Ms Maltsava was born in Homiel in a family of office workers. In 1965, she graduated from secondary school No. 4 of Viciebsk, then she entered the Minsk State Pedagogical Institute of Foreign Languages (now Minsk State Linguistic University). After graduating with honors in 1971 from the university, the girl received the qualification of a teacher of Spanish and English. For the next four years, Ms Maltsava taught foreign languages at school No. 2 of Marjina Horka, Minsk region.
Her career in the State Library of the BSSR named after V.I. Lenin (now the National Library of Belarus) began in August 1975 from the position of a librarian of the Department of Foreign Literature. The complex nature of the work of this organizational unit required not only mastery of basic library processes, knowledge of foreign languages, and erudition, but also the ability to switch quickly from one process to another.
Ms Maltsava was ideally suited for this job: her knowledge of three foreign languages helped her easily navigate most European languages, and her profound knowledge of foreign culture, history, literature, and exceptional capacity for work contributed to her rapid professional growth.
At first, she was engaged in an international book exchange, acquisition of foreign publications, then preparation and editing of consolidated catalogues of foreign books and periodicals. In addition, Ms Maltsava provided services to readers, carried out complex thematic and factual inquiries, selected literature for book exhibitions, etc. She was the chief bibliographer of the department both de jure and de facto.
The personal history of Neanila is an indication of her quest for constant self-improvement: “... Ms Maltsava regularly studies everything new in librarianship and uses all available sources of information in different languages. She tries to implement all the best, new things in the department; if interesting information concerns the activities of other departments or the library as a whole, she will always bring it to the attention of people interested in it. There is no question about the work of the department to which she cannot respond."
Due to the reorganization of the Foreign Literature Department in 1999, Ms Maltsava moved to the Reference and Information Service Department
Her professional expertise allowed her to promptly complete oral and written inquiries of any complexity, and her extremely attentive attitude towards users was the key to providing comprehensive advice to readers. Her "exceptional thoroughness in carrying out any work" was praised by her superiors."
A delicate, tactful, very decent and non-confrontational person, Neanila was respected and loved by her employees. Soft-spoken, she never refused to help.
Ms Maltsava's name was repeatedly put on the Library's Board of Honour, her professionalism was recognized with a Certificate of Merit and a number of acknowledgments from the library's management. In 2015, she won the "Best in Profession" competition in the "Loyalty and Dedication to the Profession" category.
Ms Maltsava's career was always closely linked to the social life of the staff: she was a trade union leader and political informer of the department, a member of the local and the electoral committee.
In 2020, N. Maltsava retired from the National Library of Belarus after 45 years of service.
The staff of the Library heartily congratulate Ms Neanila Maltsava on her anniversary and wish her long life, inexhaustible energy and prosperity. May your every day be filled with joy and light, may your home be a cozy place, and may your mind be filled with harmony and peacefulness!
Bibliology Research Department
