The Librarian Who Saved Halloween

The Story of the Librarian Who Saved Halloween

This October 31st, you’ll spend money on Halloween without thinking twice. But by 1917, cities were banning this holiday. The spooky traditions spanning 2,000 years were on the verge of extinction—forgotten like so many immigrant customs that didn’t survive the American melting pot.

One woman saw the disaster coming. And she was the only one who could stop it: a librarian.

She wasn’t supposed to matter. She was a 26-year-old working-class librarian in Lynn, Massachusetts. The kind of woman people looked through, not at. The kind trained to be quiet, helpful, invisible.

So how did she save Halloween from extinction—and why did the world forget her name?

This week on Roots & Reinvention, discover the story of Ruth Edna Kelley—a woman in history who refused to stay invisible when it mattered most. The story of the librarian who saved Halloween. Her story will make you question everything you think you know about power, legacy, and what it means to do work that changes the world.

If you’ve ever felt invisible in your work, if you’ve ever wondered whether your contributions matter, if you’ve ever questioned whether it’s too late to answer a calling only you can hear—this episode is for you.

Because Ruth’s story isn’t just history. It’s permission. Permission to believe that invisible work can change everything. Permission to trust that one woman choosing to be herself can transform the world.

Ruth is one of the women in history who left us with a treasure trove of courage, authenticity, and proof that being yourself is the most radical act of all.

You’ve been letting others define you for a long time—and somewhere along the way, you lost yourself. Maybe you’ve spent years being who everyone else needed you to be—the good daughter, the devoted wife, the selfless mother, the reliable employee—and now you’re ready to stop.

This isn’t a crisis—it’s a calling. A calling to stop being who everyone else wants you to be and start being you. The best version of you.

Join the NEW Roots & Reinvention Community where we help you start being yourself, inspired by women in history who dared to do the same. As a member, you’ll receive weekly episode bonuses based on that week’s podcast theme to help you connect each episode to your own reinvention journey. Find out more at: 

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Because the world needs more women willing to step out of the shadows and claim their power. Women who decide to be themselves—because that changes everything.

Remember: It’s never too late to start being you.