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The following is the introduction given at Janet’s gathering on June 4 at the Historic Blind Boone Home by John Baker, Janet’s treasurer:

Introducing Janet...

Thank you so much for coming this evening to hear from Janet, and, I hope, support her campaign for Boone County District II County Commissioner! Judy Baker, my much better half, is the Co-Host this evening, and she, too, is happy to see you and offer her support to Janet and this campaign.

 

When Janet asked me if I’d be her campaign Treasurer, I did not hesitate, except for the necessary checking with my work leadership. After green lights all around, I said Yes! Why?  Because Janet is the kind of county commissioner that I appreciate­––with her servant’s heart, sharp and strong mind, and valuable experience in the role. On top of that, Janet has a healthy legal background, she’s committed to all Boone County residents, no matter what perspective they hold, and she’s simply a really good person trying to help improve life for all of us who live in Boone County. Janet is truly All That!

 

County Commission elections are grassroots elections. In these days and times, experience has tremendous value, as does the ability to look at issues objectively and work cooperatively with a broad array of people who have various ideas.

 

Janet may have been born in Michigan, but she’s been a Boone County resident since 1959. After her requisite education and degrees, Janet worked for almost 25 years as an attorney, all of which were as an Assistant Public Defender. In this broad-based role she learned so much about how and why people find themselves in situations they may be in and how it might be best to change the course of their life in a positive direction. She earned her Juris Doctorate from the MU School of Law. Along the way, and wisely chosen, Janet earned her Master’s in Alternative Dispute Resolution in 2002. I would trust Janet to guide me through most any sticky-wicket position in life. She was elected to the Boone County Commission for the first time in 2012, and then again in 2016 and 2020.

 

Janet has made professional presentations locally, regionally and nationally and has published articles in nationally recognized Law Reviews and Bar Journals. She has also been a securities arbitrator for over 15 years.

 

I want to come back to the issue of experience. While Janet is not the presiding commissioner, she does have the most experience in the commissioner role at this time. There is virtue in experience. One reason is that right now, many good things have been started that need completion, and losing Janet would be a real loss to forward momentum and completion of some important programs. Let’s not forget that we had this little thing called Covid-19 gum up the works for a few years, and, oh, yes, the CARES ACT and ARPA millions to distribute—none of that was on the horizon as late as early 2020.

 

But right now, Janet is involved in:

  • Stepping Up—to address the over-representation of the mentally ill in our Boone County Jail.

  • Upward Mobility—to help Boone countians thrive and move upwards from poverty. This is a larger project of the Urban Institute, who chose Boone County as a partner and befitting county, and is one of only eight projects nationwide.  Boone was chosen largely because of Janet’s good work in this area.

  • Calling down grants, such as the Pritzker Foundation grant, which is helping provide more home visitation for young families, especially low income, and provide more early childhood services in Boone County.

  • And now Boone County is the process of creating a Health and Justice Coordinating Council—which will help Boone County better coordinate efforts and utilize resources for individuals who without these interventions, may become justice involved.

 

Janet’s excellent efforts have been noticed, even beyond Boone County, and she has been asked to serve as an advisor or officer of multiple national and state county leadership organizations focusing on Justice, Public Safety, Policing and Mental Health including:

            -- Chair of the Missouri Association of Counties Policing, Justice, and Mental Health Steering Committee

            -- Vice-chair of the National Association of Counties Justice & Public Safety Steering Committee

            -- a member of the Joint Task Force of the National Association of Counties and the National Sheriff’s Association to eliminate the Federal Medicaid Exclusion Policy.

            -- NACo liaison on the National Judicial Task Force to Examine State Courts’ Response to Mental Illness

 

Janet was named the 2022 Commissioner of the Year by the County Commissioners Association of Missouri; in 2023 Janet Thompson made a presentation with the Associate Attorney General in Washington DC; also in 2023, Janet was named the National Association of Counties Vice-Chair of the Safety and Juvenile Justice Committee, and then just last Thursday Janet was the keynote speaker for Job Point’s graduation ceremony at Columbia College. As another fan of Janet said to me, “Janet Thompson sows “seeds” wherever she goes.”

 

With concerns and interests such as these, Janet Thompson is a person who can be trusted to do her work to keep everyone’s betterment in mind. And she loves horses. But I digress.

 

Most of what I’ve said thus far is above and beyond what we may ordinarily think of as the daily work of a county commissioner. On top of all this—among much more­––Janet does:

  • Roads

  • Sewers

  • Broadband

  • Housing

  • Zoning

  • Development

  • Environmental hazards

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All while overseeing the work of 10 county boards and committees, and, of course, working to maintain the important relationship with the City of Columbia and the county's other municipalities.

 

I hope these comments give you a glimpse into who and what we can either keep by making sure that Janet’s campaign is well-funded so she can get her word out to secure a majority of votes to win, or we can lose her and what good Janet—and the Commission—does if we fail to adequately fund her campaign and her Republican opponent receives more votes. I rue the day and even the vision of such a loss.

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(Janet Thompson, esteemed District II Commissioner, please come forward to share with us your thoughts about the role of a County Commissioner in determining the future of our county!)

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