Community responsibility

Busy business professionals find time to give back through local government service

Story by Amanda J. Wimmer

But that doesn’t mean a spot on common council, county board or school board is easy for the faces behind the microphones at the weekly and monthly meetings. Meetings where public forums offer a variety of well-intentioned resident statements often bearing highly emotional banter. Meetings where hard decisions about budget cuts, redistricting, even sewers and garbage fees unfold.

Holding a public service position and maintaining a well-balanced career is difficult and emotional work coupled with a precise juggling act – just ask the people who represent your community, school district or county. But it’s the lessons learned, the sense of pride, the feeling of doing something that helps people that brings these councilors and board members to their seat at the table meeting after meeting.

Third time’s a charm

PETER STUECK HAS ALWAYS ENJOYED POLITICS  but never quite pictured himself in a public office position.

However, eight years ago Stueck was injured in a dear hunting accident leaving him with a broken back and limited use of his legs. His whole life changed.

“During that time I would have a lot of people help me with just about everything. And whenever someone did something for me it made a huge impact,” said Stueck. “When I got better and began to recuperate I kept thinking, ‘How can I pay people back?’ And so you know what, I thought – public service.”

Stueck prides himself on being able to make decisions. With that, he initially ran unsuccessfully for alderman twice in the City of Appleton. Finally, on his third run for the position he was appointed after someone who was elected moved out of his district. Stueck has been elected three times since.

Stueck is not only an alderman in the City of Appleton. He’s  also proudly held a seat on the Outagamie County Board of Supervisors for the past year.

While the role of public servant is important to Stueck, so is his job. He said keeping the issues that come up at his job as a real estate agent with Coldwell Banker – The Real Estate Group separate from his public office positions is critical even though both his career and his political roles are highly visual positions.

“In making decisions I draw a huge black line between real estate and politics. I don’t let one get involved with the other,” said Stueck, who has been a real estate agent for six years. “When I have a decision I do not take into account how it will affect my business. I don’t use my political career to enhance my career. I draw a huge line between the two.”

Stueck said he’s been surprised to find that people, even when they don’t agree with him, are civil.

“People will disagree with you, but at least 90 percent of the time they are civil about it and that I’m appreciative of,” he said.

Even when Stueck voted against a smoking ban in Appleton, he said most people were understanding. Stueck admits, though, that making such large decisions in his community is difficult.

Besides having to consistently perfect his leadership skills, Stueck has learned many lessons through his time in the public eye.

“Everyone has something to contribute, regardless of what the position is, regardless of their position or stance, regardless of what they do. Everyone has something important to add,” Stueck said. “I have to, as a politician, as a realtor, listen to (constituents and customers) and really hear what they want. I try to listen to what a person is saying and take it to heart.” 

A family tradition

FOR JOHN ELRICK A SPOT  on the Little Chute Village Board of Trustees runs in the family.

“When I was growing up my mom was a village trustee, so it probably stems from her involvement,” said Elrick, who was just reelected to his third two-year term on the board.

Elrick started his political career in 1993 when he was appointed to the Little Chute Plan Commission. He was later appointed to the Community Development Authority and the Board of Review in Little Chute.

“I started with being appointed to different committees in the village, and then four years ago I ran for trustee,” he said.

A project manager by day for Utschig Inc., a Greenville-based general contractor specializing in construction management, Elrick enjoys his spot on the board and believes it’s important to keep the entire population he serves in mind while making decisions.

“Every time we have a regular board meeting we have a moment of silence and what I do is I pray that I make the right decision for everyone involved,” Elrick said.

Elrick said he plans to keep his seat on the board for as long as the people of the village keep voting him in, but said he has no aspirations to run for any larger political positions.

“I don’t aspire to be a career politician,” he said. “The problem I have with the majority of state and federal government is that I don’t feel they have the good of the entire population that they are representing in their best interest. To me, they’ve lost touch with reality because they don’t have to deal with the people they are affecting on a personal basis.”

Cooperation and communication are skills necessary, Elrick said, in both his role as a public official, but also at his job, where he’s been employed for 12 years.

“Being able to communicate better with my wife helps too,” he added.

Steering clear of career politics

BURK TOWER DOES NOT CALL himself a politician.

The Oshkosh Common Councilor has served for five years on the council but said politics hasn’t always been of interest to him.

But, Tower, dean of the College of Business Administration at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, said one thing he’s always taught his entrepreneur classes is that risk taking is important. So he followed his own teachings.

“I had never been in politics, per se. I’d been involved with organizations, but never in politics. So it was kind of interesting and new,” he said. “I’ve always believed that when you are pretty fortunate you have an obligation to give back, so when people asked me to consider it, I did.”

