Support Staff Spotlight: Jane McKinven

Editor’s note: “Support Staff Spotlight” is a weekly series that shines a spotlight on those that work behind the scenes in our area county departments that keep everything running smoothly. These individuals rarely get any attention (or credit?) but are vital to their respective departments. A new “Support Staff Spotlight” (formerly known as "21 Things You Might Not Know About Me") from one of our six-county coverage-area county departments will be published each Monday on DrydenWire.com.

POLK COUNTY -- This week, we shine the spotlight on Jane McKinven. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Jane, she is an Administrative Coordinator At The Polk County Sheriff’s Office She has been at the Sheriff's Office for over 10 years.

Before you read Jane’s “21 Things You Might Know About Me,” check out what Polk County Sheriff Brent Waak had to say about her:

"Jane is such a positive, energetic, and professional person, who is a vital member of our team at the Sheriff's Office." -- Sheriff Waak

21 Things About Me: Jane McKinven

1. Office Nickname – Pollyanna, for my positive outlook in most situations.
2. Assisted in bringing Sheriff’s Office into a digital (paperless) vision.
3. Absolutely love my job and all of the staff here at the Sheriff’s Office.
4. Willing to lend a hand and be a team player.
5. Love learning new things and after 11 years still learning new things.
6. Do not mind troubleshooting problems.
7. Some co-workers say that I will lend an ear for work or personal frustrations when necessary.
8. I have been married for 30 years.
9. Took my first cruise in 2022 (to Alaska) – if you’re gonna do it go big! So wonderful and highly recommend if anyone has an opportunity to do it.
10. Absolutely love sandy beaches and warm weather.
11. I have a wonderful husband and 3 of the most awesome kids ever!!!!
12. We tend to name our pets rather odd, our current dog is named “Dude” and our previous (almost 16 years old) dog was named “Toz.”
13. I adore small children and my own kids frequently tell me to stop staring or being the “creepy mom”.
14. My family loves the outdoors and go on many camping adventures with our pull-behind camper trailer, including going out west to Montana, Wyoming, and South Dakota.
15. In high school I made a new friend with a foreign exchange student from Germany and have kept in contact with her all of these 37 years, even visiting her in Berlin in 1998 only the one time. Honestly, I would really like to travel more and see more places.
16. Previous to the Sheriff’s Office I had worked at 3 different law firms as a legal assistant.
17. I grew up in Polk County, moved to Minnesota where I met my husband, and then we decided to move back to the area.
18. I do not really care to talk much about myself so this is an extremely difficult task.
19. I like to give compliments frequently to my awesome group of co-workers.
20. I do not enjoy rollercoasters and do not like the falling feeling either in dreams.
21. I really like to daydream about what I would do if I win the lottery. It would be some sort of “pay it forward” scenario or helping others that I get to know by traveling to ALL OF THE places I want to go.