"One" Interview with Marta Steenstra Davis
2026 Cardinal Cup Committee Chair

Marta Steenstra Davis serves as the Youth Services Manager at Dolley Madison Library (Fairfax County Public Library). She was raised in Charleston, WV and attended Marshall University in Huntington, WV where she majored in Creative Writing and minored in History. She completed her MLIS at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. She has lived in Northern Virginia with her husband Michael since 1999. Marta is the mother of two teenage children whose names were inspired by children’s books: Max (from Where the Wild Things Are) and Josephine (from Little Women).

Marta is the 2026 chair of the Cardinal Cup Committee. The 10 person committee seeks to award the best book for young people in the fields of history, historical fiction, or biography. The Cardinal Cup Committee is now accepting applicants for the upcoming year to judge titles for the book award, sent directly to members by publishers. Apply by September 3 below for consideration!

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Your itinerary for one perfect day in Virginia:

To wake up to the sounds and smells of the ocean, have bagels and coffee on the beach for breakfast, a drive along the coast with the top down, music going, and her family, a seafood lunch in a café, napping/reading on the beach, an early dinner (more seafood!) and a long walk on the beach at sunset. It would be nice if some dolphins decided to play in the sea where I could see them!

One thing you can’t live without:
Books, coffee, and French fries. 

One area of interest in history:
World War II and the Suffrage Movement.

One piece of advice for Cardinal Cup Committee members:
Pace yourself and take good notes! There are a lot of books to get through. But if you read a little bit each day and take careful notes it is very manageable. The notes are key – you won’t remember everything you thought and felt about what you read without them.

One accomplishment you’d like to share:
Going back to school after 20+ years to get my MLIS.