Quatrefoil Library

On July 19th, our last surviving co-founder of the Quatrefoil Library Richard Walton “Dick” Hewetson passed away by medically assisted death at Brookdale Senior Living in San Jose, California. Born near Chicago on March 31, 1930, he grew up in a world where homosexuality was considered illegal, immoral, and an illness.

Dick found in books the power to accept himself as a gay man. He would later share that the book that impacted his life the most was “Society and the Healthy Homosexual” by George Weinberg. “It helped him realize that being gay was normal and that a person was not considered sick or mentally unfit just because of his/her sexual attraction” (Keim 2009). We are indebted to Dick’s commitment and leadership. His work to found the library with David and early tenure as Executive Director transformed and edified the lives of thousands of q***r people who have interacted with the library. Countless community members have found and continue to find refuge, joy, community, healing and pride through the materials they read and connections they make through Quatrefoil Library. He is pictured here visiting the Tretter Collection after returning to Minnesota to celebrate Quatrefoil's 30th Anniversary.

We hope you will take a minute to join us in remembering him and celebrating his ongoing legacy. To find out more about his life and legacy visit our webpage qlibrary.org.

QUATREFOIL PARKING LOT CLOSED!
On Thursday, May 23, 2024, a construction company will begin a seal coating project which will require ALL VEHICLES be removed from the parking lot beginning at 8am and must stay off of the lot until Friday, May 24, 2024 at 4pm. Please use street parking when visiting us during this time, and note that we will be open for normal hours during this process. Thank you, we look forward to seeing you.