Hanneman recognized for eight years of service on county board
By Alexa Zoellner azoellner@dailyunion.com | Posted: Wednesday, March 14, 2018 8:45 am
JEFFERSON — As the April election nears, so does the end of service for Jefferson County Board of Supervisors District 18 Supervisor Jennifer Hanneman.
Hanneman, who has served as District 18 supervisor since November 2010, has chosen not to run for re-election. The district serves Wards 3, 4, 5 and 11 in the City of Jefferson.
She was recognized for her service by her fellow supervisors at the end of Tuesday’s county board meeting.
“I just want to thank everybody here tonight,” Hanneman said during the meeting. “I’ve enjoyed serving with all my fellow county board supervisors and getting to know everybody. Chairman (Jim) Schroeder, I appreciate all the opportunities you’ve given me to serve on county board. I’ve learned so much and I’m going to miss it.
“When I came to Jefferson County, I didn’t know a whole lot about Jefferson County and I have been very impressed with how things are run,” she continued. “We are a really well-run county.
“We’re very fiscally responsible and we have some great employees, including (Jefferson County Administrator) Ben Wehmeier,” Hanneman commented. “I hope you all do everything possible to keep him around for a long time. He’s doing a really great job.”
During Hanneman’s tenure on the board, she served on the Administration and Rules, Fair Park, Finance, Solid Waste and Air Quality and University of Wisconsin-Extension Education committees, the Home Consortium Board; and chaired the Task Force on County Operations and Organizations, and served on the Strategic Planning Committee.
Following the meeting, Hanneman, 45, explained that the reason she chose not to seek re-election is because she is busy with her work as an attorney for Johnson Controls in Milwaukee. When she started, she said, it was a part-time job, but it has “turned into way more than a full-time job.”
Also, her 13-year-old son, Alex Janikowski, keeps her “very busy.”
“He’s a really good swimmer and, in the summer, a lot of times we have practices at 6 a.m. down in Janesville, so sometimes it’s kind of tough to make it back in time for the meetings,” Hanneman stated. “He was a state champion last summer.
“I want to give him all the opportunities (possible) so that I’m not always saying, ‘You can’t go to practice today. Mom’s busy,’” she added. “He’s only young once, so I want to be there for that and have some time with him.”
Hanneman first joined the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors when she was appointed by former chairperson John Molinaro, who asked her to apply for a vacant position.
“I kind of thought it was a joke before,” she said. “I never thought I would have run, but I came in and I talked to him, and I liked what I had to hear and, at that point, I had some free time, so I decided to accept the appointment. Then, after that, I guess I enjoyed my service so much that I ran for the subsequent three terms.”
Hanneman said the most rewarding thing she has done during her time on the board was being able to see and be a part of how the county works, and plans to move forward, especially while working on the Strategic Planning Committee.
“I think we have some really talented, forward-looking people that work for the county,” she said. “To first of all look and say, ‘What are they doing right?’ It’s amazing what a good job that the employees do here, and kudos to them.
“(Figuring out) how can we move that into the future and make sure that the county is going in a direction that meets the needs of everybody in the future has been very rewarding for me,” Hanneman continued. “I’ve learned so much on both those committees. That’s probably the most rewarding thing.”
Also rewarding, she said, was serving on the Finance Committee.
“You hope the county’s run well, but I can guarantee you this is a very well-run county,” Hanneman noted. “All of our obligations are fully funded, we have three months reserve on hand at all times, and that’s very rare for counties. So I’ve been proud to be part of that. We’re very fiscally conservative and that’s important to me.”
The soon-to-be-former supervisor said the thing she will miss most about serving are the “amazing people” — both her fellow supervisors and county employees — that she has had the opportunity to work with.
“Jennifer’s been invaluable and working with her has been an absolute delight,” Jefferson County Board Chairperson Jim Schroeder said following the meeting. “I always say that, any accomplishment I’ve had in life is because there are people smarter than me around, and that goes many times over for Jennifer Hanneman.
“That’s why I appointed her to important posts like Finance Committee, the Administration and Rules Committee and the Fair Park Committee, because they deal with complex and, oftentimes, difficult issues,” he added. “Her work on those committees has been invaluable. She’s served the county, her district and the county board with true distinction.”