Mary Elder: Branch Manager
- Started with SDCL:July 2019
- Started at LAK: July 2019
- Favourite genre: Fantasy, SciFi, Romance, Historical Fiction, Memoirs – don’t make me pick just one!
- Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside) Himalayan Cuisine, Banbu Sushi, Eastbound
- Favourite thing about your job: Being able to support and collaborate with my incredible staff so we can make a difference in our community, every day.
Carlene Rocheck: Assistant Branch Manager, Library Tech IV
- Started at SDCL: October 2016
- Started at LAK: November 2021
- Favourite genre: Literary Fiction
- Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside):B. Noodle House
- Favourite thing about your job: Everything! Everyone!
Kelly Chung: Youth Services Librarian
- Started at SDCL: February 2013
- Started at LAK:December 2021
- Favourite genre: Ugh the worst question EVER! I like books—some are awful, most are AWESOME, but I hop from genre to genre depending on all sorts of things like the weather, special events, etc.
- Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside): Chopstix on Convoy—we’ve been going for over 20 years and they are always fast and consistent with their Japanese cuisine.
- Favourite thing about your job: Knowing that we are helping people every day we come to work AND Storytime has a BIG place in my heart!
Monica Twilegar: Library Tech III
- Started at SDCL: October 2017
- Started at LAK: June 2022
- Favourite genre: Fiction and I do enjoy a good Rom-Com Romance
- Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside): favorite surprise restaurant is on Main in El Cajon! https://malalsham.com/
- Favourite thing about your job: The ability to provide and offer so many valuable resources and services to our community.
Albert Torres: Library Tech II
- Started at SDCL: March 2013
- Started at LAK:March 2016
- Favourite genre: Anything Non-Fiction (Personal Development & Digital Currency)
- Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside): Asian Buffets (all of them…lol)
- Favourite thing about your job: Love to see children reading and checking out books
Dawn Espedal: Library Tech I
- Started at SDCL:September 2004
- Started at LAK:June 2006
- Favourite genre: Mystery
- Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside): Mariscos Taco Truck at Garden Farms Market
- Favourite thing about your job: Favorite thing about my job is meeting all the wonderful people that live here in Lakeside.
Alicia Lawler: Librarian I
Started at SDCL: August 2019
Started at LAK: March 2025
Favourite genre: Graphic Novels (including Manga), Romantasy, Thriller, … can’t pick just one!
Favourite local restaurants (San Diego, not just Lakeside): Kura Sushi Bar off Convoy, Kangnam Korean BBQ in RB, and Din Tai Fung in UTC
Favourite thing about your job: Working with library patrons of all ages and helping them discover their next favorite book! I also love mentoring and working with our teen Service Learners.
Hello Lakeside community,
I grew up just up the hill in Ramona and volunteered at the Ramona Branch Library as a teenager. It was then that I fell in love with libraries and decided to pursue librarianship as a career path. A BA in K-8 Education and Master’s in Library and Information Science later, I’ve worked at San Diego County Library since 2019 and Lakeside Branch is the 5th SDCL location that I’ve had the pleasure of working at.
In my free time, I enjoy playing video games, reading, and spending time with family. My favorite video game series include Persona, Animal Crossing, and Pokémon! Some books I’ve enjoyed recently include Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, Lights Out by Navessa Allen, and Funny Story by Emily Henry. My husband and I are also total “foodies” and love trying new restaurants around San Diego.
I look forward to serving the Lakeside community and learning new things with this wonderful team of staff. Excited to be here!
Meet the Library staff
With all of the changes over the past year, we thought we’d re-introduce you to the fabulous staff that is serving our community at our Library!
Staff in front of the Story Seed artwork .
Monica, Twilegar, Paige Dillard, Dawn Espedal, Carlene Rocheck, Mary Elder, Amy Guthrie, Kelly Chung, Albert Torres.
Monica Nguyen
Hello, Lakeside community!
I grew up on the very eastern edge of San Diego, just 15 minutes away from Lakeside. I spent my childhood in the San Carlos Public Library, then volunteered there as a teenager. In college, I spent some time volunteering and then working at the Natural History Museum’s research library in Balboa Park, and now I’m here at the Lakeside Library!
In my free time, I enjoy sampling different espresso drinks, doodling, ambling very slowly along hiking trails and the beach, and poking things on the ground with a stick. I’m very enthusiastic about cool biology and zoology books geared towards kids, and hope to build a little recommendation collection for the future scientists here in Lakeside!
I’m excited to serve this wonderful community and to connect our valued patrons with the books, movies, and programs that the Lakeside Library provides. Thank you for having me!
Alejandro Leal
Hello, Lakeside
I started with the San Diego County Library in February of 2024 as a Student Worker at our Headquarters in Kearny Mesa. I learned all about the inner workings of the library while working with many different departments such as Collection Development, Metadata, and Interchange. In August, I was hired as a part-time intermittent substitute and gained experience at some of SDCL’s branches including Rancho San Diego, Imperial Beach, and El Cajon. In November of that same year, I joined the Lakeside Branch team as permanent part-time staff.
I spend a large chunk of my free-time doodling, storyboarding and creating animated shorts on my tablet. If I’m having trouble working on a particular scene, I like to draw inspiration from my favorite films, and television series. The library has also been a great resource for me to find reference and learn new drawing/coloring techniques. If time allows, I also enjoy playing board and trading card games with my younger sister.
I’ve lived in San Diego all my life, but it wasn’t until I started working with SDCL that I realized how big and diverse the county is. I hope to learn everything I can about our library and the people that we serve, both in Lakeside and beyond.