Nancy Tessman, Judge Memorial grad, leaves library post

Intermountain Catholic

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Nancy Tessman, who oversaw the design and construction of the new Salt Lake City Library building, is setting out on a new stage in her life. IC photo by Barbara S. Lee

SALT LAKE CITY – Nancy Tessman had no idea when she graduated from Judge Memorial Catholic High School in 1971 that she was headed for a career as a librarian. Even as she was studying at the University of Portland in Oregon, then at the University of Utah, graduating with a degree in communications, she didn’t dream she would eventually be building libraries.

"My becoming a librarian was absolutely serendipitous, but it always felt like home," Tessman told the Intermountain Catholic in a March 8 interview.

Tessman sat in her office on the fourth floor of the Salt Lake City Library, overlooking State Street and with a beautiful view of the State Capitol. Her office also overlooks the old Salt Lake City Library building, now known as the Leonardo.

"That building still radiates with goodness," she said. "It has a wonderful, strong feel to it."

As director of the Salt Lake City Library, Tessman oversaw the building of the new library building with its flowing lines and massive glass infrastructure, a building she said proudly, "that breaks every library stereotype."

Looking forward to a new chapter in her life, Tessman has resigned as the library’s director. In June she and her new husband, Charles Forshew will begin a three-month tour of Europe, then they’ll settle in Paris for another three months. Tessman is a happy woman, indeed.

"I have always loved books and ideas," Tessman said. "When I graduated from college, I was looking at huge school loans, and looking for a job. I went to work part-time for Utah Holiday Magazine. My career since then has been all over the map – but it’s always been about books."

Tessman’s first full-time job after Utah Holiday Magazine was a two-year stint in community relations for the Salt Lake City Library System. She spent another two years in technical services in the city library in Red Wing, Minn.

"I was going through my latent hippie stage then," she said with a laugh. She returned to Utah, becoming first a librarian at the Chapman Branch, then was head of personnel for the Salt Lake City Library System.

She moved to branch manager at the Foothill Library, which she helped design and build. She would later be named head of branch services, putting her in charge of all branch libraries, including the Day-Riverside Library in Rose Park, which she also had a hand in designing. Named deputy director of the library system in 1990, Tessman succeeded Dennis Day, another member of the Catholic Community, who served as director of the Salt Lake City Library before his death in 1995.

"I was named acting director, and a national search was undertaken," Tessman said. "I was not a candidate. I was just trying to facilitate a smooth transition after Dennis’ death. In 1996 I became the director, and I was thrilled."

Tessman said from the time she was named acting director of the Salt Lake City Library, there was already talk about looking for a new library building. "When I was deputy director, we were already wondering how long our building would serve."

New library technologies were developing rapidly, and as the old building and its technologies became more obsolete, Tessman and her board of directors began taking a serious look at buildings and locations.

"We were blessed that this project was able to ride the energy that arose around the 2002 Olympics," she said. "We watched the Trax lines go in, and when this space, which used to house the Metropolitan Hall of Justice and the jail, became available, our savvy board was ready. We’d undertaken an intensive, inclusive process to determine what the community wanted in a new library. It was an imaginative and ambitious project, but we had wonderful community support."

Tessman started kindergarten at Judge Elementary School and attended Lourdes Elementary School until the fifth grade. She transferred to St. Mary of the Wasatch until it closed in 1970, then she went to Judge Memorial for her senior year. Today, she has a 25-year-old daughter, Nell.

"We didn’t want this new library to be in any way staid or prudish," Tessman said. "Our board put forward a building that is delightfully different. It has multi-faceted values, and it reflects the democratic way in which the community had input into its design and function. It reflects intellectual freedom, and librarians have always been the first strong line of defense for intellectual freedom."

Tessman points out its Starbuck’s outlet, the KCPW Radio station, and other retail outlets, as well as its dramatic breezeway that has been used for community events from weddings to a memorial service for the victims of the Trolley Square shootings. The Muslim community has even used it as a facility to break the fast of Ramadan. The Catholic diocese has used it as a site to honor outstanding people.

"It’s hard to get bored in this library. People find it stimulating and interesting. Libraries, ideally, fill the gaps education leaves. A lot of people have contributed their talent and their love to create this place."

Community support was just one aspect of the library project for which Tessman says she is very grateful. She has fond memories of working with Architect Moshe Safdie, an Israeli designer whom she described as "personally devoted to the elegant."

"The flow of this building is a metaphor for the library’s embrace of the community. It speaks of safety – an enclosure with a perspective on the outside. It isn’t passive. It’s outward looking and inviting, and the community has responded with excitement and acceptance."

The new library, she said, is a community center. "In the past, cathedrals were the community centers. The Cathedral of the Madeleine is certainly still that today. Libraries, too, are spiritual places. They are places of common ground. They embrace all ideas and they are sources of information and ideas."

Tessman said she was blessed on this project with the support of two mayors, former Salt Lake City Mayor Deedee Corradini, and the current mayor, Ross "Rocky" Anderson.

Beyond Paris, Tessman said she has no idea what the future holds. "I loved being a children’s librarian. The possibilities are so pure with children."

Tessman is facing this new transition in her life fearlessly. "I believe when you’ve been in a job for a long time, it’s healthy to make a change.

"My husband and I share a love of travel," she said. "I’d love to get in touch with my Irish and Scottish roots. We’re leaving ourselves open to what the next adventure might bring."