7QUESTIONS+PLUS

Anita Faraone, who was named last month as vice chairwoman of the Kenosha County Board. In doing do, Faraone, who also co-owns a local real estate business, became the first women to hold a leadership position on the board. Now in her fourth-term as supervisor from the city’s 11th District, Faraone took some time to talk about the state of the county board. who inspires her and where she goes in her spare time.

Anita Faraone will now take your questions ...

If you had to explain your job as the county’s vice chairwoman to a first-grader, how would you explain it? Think of the position of vice chair like you would a substitute teacher. The substitute fills in for helping. I would tell you that as a vice chairwoman I am available to help the chairman but most of all to learn how to be a good chairman. Put simply, I am in training to be the future leader of the board.

How does it feel to be the first woman to hold a leadership position on the county board? Why do you think it’s taken so long for a woman to obtain a leadership role? The feeling is great yet humbling. I am thankful to my colleagues for such an honor. The county board over the years has not had a lot of women on the board. They have had some women as chairwomen of committees. I think of Eunice Boyner who was chair of Human Services for years and Louise Principe who was chair of finance. Kenosha and Wisconsin for some reason have not seen women in politics advance to leadership roles. I am hopeful that my role as vice-chair will promote other women to vie for leadership roles throughout government and hope this brings more women to step up and run for office.

What do you think needs to be done to keep the county’s golf courses out of the red? We need to take a good hard look at the overall golf operation from staffing to overall management and to how courses are budgeted.

If given a chance, what would you do differently in your life? I don’t really think I would do too much different. I am fairly content with who I am and what I have accomplished in life.

What communication device could you not live without any why? The telephone. To me, the telephone is still the most personal business-to-business communication. My personal communication to family and friends would be hard since hearing one’s voice is always a pleasure to me. E-mails just don’t do the same thing for me.

What advice do you have for living life to the fullest? Living life to the fullest to me means always making time for others, helping others, giving back to the community and the church. More importantly to take time for me and remember to thank God for the talents he has given me. So in living life to the fullest, remember to be thankful for what life God gave you.

As a representative of a district in the city of Kenosha, why do you think residents should pay attention to what the County Board is doing? The County Board provides broad based services throughout all of Kenosha County. At present, the city certainly is one of the largest participants of county services. People should be aware of exactly what services they pay county taxes for and what services are available to them. From maintaining roads to ensuring seniors are provided meals to vaccinating people from the flu, to maintaining public safety to providing quality parks for all to enjoy, to providing programs to help the elderly and those less fortunate than ourselves. Providing funds to aid in economic developments to programs that aid in all human services concerns to maintaining the Sheriff’s Department, courts, jails, emergency management and nursing homes are the major benefits that Kenosha County taxpayers’ dollars are invested in.

Who inspired you to get into local politics? I have always been interested in politics and have been serving this city and county on various communities for over 25 years,. I credit my father for showing me the importance of being knowledgeable about who represented us and the importance in voting and being involved. So my love for politics goes back to my childhood and to my father’s credit.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? Reading and working in my yard, I love to design cards and brochures and tinker in graphic arts. I also enjoy dabbling in writing. Most of all I love being with family and friends.

Where is your favorites place to be outside Kenosha County? I love the Madison area, Milwaukee and Chicago, and I love to go to Southern Illinois to see the Amish.

What’s your take on the state of the County Board, given Alan Kehl’s resignation and the recent turnover? The County is full of great leaders. The County Board should not be affected by Alan Kehl’s resignation. We will continue to establish policy and do what we as board members are entrusted to do. We have a great staff and a hardworking dedicated interim County Executive. Our next leader, Mr. Kreuser is in the wings and is already privy to what is taking place in county government. With all this talent, the county will do just fine.

What has helped you most in staying on as county supervisor? Keeping in touch with those I serve and not being afraid to take a stand on issues. That along with my fiscal conservatism is what has helped me most.