Nevada’s new Library Director has an intriguing background.
Tina Hertel was born in Augsburg, Germany, while her father was stationed there during the Vietnam War. She therefore has a special type of birth certificate, classifying her as an American citizen because she was born on an American military base.
When her family returned to the United States, they lived in the Lehigh Valley area of eastern Pennsylvania, where she was raised and graduated from high school in 1983.
As a first-generation college student in her family, “They all expected me to be a doctor.” She signed up to study pre-med at Muhlenberg College. But her true passion was in the physical sciences, so she switched her major to aerospace engineering, eventually earning her degree from Penn State University.
She also had a strong interest in serving in the military. “I always wanted to be a Thunderbird, but at that time, women could not be fighter pilots,” she said. She joined the Air Force, with the hope of becoming a test pilot and seeing the world. But, “women weren’t always slated for the (test pilot) positions, so I became a missile launch officer and was stationed in Montana, underground. I didn’t get to see the world, but I did meet my husband, Mike.”
Mike was also in the military in Montana, and they welcomed the first of two daughters there.
They both left the military in 1993, moving to Bloomington, Indiana, where Mike got a position in counseling (what he holds his degree in) at Indiana University’s nursing school.
Tina took a position in the University’s registrar’s office, and because Indiana University didn’t have an aerospace engineering program, she started exploring other career options. “I could take classes free while working at the college,” she said, so she figured she’d put that benefit to good use.
She took an “interest inventory” test through the human resources office and ended up being asked the question: “Have you thought about being a librarian?”
“I didn’t consider myself the typical librarian, but I love technology and love helping people, love research and problem-solving, and all of that is part of being a librarian,” she said. So, she pursued a second degree in information science.
Over the past 20-some years, she’s worked mostly in higher education libraries.
About two to three years ago, that changed. She and her husband moved to Iowa to live closer to their youngest daughter (who is in Des Moines). First, they settled in Pella, and Tina was employed at the city library there. Her decision to come to Nevada pairs nicely with the fact that her husband now works full-time for Iowa State University.
She has started on a part-time basis with the Nevada Library and will become full-time next week. She’s been impressed with the library and the community.
“The staff at the library has been wonderful. They have great ideas,” she said. She likes that Nevada has an active library and is well-staffed for the size of the library. “The distribution of work is good (in the library), and there’s a great strategic plan.”
Her goal at the library, she noted, is to provide stability for the staff. “They need someone who’s going to be here for them and who believes in them.”
When it comes to the Nevada community, she loves a beautiful small town, and she’s fallen in love with Bricktown Bakery and Popcorn, admitting she’s visited those two businesses more than once.
Her favorite thing about working in a public library, she said, is meeting the people. “It’s been fun for me coming from the academic side to the public side because the public side is more fun. I’m excited to get to know the people and what they enjoy doing and reading.”
A few more interesting notes about Tina Hertel:
- Her favorite author is Kurt Vonnegut. “He was a strong advocate for being able to read what you want to read; his books are often challenged.”
- Mystery is one of her favorite book genres, and she plans to become involved in the library’s mystery book club.
- She enjoys “listening” to books even more than “reading” them, because she can do that while doing household chores!
- She and her husband enjoy hiking and long walks, and she’s a runner. In Pennsylvania, she ran a women’s beginner walking/running program. She and Mike like to do “vacation races” near national parks.
- She and Mike have two Siberian Huskies.
- She’s only lived in Iowa for about three years, so what does she think of the state? “I do believe in ‘Iowa Nice.’ Being from the East Coast, we like our New York-style pizza (they’re still in search of a good one here). Iowa doesn’t like ‘spicy’ as much as we do.”
- She’s excited about all the events offered in Nevada, starting with the Downtown Trick-or-Treat event this week!
–Written by Marlys Barker, City of Nevada