Pamela Beth Herrmann Adams

Pamela Beth Herrmann Adams, a former Vice President of The Times-Picayune, Human Resources, died April 18 in her Uptown home after a brief, undetermined illness. Beth, 67, was born in Vidalia, Ga., moving frequently with her family before graduating from high school in Indianapolis, Ind. A graduate of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, she settled in New Orleans in 1974, and was manager of a hotel on St. Charles Avenue before joining The Times-Picayune personnel department. Survivors include her younger sister, Charla Adams of Indianapolis. A co-worker of Beth's mentioned her sense of humor, and ability to make fun of herself. "Many at the paper may not have known this side of her since she was the messenger and enforcer of company policy as Human Resources director. But those who knew Beth beyond her job title knew she was creative, complex, and passionate about her personal projects." She made flower pins and other jewelry, and took a comedy course. When she walked onstage, "Beth was not the company enforcer; she was a woman who wanted to have fun with her view of the world,' said a friend. An annual event was a sale to employees of unreviewed books sent to the book editor, with proceeds going to the newspaper's Doll and Toy Fund for holiday gifts for children. Beth helped organize it, and showed up wearing bells and a Santa hat to create a party atmosphere. "Her job was often difficult, but this was a win-win event, raising money for a good cause and making employees happy too," said a co-worker involved in the sale. Another colleague recalls Beth collecting remnants of parts of discarded newspaper printing presses, which she used to make a lamp to sell at a fund raiser for the 200 or so employees laid off in 2012, when the newspaper initially cut home delivery and printing to three days a week. The tag said, "For the love of the presses." Beth was part of another group who lost their jobs a few years later. She was a featured artist at the Louisiana Arts Council's Crafts/Arts Marketing Program. Among her most popular creations were whimsical "spirit dolls" she made of wood, leather, feathers, painted fabrics, beads, grasses and items found on a beach in Georgia. A notable one is a child's impression of God, a bearded man wearing a dark gown studded with stars, holding Earth, the moon, a baby, and other creations in an arc above him. On a card with the dolls, Beth wrote: "I am never married. I find good in my aloneness. There is strength in my family lineage and much pride. Every woman has her story to tell. Listen with your heart. The story heals the spirit." There was a private memorial. Then Charla placed the box with her sister's ashes and an orange sequined eye mask Beth made, topped with feathers, into a souvenir bag from a party The TimesPicayune held during the Republican National Convention in New Orleans in 1988. And Charla took her sister for a final time to Jazz Fest. They visited the Gospel Tent, listened to Ziggy Marley and to Mavis Staples, Rita Coolidge and Trombone Shorty, and joined a second line. Said Charla, who likes to remember her sister's laughter, "It was very healing." Jacob Schoen & Son, 3827 Canal Street