SOUTH HAVEN | Judy Thomas and her predecessor have at least one thing in common.

Neither woman knew she'd love the library as much as she does until she began working there.

Thomas, branch manager of the South Haven Public Library, will retire Friday after 28 years of service to the community.

Anne Wood, a six-year veteran of the Porter County Library System, will step into Thomas' shoes a day later.

"I feel very at home here. I just love the library. I enjoy talking to people and finding out what they are interested in," said Thomas, who decided to retire this year when her husband also retired. "I was going to stay a few years. Then something was always happening."

Thomas has seen the library transform. The most remarkable difference in her time, she said, was the change from doing everything by hand to the use of computers.

"It really opened up the system," she said.

She also saw the move in 1995 from South Haven's original location on Long Run Road to the new building on County Road 700 North.

The people who use the library haven't changed, though.

"They are still looking for good books to read, how to fix something, how to better themselves. They are still interested in current events," Thomas said.

For Wood, who currently works in the system's automation department in Valparaiso, it is a chance to get back to why she wanted to become a librarian in the first place.

"I always wanted to get back to works and people. Now I get to go back to books," said Wood, who obtained her degree from Indiana University while working full-time for the system.

Wood, who developed the system's Web site, has been shadowing Thomas for the past two weeks to learn the ins and outs of the branch's operation.

"I'm very excited. I've gone through some workshops, some seminars, and I can't wait to do some of the things I've learned that I can't do in automation," Wood said.

She said she's not planning any immediate changes to the branch.

"I need to know how something works before I can make it better," Wood said.

For Thomas, she's looking forward to relaxing but admits she'll miss the people who frequent the library.

"I found South Haven to be a wonderful community to work in," she said.