Omaha’s first female mayor, Jean Stothert, to be honored Nov. 9
Will become Omaha Press Club’s 159th Face on the Barroom Floor
The first woman to be elected mayor of Omaha – Jean Stothert – will be honored as the Omaha Press Club’s next Face on the Barroom Floor on Friday, Nov. 9.
Now in her second term as mayor, Stothert was first elected in 2013 and re-elected in 2017. She is the 51st Omaha mayor and will be the 159th newsmaker to be honored with the OPC’s prestigious Face on the Barroom Floor recognition.
The event is open to the public. It will begin at 5:30 p.m. with a reception. Dinner will be served at 6:30 p.m. with the roast starting around 8 p.m. Cost for the event will be $55 for members and $65 for non-members. Reservations can be made by calling 402-345-8008 and providing your credit card information or your Press Club account.
People also can make reservations online by going to the front page of the OPC website and clicking on the promotion box for the Stothert Face event.
Roasters will include:
- Scott Voorhees, program director and host of a morning radio show on NewsRadio 1110 KFAB (emcee);
- Jim Rose, a co-host of “KFAB’s Morning News” program;
- Don Bacon, who has served as Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District representative since 2017;
- Dave Heineman, who served as Nebraska’s 39th governor from 2005 to 2015;
- Todd Schmaderer, who has served as Omaha’s chief of police for the past six years; and
- Matt Tompkins, the morning show host on Sweet 98.5, and actress/writer Tracie Mauk, two “Omaha Live!” cast members who will perform a parody featuring the characters of Joan and Jan Stothert.
As Face No. 159, Stothert will be the ninth Omaha mayor to be honored with the Press Club’s signature Face on the Barroom Floor event.
Other previous mayors who had their faces put on the floor include: Gene Leahy (No. 1, 1971); Ed Zorinsky (No. 8, 1974); Al Veys (No. 15, 1979); Mike Boyle (No. 19, 1982); Bernie Simon (No. 37, 1988); P.J. Morgan (No. 46, 1990); and Mike Fahey (No. 105, 2006). Hal Daub was Face No. 23 in 1983. He was recognized while serving four terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and later served as mayor from 1995-2001.
Stothert grew up in the St. Louis area and worked as a critical care nurse and later as head nurse and department head of cardiovascular surgery at St. Louis University. This is where she met her husband, Joe Stothert, M.D., who currently works as a trauma surgeon for the University of Nebraska Medical Center and its clinical partner, Nebraska Medicine. The Stotherts have two children, Elizabeth and Andrew.
In addition to serving as mayor, Stothert was a member of the Millard Board of Education for 11 years, including three as president, and was a member of the Omaha City Council representing District 5 in southwest Omaha for four years.
Mayor Stothert's priorities are public safety, managing the city budget, job growth and economic development, and improving the taxpayer experience. Her goal is for every citizen to receive excellent customer service when they interact with city government.
In her first term, some of her accomplishments included:
reducing the property tax rate twice;
improving city services;
record spending on road repairs – since 2013, 640 lane miles have been resurfaced at a total cost of $58 million;
working with the Omaha City Council to grow the city's population and tax base through annexation; and
increasing funding for the police department to hire dozens of new officers.
Jean Stothert Face Event – Info Box
WHEN: Friday, Nov. 9 (reception-5:30 p.m.; dinner-6:30 p.m.; roast-8 p.m.)
WHO: Open to the public
COST: $55 for members; $65 for non-members
RSVP: Call 402-345-8008 and provide your credit card information or your Press Club account. Or go online to front page of OPC website (omahapressclub.com) and click on promotion box for Stothert Face event, or CLICK HERE.