In discussing her pursuit of the improvement of materials for gays and lesbians in libraries, she said, "For years I would haunt libraries and secondhand book shops trying to find stories to read about my people, and then I became active in other arenas of the gay rights movement, but I always kept an eye on the emerging literature...It began to talk about homosexuals who were healthy and happy and wholesome and who had good lives...That rang the bells for me—libraries, gay books!"
The speaker's passion for improving library resources for gay and lesbian individuals stemmed from a long-standing desire to find books about her community. She later became involved in the LGBTQ+ rights movement but continued to be interested in literature that presented positive images of homosexuals as healthy, happy, and successful.