As a 27-year City of Oshkosh resident, Tower ran for the council. Then he ran for a second term. And a third.

“Two years? It takes you two years to figure out what you’re doing. Then you get some things done, and then you leave. I don’t consider it a job, it’s not a job,” Tower said. “I love when 

people call this my ‘political career.’ This isn’t my passion in life, I do this because I’m giving back...the satisfaction I get is trying to make this a better place. I will do this for a limited period of time, I will have my chance to make an impact, and then it will be time for someone else to step up and give a different perspective.”

During his time on the council, Tower said doing his homework regarding issues brought forward to him has been extremely important.

“If I’ve done my homework and you have full confidence that you’re doing the right thing, criticism doesn’t bother me. You learn to take criticism,” he said.

Tower said he’s learned how to separate his roles as a councilor and college dean among other lessons that carry through all areas of his life.

“I think role separation is something you learn to do. The most important thing I do is time management,” Tower said. “When I’m working on this, I’m on this. Everything I do I could spend more time on. You have to keep a calendar. The other thing is, get a good night sleep, you have to get up in the morning.”

“There are core things that apply across everything and I think that is important. “Please” and “Thank you” become important words. You’ve got to get up in the morning, you’ve got to do your homework, you have to clean up your own mess, you can’t take care of others until you take care of yourself. The fundamentals are the same,” he said.

Allowing everyone a voice

JESS KING BELIEVES THAT LESSONS she’s learned as an Oshkosh bankruptcy attorney have helped her to be a better city council member.

“I think because I deal with everyday people in my job - I help people who walk in off the street reorganize their lives - I’m dealing with different cross sections of people. All of that gives me a window into this community,” said King, who is in her second term as an Oshkosh city councilor.

King said she became interested in running for council in 2006. From there she prepared herself through a variety of conferences about how to run a successful campaign. With a committee made up of 13 community members, King was elected to the Oshkosh Common Council in 2007.

“Being a lawyer, I have an interest on how the law affects people,” she said. “I really believe in participating in government and being active in those community decisions.”

But that doesn’t mean the issues brought to the table are always easy, King admits. When sections of Oshkosh were flooded last summer after a torrential rainstorm, King admits making decisions about the community were difficult.

“You’re trying to balance the opinion of 65,000 people,” she said. “There are times you are torn over what the correct decision to make is, especially when sometimes the majority doesn’t communicate with you.”

King said many times citizens do not get involved with local government until an issue affects them personally, which complicates the decision-making process. But King moves forward with her position on the council with the idea that she needs to listen to everyone.

“Listen to people, because that’s ultimately what people want is to have their five minutes. They want to be heard, and that’s important,” she said.

King said the issues to her that are most important in Oshkosh are the ones that include a vision for the future of a city she cares much about.

“Can we put a plan in place and will it make our community stronger? It’s stepping out there and saying we need to support our public structures. I’m constantly reminded how great our library is and how great it is having the Grand as a municipal building. That’s one reason I serve, I believe in those things. That’s really rewarding to be involved in those decisions,” she said.

An ambassador for local schools

BEFORE SHE EVEN HAD CHILDREN of her own, Kari Hawkinson was interested in the education system in her Menasha community.

Nine years ago, Hawkinson ran for a spot on the Menasha Joint School District Board of Education and was elected.

“I think the experience has been very rewarding. I feel privileged to be a public official,” said Hawkinson, who by day is an employee relations manager at Miron Construction Company. 

“I’m really happy in my role on the school board and being a part of positive change and representing people who have a shared mission and common goal.”

While Hawkinson admits that being on a board takes a lot of time and understanding, she recommends the job to others. Now a mother of two children, one of which will begin 4-year-old kindergarten next fall, Hawkinson said she’s learned a lot from her time on the board.

“I had no idea what I was getting into at the time,” she said. “With the school board specifically, everything is emotional. It’s special to somebody.”

Hawkinson said making decisions about the school district’s budget are always hard, as are decisions about redistricting students. The rewards for her come, she said, from enhancing a child’s experience in school.

“When I go to school events or even here at the workplace, my own personal opinion is that I’m an ambassador for the school district. When I’m out, I have that expectation for myself,” she said.

“I’m an HR person, so I think the biggest lessons for me in many facets of my life is to remember to treat people with dignity and respect. I don’t think there is any problem that can’t be resolved if we work collaboratively together. In the end, we have to find a common ground. Sometimes we don’t like where that answer takes us, but I think it’s all in the approach. If we sit back and look at each others’ position, we can get to that collaborative place.”

Amanda J. Wimmer is a freelance journalist and social media junkie from Oshkosh. She can be reached at www.twitter.com/MWgirl.