Shush! to talkative library patrons all day long, right? In reality, no two librarians are exactly the same, just like no two American dreams or stories are alike.
"Susan Nagarkatti’s American story spans from Germany and Russia to India and Texas and finally to St. Louis. She has uncovered much of her family’s story; and now, she’s on a mission to help others find theirs.
'"Jai stayed with Sigma-Aldrich his entire career and eventually moved to the company’s headquarters in St. Louis. In 2004, he was named president, then shortly thereafter, chairman of the board. Jai Nagarkatti became the head of a global corporation with more than 7,000 employees in 35 countries. It is the classic American Dream story: A young immigrant, who comes to America with very little, gets an education, works hard, climbs his way up through the ranks and makes it to the top. The story couldn’t have been more perfect. But in 2010, just four years after reaching the summit of his career, Jai Nagarkatti died suddenly of an apparent heart attack.
"It was at that time when Susan went back to work for the library. Actually, she had been asked to join the St. Louis County Library’s Foundation board shortly before Jai’s death. At first, she wasn’t sure if she could carry on, but even though she was still grieving, she attended her first board meeting just a month following her husband’s passing.
"And that when Susan’s new mission began: The Foundation was just starting to raise money to build its new Center for Family History, a place where all of our American stories can be discovered and told. Motivated by her desire to learn more about her history and wanting to spread the inspiring story of her and Jai’s American Dream, she donated $250,000 in honor of her husband to get the project started. “It was important to me because I felt that Jai needed to be remembered,” Susan explains. “On a larger scale, I think everybody would like to know their background. It seems daunting to get started, but with the Center for Family History, we’ll have all the necessary pieces for people to investigate their backgrounds and history.”
"Susan wasn’t done yet: She issued a challenge donation for an additional $250,000. Monsanto answered the challenge, and now the center is almost halfway to reaching its goal of $18 million." ~! Ladue News, by Paul Brown, 2012
The Place:
The St. Louis County Library Foundation, built next to the St. Louis County Samuel Sachs Branch Library, and outdoor classroom.
This library system, and it's staunch supporter the Foundation, builds unique and innovative ways to attract youth to reading.
This classroom is on a nature walk with a rain garden and natural wildlife area, next to this library branch. It is a circular classroom with a quarter circle stone wall, which doubles as some of the seating. Most seas or smooth top boulders placed to provide a true classroom atmosphere.