Throughout the course of his 54 years, Scott Schear has lived in four states, 15 cities and approximately 50 different apartments. He has lived around the country and never spends more than one year in a city. Schear’s wanderlust eventually led him to Salt Lake City in 2015, where he was immediately surprised by the diversity and friendliness that greeted him.
“I fell in love with Salt Lake City,” said Schear, who works as a custodian in the Marriott Library. “It completely defied every expectation I had.”
Prior to living here, Schear’s only knowledge of Utah came from stereotypes and generalizations about the state’s culture, religion and politics. His perception of Salt Lake as a conservative and Mormon monolith changed as soon as he got here.
“I’ll never forget the first time I picked up The Salt Lake Tribune,” he recalled. “It was my second morning here and I’m reading and I get to the op-eds and I’m like, ‘Holy crap! This is a liberal newspaper!’”
Compared to other places he has lived, Schear finds Salt Lake particularly inclusive and enjoyable. He said he was caught off guard, for example, by the religious diversity of his neighborhood.
“I can look from my apartment and see a mosque, a Hare Krishna temple, an LDS ward, a Catholic church, Seventh-day Adventists and if I go on the other side I can look up the hill and see the Jewish Community Center. And that’s all from my apartment. I didn’t expect that.”
According to Schear, Salt Lake is a “right-sized” Los Angeles – a small but vibrant city filled with excitement, activity and acceptance. “I didn’t expect this little liberal oasis in the heart of the Sagebrush Rebellion,” he said. “I just did not expect what I found here.”
Schear’s favorable impression of Salt Lake City extends to the University of Utah, a place he has worked since November 2015. Originally a part-time employee in Milton Bennion Hall, he became full-time staff at the Marriott Library in March of last year. In addition to working at the library, Schear works around campus responding to emergency clean-ups.
“The work’s just work,” he said. “There’s nothing particularly uplifting about it, there isn’t anything degrading about it.”
What does boost his mood, however, is the spirit and attitude he is met with from people across campus. He said he generally has positive interactions with students in the library. “I haven’t had any issues with really anybody, whether students or faculty,” he said. “The faculty are always willing to answer questions about the work that they do.”
Schear enjoys talking to professors, students and librarians about the projects they are working on and the subjects they are studying.
“I ask questions,” he said. “I get excited about a lot of topics. I get excited when I hear other people’s enthusiasm for the work that they’re doing and the studying they’re doing. I get excited along with them.”
Working in the library has allowed Schear to meet and engage with people from multiple backgrounds and perspectives.
“What I like about here is all the young people from everywhere, the grasping and reaching minds. Everybody’s friendly. Meeting people from all over the world is what I like about it. That’s why I keep coming back.”
Schear also appreciates the U’s “laid back environment” and the high presence of student activism and involvement. He said he has been moved by the U’s Earth Week, Sex Week, the SlutWalk and other student demonstrations. He believes they create a positive community and atmosphere. When he sees a rally or event going on, Schear said he always takes a picture of it and posts it on Facebook.
“I’m happy when I see initiatives and things being done around the university,” Schear said. “It makes me proud to work here.”
When he isn’t working in the library or responding to an emergency clean-up on campus, Schear said he likes to spend time at home relaxing with his mind away from work. He also has a love for sketching and digitizing editorial cartoons, a pastime he has enjoyed for years.
Schear has lived in Salt Lake for almost two years now. Normally, he would be packing up and planning his next stop in the country, perhaps somewhere in the Pacific Northwest or on the East Coast where he has family. But Schear said this time feels different for him. He has no plans to leave Salt Lake, or the U, anytime soon.
“I’m not imagining finding the kind of work and the kind of place that would provide me the same kind of satisfaction that I get here,” Schear said. “I landed in Salt Lake City and this is where I’m going to stay. I like it.”
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