When Dorothy Massey and her daughter, Mary, moved their bookstore from West San Francisco Street to Don Gaspar Avenue last spring, author and biographer James McGrath Morris decided to organize a book brigade.

He invited teachers, writers, librarians, children — those for whom reading and writing were important — to join him in forming a human chain to pass books hand to hand from Collected Works' old location to the new one.

Morris said he did this to publicize the move and as "a way to give back to Dorothy."

That's the way a lot of people feel about her.

Although she says, "Anything I've ever done in Santa Fe I've done through the bookstore." Collected Works is more than just a business.

Local nonprofits know that, "Dorothy never says no. It's just not part of her vocabulary," Morris said. "Whenever you need support, she'll be there."

Since buying the bookstore in 1996, mother and daughter have offered the space to numerous nonprofits at no cost for receptions and parties and "Mary and I are determined to keep it that way," Massey said. "This is a community space."

The inviting coffee bar, café tables and plush couches, looking out on Water Street, make it clear that anyone is invited to browse, hang out, spend the afternoon sipping tea and reading a book — even one from the public library.

"It's very welcoming, and they have killer coffee," said Elizabeth West, rising from one of those comfy seats.

The store has a huge and varied inventory, but it's known as the place to find anything written by a local author, so long as it isn't pornographic.

It draws dozens of people to readings by local poets. A membership group called Women's Voices meets here. The local radio station KSFR hosted a benefit with Jim Hightower there earlier this month. Esperanza Shelter for Battered Families has used the store for a thank you party. And last summer, there were two readings of the Somerset Maugham short story, The Letter, which was the basis of a new production for the Santa Fe Opera. Both the Santa Fe Alliance and Presbyterian Health Services are planning events there.

In the last 13 years, Dorothy figures the store has hosted more than 100 events for nonprofits.

Local photographers and artists use the walls to show their work. All sales are referred back to the artists — the store doesn't take a cut. During the first four months of next year the Santa Fe Art Institute will be displaying new work by their resident artists.

Over the years, Massey has served on numerous boards such as Shakespeare in Santa Fe, the Short Story Festival and Desert Chorale and she ran the book tent for Spanish Market for more than a decade, helping to raise thousands of dollars for that group. She produces book events at the Farmers Market and for groups coming to the convention center. She also serves on the city's Business and Quality of Life Committee.

She's currently in the process of putting together some book clubs for people interested in various genres, mystery, fiction, environment biography.

Early next year creative writing students from Santa Fe will be reading from their work in the store. And down the road, Massey, who is 71, says she's hoping to start a discussion series for young people on topics such as, "What books do you wish were on your required reading list?"

Morris calls Massey the "custodian of the intellectual nerve center of the city," and says, "When you come to Santa Fe, this is the first stop to let people know you're in town."

There may be bigger independent bookstores in the U.S. (Powell's in Portland, Tattered Cover in Denver) but "Dorothy's store has the same reputation," he added.

Barbara Harrelson, who nominated Massey for the 10 Who Made a Difference award, said she was in the bookstore recently and, "I just started thinking that she's given a lot to the community. I see her around town, not just at the bookstore. She always has a smile on her face. She's always so warm and appreciative of what everybody's doing. She's what it's all about."

Janey Potts, a consultant and former managing director of the now defunct Shakespeare in Santa Fe, said Massey, "is tireless, generous with time and knowledge. She also gives generously. She is one of the absolute treasures in this community."

And the Rev. Talitha Arnold noted, "If anyone deserves this award, Dorothy does. Collected Works is truly a community center, geared toward all ages and backgrounds, newcomers and natives. Booksignings for everyone from the Navajo code talkers to former Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall, to Muslim women writers, have enriched the community."

Massey, who has been working since 1958 (and still often is on the job seven days a week), lived on the East Coast, where she was a paralegal and an assistant to former Metropolitan Opera General Manager Rudolph Bing before moving to Santa Fe.

After Dorothy's husband died in 1990, Mary Massey told her grieving mother, "We're going to do stuff together. We're going to run a bookstore."

They scoured the country for properties that were for sale. Massey had visited Santa Fe and knew it as a wonderful community, "somewhat matriarchal and welcoming to single women," she said.

They became the third owners of Collected Works, which is now 31 years old. "The bookstore was the right size and available in a city I could embrace," she said.

Massey loved Santa Fe from the start. "It's possible to meet the people who are doing interesting things and to become involved quickly," she said.

And the business climate was good. There was no Amazon.com, no Borders, and "Santa Fe is and was one of the most literate communities in the country." The large population of authors and poets immediately embraced her, she said.

Moving and expanding in the middle of the economic downturn hasn't been easy, however, and she and Mary had long talks before making the decision to give up their lease on San Francisco Street. But Dorothy says, "I have always been very bullish on Santa Fe, and I have confidence in the quality of its creative thinkers."

But, yes, she admits, "It was a very scary summer."

Contact Anne Constable at 986-3022 or aconstable@sfnewmexican.com.