Forward Janesville - TheReport - Second Quarter 2023

4 | FORWARD JANESVILLE Summer to me means lots of outdoor family & friend activities; beautiful nights of live Music on the Marv, festivals andArt Infusion, Farmer’s Market Saturdays and a personal favorite, hiking the Ice Age Trail! Endless opportunities make this community so strong and vibrant. And speaking of opportunities, in this issue of the FJ Report, I am reminded about how it’s the people that lean into this community who create opportunities for others. Strong communities are built by those who go the extra mile to seek out the betterment for many. Let’s consider a few. BEING READY FOR THE NEXT STEP A young kid from Wisconsin took his dairy farm upbringing and hard-work ethic as the foundation to create a strawberry farm, which in turn, landed him and his family in Janesville. During his financial career path, Janesville became the place where Larry Squire helped open the doors for the community to walk through as a teammember and community leader in the ARISENow partnership. GM closing its doors left many in disbelief. Already an established leader, Larry was not going to sit back and wallow. In a conversation with me, Larry once reflected, “We’ve got to do ‘something different’ if we ever want to see this town turn-around.” Larry Squire has an infectious spirit. It is that spirit that Larry and others held tightly to when shepherding the public-private effort known as theARISE Plan, and now more recently in his tireless work on the FRIENDS of the Woodman's Center project. Another young boy witnessing a life-saving event opened his door into a career of serving and protecting our community. That same passion led Chief Moore to hold open doors for many young officers to serve in roles that fit what they are passionate about. He’s created opportunities under his leadership to ensure Janesville crime rates continue at historic lows. A safe and welcoming community is the gift we can all celebrate. We owe a debt of gratitude to Larry Squire and Chief Moore's legacy of giving and leadership in our community, and we congratulate them both on their retirements. OPENING DOORS FOR A MORE INCLUSIVE BUSINESS COMMUNITY Together with a few of our business partners Forward Janesville is opening doors to make our community more inclusive and easier to navigate especially when those doors remove barriers like languages and access to resources – we want to see everyone successful. Forward Janesville is opening doors of communication through our newAdelante Janesville Latinx Business Council. You’ll learn more on the pages within. In this issue we also welcome Janesville’s new City Manager, Kevin Lahner, who’s bringing his experience and knowledge to open doors of opportunity and growth. We couldn’t be more excited to help Kevin be successful here in our vibrant and safe community. I hope you’ll enjoy reading more about the people and opportunities in the pages that follow. Regardless of whether you are saying “thank you” and wishing a long retirement to two amazing contributors to our community’s current success, or welcoming Janesville’s next City Manager, this is an exciting time to celebrate our community's growth and development as we look to future opportunities. Angela Pakes, P.E. President & CEO Forward Janesville . People Open Doors LETTER FROM FJI PRESIDENT & CEO