Last Friday, new member Jeff Hanson told us a little about himself. He didn't come to Rotary by accident - his father was a Past District Governor and Jeff grew up helping with Rotary fundraisers and attending various Rotary Club meetings. He's pictured here with wife Patty and with his dad and brother, and the third picture includes Jeff's parents and his children. Here's the story he shared ...

Jeff was born and raised in Northbrook, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. His parents, Robert “Bobby” and Fran Hanson taught him at a young age to always give back to his family, his friends, his community, and his country. His parents were involved with Rotary for most of his life. His father was District  Governor for Rotary District 6440 in Illinois (1990-1991) and had perfect attendance until his death in 2015. His mother still helps out the Seneca, SC Rotary Club where Jeff’s parents retired.

Throughout the years Jeff assisted his father with Rotary fundraisers and attended various Rotary clubs with his father. Some clubs Jeff has visited are in Seneca, SC, Wheeling, IL, Northbrook, IL, and Ames, IA where Jeff was pursuing a degree in Industrial Education and Technology from Iowa State University.

After graduating from Iowa State University in 1986, Jeff returned to Iowa State on May 6, 1988 to attend a Spring event being hosted by his fraternity, Phi Kappa Psi. This is when Jeff met his future wife, Patty Ades. They dated and after a few months, Jeff left Iowa to start his new career in the elevator industry in Illinois. They lost track of each other. Twenty-seven years later in San Diego, CA, while Patty was attending a trademark/patent law convention they reunited. Jeff was residing in San Diego at that time. Jeff and Patty were married in 2018, 30 years after their eyes first met and reside in Dunwoody, GA.

The children live throughout the US. Jackie (28) lives in Ormond Beach, FL and works in the elevator industry. Nicholas (26) is stationed in Kansas with the US Army. Melanie (23) will be graduating this Spring with a Psychology degree from Sierra Nevada College and Charlie (21) will be graduating in December with a degree in Automotive Industry Management from the University of Colorado, Pueblo.

Jeff's children always came first. Jeff never missed a water polo match, Irish dance competition, soccer game, football game, or wrestling match that they were participating in, even though he was traveling 4-5 days per week for business. Jeff worked in the elevator industry for 32 years engineering and designing elevators, managing branch offices in multiple states, running regions, and for the past decade he has held executive leadership roles. Recently Jeff has decided to become an entrepreneur and has started two businesses: Play It Safe Playground Inspection, LLC to help protect our children, and Hanson Elevator Services, LLC to help protect the elevator, escalator, and power walk users. In addition, Jeff recently joined New York Life as an agent to help individuals with their financial needs including Retirement, Insurance, and Long-Term Care.

In Jeff’s free time he likes attending live music events, watching live soccer and football, boating, and spending time on the beach. He is also a fan of going to car shows and sharing his 1958 corvette with the on-lookers.

Jeff has thought about joining Rotary for years primarily due to how dedicated his father was to the organization and the good that his clubs were doing for the community and the world. Unfortunately, Jeff’s working career kept him traveling and relocating far too often to make the commitment. Work has finally slowed down and it was time to start giving back. The companies he started are all about giving back. The activities and organizations Jeff is a part of is all about giving back. Rotary is an organization that gives back and Jeff is glad to be a part.