River City Six: Mayor Jean Stothert

Jean Stothert is currently serving her first term as Mayor of the City of Omaha (mayors-office.cityofomaha.org), and will campaign for re-election this year.

Tell us a little about your career prior to being elected Mayor.

My background is in nursing.  After I graduated from nursing school, I worked as a critical care nurse and later as head nurse and department head of cardiovascular surgery at St. Louis University Hospital. Working in the inner city, I took care of people in the worst possible situations you can imagine.  When I became a head nurse, I managed about 40 nurses and seven surgeons.

When my husband accepted a job in Omaha, our children were young and I decided not to return to work in a hospital.  Instead, I volunteered in my children’s schools.  I was appointed to fill a vacancy on the Millard Board of Education, and then elected to subsequent terms.  I served on the board for 11 years, including three as President. I then represented District 5 (southwest Omaha) on the Omaha City Council for one term before I was elected Mayor in 2013.

 What are your favorite aspects of this office/position?

Solving problems for our citizens, and I can do that every day. Whether I meet people at an event, a Town Hall, or interact on social media, they know I will listen and get an answer for them.

What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced professionally?

Running for Mayor and becoming the first women elected!  I hope I am the first of many women to serve in this office.

 What do you consider to be your most important achievement as Mayor?

I am proud of many, but two stand out.  First, we have increased the number of sworn police officers to a record high level, 860.   In 2016, the number of homicides in Omaha fell to a 13-year low and the number of shootings fell to a 10-year low.  Our police department works with our community partners every day to make Omaha a safe place to live.  Second, a subject in the news right now is the preliminary increases in property valuations set by the Douglas County Assessor. Over the last two years, we have advocated for the taxpayer by reducing the property tax rate twice, once in 2015 and another cut that took effect this month.  These are the first reductions in 14 years.  I have pledged to push for a third reduction next year, in light of the large valuation increases many property owners will face. Citizens tell me every day that property taxes are too high, and I hear that.

Tell us a little about your family.

My husband Joe is a trauma surgeon at Nebraska Medicine.  We have been married 37 years.  We met in an intensive care unit in St. Louis and have been married 37 years with two children.  Our daughter Elizabeth and her husband Tom live in Washington D.C.  Elizabeth is a lobbyist for Union Pacific Railroad; Tom works for Amtrak.  Our son, Dr. Andrew Stothert is also in D.C. doing a post-doctorate fellowship.  His wife Alana is an elementary school teacher.  Our pets are also part of the family. We have two dogs, Ozzy and Lily, and two cats, Charley and Ruby.

What do you see as one of the biggest turning points in your life?

Moving to Omaha from Galveston, Texas in 1993 was the turning point.  I left Galveston on a sunny day wearing shorts and sandals.  I landed in Omaha during a blizzard.  I loved the city from that very day.

 What is your favorite thing to do on a day off?

Joe and I love to go to movies.  We take turns choosing what we will see.

What is the most unique or interesting thing about you that most people probably don’t know?

In September, I took a bad fall while I was walking the dogs.  The grass was wet in the backyard.  My dogs saw another dog and took off.  I fell and crushed my 1^st lumbar vertebra.  My doctors told me I would probably be shorter after I recovered.  At a follow-up appointment last month, they confirmed it; I am a whole inch shorter.  Guess I will be wearing higher heels

What are you the most proud of?

That’s easy, my children. There is no greater reward than watching your children grow into happy, caring, successful adults. I am very proud of Elizabeth and Andrew.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

A former superintendent of the Millard Public Schools always said we should talk less and listen more.  I have always believed good leaders listen; they also hear what people are saying.  Both are important.

If you could choose only one descriptive word to be remembered as, what would it be?

Courageous.

If you had a theme song, what would it be?

Girl on Fire by Alicia Keys.  (We played this song at the campaign party the night I won the election in 2013)

What is your favorite sports team, college or professional?

Creighton Jays basketball!

 What is your greatest talent that you don’t utilize in your daily work life?

I love to cook, anything from family favorites to gourmet recipes.  My favorite is Prime Rib Roast with Yorkshire pudding.

 What local non-profit organization(s) are you passionate about or involved with, and are there any special reasons why?

I support the Nebraska Humane Society in many ways.  I love animals and the Humane Society provides so many important services to protect animals that need love, care and good homes.

What is your favorite book or the last good book you read?

Recently I have read several books written by current or retired Omaha Police officers.  Brian Bogdanoff wrote Three Bodies Burning, an account of a triple murder case he worked on as an Omaha homicide detective.  Mark Langan is another retired detective whose book Busting Bad Guys tells real stories about his career in the Burglary, Vice, and Narcotics Units.  Now I’m reading The Senile Squad, a novel written by Officer Chris LeGrow about a group of old officers who continue to fight crime from a retirement home.

What is your favorite restaurant?

I like to support locally-owned restaurants.  A couple of our go-to places are WheatField’s Eatery and Bakery for a morning breakfast meeting or weekend brunch, and Twisted Cork Bistro for dinner.  I also love the sweet potato pie and ice cream at Big Mama’s Kitchen.

If you could have dinner with one famous person from the past or present, who would it be?

Malala Yousafzei.  I met Malala and presented her with the Key to the City when she spoke at the Boys and Girls Club annual “Lunch for the Girls”.  Malala is the Pakistani teenager shot by the Taliban when she spoke out for the right of young women in her country to go to school.   She has become an international symbol for women’s rights.

Malala’s message of peace and her story of hope, equality and resilience is especially important in the United States right now.  She represents leadership and empowerment to women of all ages.  From Malala we learn that anything is possible and women can influence positive change in our community, in our nation, and in our world.

And she is only 19 years old!

If our readers would like to contact you, how should they do so?

I have a website and am on social media, so it’s easy to reach me.  Website: mayors-office.cityofomaha.org; Facebook: /jean.stothert; Twitter: @jean_stothert.